Tiny Tim and Friends

After an internship at the University of Zambia in HIV/AIDS prevention programming, Ige visited Tiny Tim & Friends outside Lusaka and was able to see the work that is done every day by TTAF volunteers. Upon his return to Canada, Ige decided to keep the connection with TTAF alive by making TTAF a central part of his HIV/AIDS awareness programming and events at Victoria College in the University of Toronto. Ige provides a rough guide to fundraising and awareness programming for university, college, and even high school students.

Make a Connection: Think Globally Act Locally

If you are on this site and reading this you already know the great work that is done by TTAF. On top of that you are also aware of the principle that the work is all done by volunteers, thus minimizing administrative costs and maximizing and prioritizing the care those who need it most. This is what resonated with me and with fellow students who were interested in helping out. So the first the thing is to make a connection. The connection here was simple: TTAF does great work; we are interested in raising awareness on a HIV/AIDS in Canada so why not connect the two for mutual benefit. Students and all involved in fundraising and the event that you organize will learn about HIV/AIDS and the most vulnerable risk groups as well as where they can make a difference. Whereas TTAF gains exposure and funds to continue the great work they do.

Keep it Simple:

If there are events that happen on a regular basis at your school, organization, or town try and utilize these events but have the theme change for a few to include HIV/AIDS and TTAF. This brings in other stakeholders broadens your pool of potential participants which again is a mutual benefit as they learn and will support your efforts. At Victoria University, Open Mic events happened every couple of months and were well known so this is the avenue I targeted to use as a fundraiser as it was proven successful in the past. We also used the calendar (December 1-5) where World AIDS Day usually occurs to drive home the theme. We decided to call the open mic for December “Mic the Change”. Students still had a venue to showcase their talents, but this time they were doing it for a good cause. A simple yet far-reaching connection.

“If you want to go fast, walk alone. If you want to go far walk together.”

The importance of teamwork cannot be overstated. Chances are if you are a student you will be busy so it’s important both for you and for the event/project that you are able to see it through to completion. You want this undertaking to be smooth, successful, and stress free. A team will help you achieve that. Find a number of interested and committed people to help you out. For instance, you can approach the team that usually organizes events and propose a TTAF & HIV/AIDS awareness event under your leadership or simply put a team of dedicated people together. While it’s not impossible to do this on your own, it’s easier and again mutually beneficial for you, TTAF, and your teammates if more people are involved.

Remember you can also approach business in the community for direct or indirect contributions through raffles, food donations, equipment donations etc. To do this prepare a professional letter on your school or organization letterhead and remember thank you notes!

Don’t Forget the Details:

It’s always better to have a small scale and successful event as opposed to a large scale event that is unsuccessful. This doesn’t mean you cannot go big, rather, the point is, if you are going to do an event of any size don’t spare the details (it’s not the focus of your event/project, but details are important). Give yourself enough time to sort out these details. Although, this might be an event that happens regularly, remember, you want it to have a draw and a lasting impression for the audience and participants. They should leave having learned something, felt they were contributing by participating, and have options to continue contributing. Don’t forget it can be fun as well.

These are just a few things to take note of when planning such an event. If you’d like more information or have questions about how to go about such an event, feel free to contact Ige by email at ige.egal@utoronto.ca.

Thanks,

Ige