How to Organize a Benefit Spaghetti Dinner and Auction

You will need the support of neighbors and friends from a fairly large area -- your church group, school, etc.. 
We fed about 340 people, sold 147 items at the auction and made $7,600 for a family with financial needs (in addition to other money donated to their account at the bank)..

1. Organize a preliminary planning meeting involving at least 5 or more other people

• Decide on the date and time and amount to charge for the dinner (we charged $7 / plate)
• Decide on the menu -- will any food be donated?
• Decide on a place or a list of locations to check for availability to hold your event
• Make a list of possible auctioneers to contact
• Discuss who to get for an emcee
• Check into getting a microphone and sound system, and stage for the auction
• Discuss getting entertainment during the dinner portion (music, magic show, etc..)
• Assign individuals to be in charge of:

• We scheduled 2 hours for the dinner and auction, with a magic show to perform during the first hour and the auction to take place during the second hour 
• Plan on 200 people, but be prepared to feed 300+ Extra food can be given to the beneficiary family, or divided up among the kitchen and auction help. It can also be divided up into gallon size bags as "family meals" and sold for a minimal cost as people leave.
• Set a date for a followup meeting within the next week, when plans will be finalized
  Prior to that followup meeting, the food committee chairman should call a group of volunteers to help with the food, and have a planning meeting with them.
• We had six weeks between our first planning meeting and the actual event. This gave us enough time to have good advertising, and have our different planning meetings, plus get things donated. It could be done in 4 weeks, perhaps, but I wouldn't recommend less time.

• Talk to your local new paper about doing a "human interest" story
• See if there are places to advertise for free -- such as a community calendar, online, etc..
• Design and print posters to put around town
• Set up a benefit fund at a local bank. Include that information on the advertising.
• Create a flyer to distribute door-to-door (can send with those selling tickets)
• Have information printed in your church or school bulletin and sent via email to your "group"
• Ask someone to be the emcee that night, to welcome people, thank donors, introduce entertainment and the auction, etc..

• Design and print tickets. Stamp the back with a unique stamp that can't be easily duplicated by xeroxing
• Talk to the youth groups, scouts or other about going door-to-door selling tickets
• Have tickets placed in a few stores downtown where posters are hung
• the ticket person will also take money at the door the night of the benefit dinner/auction
  and will need to bring a cash box with some money to make change.  Get at least 2 people to man the ticket table that night.
• Make a sign to let people know who to make their checks out to
• Get a large "DONATION" jar to set near the entrance
• Check with local law enforcement about providing security -- you don't want to chance being robbed after all your hard work! Our law enforcement suggested taking empty handi-wipe containers, or something similar, in which you can secretly move most of the money during the event ,when no one is looking -- so that if you are robbed, all the money isn't gone.
  

• Schedule a location -- will the rent be donated?
• Get a sound system tech -- will they donate their services? Give them a receipt and 2 tickets to the dinner
• Arrange for entertainment -- will they donate their services? Give them a receipt and tickets for their group to the dinner (we had Batz Entertainment do a magic show)  Limit the entertainment to the first 30-45 minutes.  The auction goes long.
• Provide an emcee to introduce the entertainment,  welcome people, provide transition between the beginning and the end.
  

NOTE: You won't want more than 100 items to be auctioned. It will take too long, people lose interest and run out of money. We had 147 items and the auction went over 2 hours -- that's too long! some of the last items were practically given away
• Get an auctioneer -- will they donate their services? Give them a receipt and 2 tickets to the dinner
• Contact local businesses about possible contributions
• Include a request for contributions with the advertising that goes out
• Print "Certificates" which people can use to donate service-type items (such as piano lessons, babysitting, window washing, trenching, photo scanning, teeth whitening, etc)
• Create a folder with a flyer on the front advertising the event (with a photo of the beneficiaries). Inside, put a pocket of blank certificates which people can take, and a list of possibilities, to spark their imagination. Pass around at church or school for several weeks before. This can be combined with any food donation lists being passed around.
• Purchase several receipt books; give a receipt to donors with the approximate value they feel their donation is worth -- even if the item doesn't sell for that exact amount at auction.
• Print a sheet of numbers in boxes. As items are donated, tape or pin an assigned number to each. Record the item on a list, next to its number, where you can later record how much it sold for and to whom it sold. That way, there is no confusion about who should be given a particular item at the end.
• Make a list of items you know will be sold at the auction (as complete as is known prior to the event), which people can read over before and during the auction, to build interest.  Hand these out as they come in to the dinner.
• Bidding Cards -- borrow or make 1/4 sheet poster cards with large numbers on. Attach a large tongue depresser stick. Make a sign-out list for these "bidding cards" which people can check out during the dinner/auction to use in bidding on an item.
• Get several people to help in taking donated items in that night, giving out receipts, putting items on display, and taking items to the auction stand, holding up for the audience to view, etc..
• Set up a table the night of the benefit dinner/auction where you can receive items. Give receipts. You'll need at least 6 people to help with giving receipts, receiving and recording items, displaying items, taking items to the auctioneer and holding them up, and accepting payments afterward.
• Print small posters (8x10) for each business who donated, as a way to acknowledge them and give thanks
• Display the auction items on a long wall of tables, which people must file past to get their meal prior to the auction.
• If you only have one list of items, it gets crazy during the auction. You'll have people trying to pay for their purchases and leave, while you are still trying to listen and record as the auctioneer announces new winning bids. It is important that the auctioneer read off the number pinned to the item (so you can find it in the list) and the number of the winning bidder (so you can record it). It would help a lot if you could xerox the list and give a copy to your assistants, so someone can take in money while someone else is recording new sales. If you can't xerox the list, at least separate the pages and divide it up so more than one set of eyes can scan and assist with the record keeping.  If you could keep people from trying to take their purchases and leaving before the auction is done, that would be the ideal solution.

• Get a group of volunteers to help with the food -- so it isn't a large burden for any one person
• Decide on the amount of food to be ordered, and place the order early
• Ask a group to come set up tables that night (we got our young men from the church)
• Ask a group to come put plastic covering on the tables (our young women from the church took care of this and the serving).
• Fill water glasses and set out for attendees to pick up with their meal
• Ask a group to come serve up the pasta, salad, etc.. onto people's plates as they passed down a serving line.
• Make a list of food needed and talk to a local grocery store about giving you a price break. Place the food order early (2-3 weeks ahead) so the store managers are able to purchase the food in time, and at their best price.
• We had the 30 lb. hamburger donated by a local rancher, then purchased 10 lb pork sausage to mix with it.
• Contact the local health dept to get a temporary food license (about $20 in BE county)
• Make sure someone on your food committee has a food handler's permit
• Provide hair nets and plastic serving gloves
• See the accompanying list for other food assignments
• See accompanying list for food amounts to feed 340+ people
• Extra leftover food was packaged into large gallon-size bags and sold as a "meal for a family" for $10 each.