This Sunday at 1 p.m. 100 people will take a swim in the icy water off Pine Point Beach for one reason – to raise money

The event will assist the Scarborough and South Portland key clubs as they attempt to raise money to construct a school or orphanage in Vietnam. The two clubs organized the same event last year and raised about $12,000 for tsunami relief. Students were thrilled with the event’s success and decided to host it again this year.

The event is one of many similar polar dips that take place in Scarborough, Cape Elizabeth and other nearby coastal communities. The annual polar dips are an example of the many creative and sometimes extreme ways that organizations use to raise money. School-related fundraising is becoming a big business, with school organizations raising tens of thousands of dollars annually for sports, school programming and non-profit organizations.

Scarborough Key Club Advisor Sylvia Most estimates the group raised more than $15,000 last year in money and goods that were donated to community organizations such as the Salvation Army.

Other programs were just as successful. Scarborough’s Project Graduation raised $15,000 last year, the Cape Elizabeth Football Boosters raised $20,000, and the Scarborough Parent/Teacher Organization also raised more than $20,000 through two fundraisers.

The money is important, especially since school budgets are shrinking, leaving less money to go around, said Dave Allen, president of the Cape Elizabeth Boys Basketball Boosters.

The $13,000 to $14,000 that the basketball boosters raise helps pay for a number of different activities, including the freshman basketball team and the travel basketball team for grades five to eight, Allen said.

The basketball boosters, like other organizations and non-profit agencies, all face a similar problem in trying to raise money – competition.

“Parents get approached by lots of needs, especially in towns around here,” Allen said. “There’s lots of demand for support. Each year we have to work hard.”

The competition means that volunteers and students have their work cut out for them when trying to raise money and, if not for their hard work and community generosity, many of these programs would suffer.

“Without a pool in our community, these are things we have to do to get pool time,” said Kathy Rogers, chairman of the Scarborough Swim Boosters, which raises about $3,000 per year through a bottle drive and selling advertising space on its team banner. “You could lose some kids who couldn’t be able to swim because they couldn’t afford it.”

Different methods

According to Rogers, one of the most important factors in coming up with plans to raise money is making sure they are consistent with the message the club wants to send to children.

Booster clubs are some of the more visible and active organizations that regularly conduct fundraising activities. Some, like the Cape Elizabeth Football Booster Club, use traditional methods to raise money.

According to Marc Weiss, president of the Cape Elizabeth Football Boosters, the group’s largest fundraiser is an annual raffle, which, along with money raised from gate receipts, 50/50 raffles and concession stand profits, helps it raise the money for the program that pay for various needs including uniforms, equipment and coach’s salaries.

“Every year the athletic department supports us more, but we’re still required to fund the program,” Weiss said.

The Scarborough Softball Boosters Club approaches the task of raising money in a slightly different way. President Tom Griffin decided to undertake most of the fundraising himself and, with the help of some coaches, offers a number of youth baseball and softball clinics through Scarborough Community Services. Griffin said he hopes to take the burden away from parents and athletes.

“I rely on a lot of help, but I don’t try to burden the parents,” he said.

The softball booster club raises about $5,000 to $6,000 a year through its fundraising activities and the money is spent on the team and helps purchase equipment, uniforms, sweatshirts and t-shirts for the players.

Softball, along with a number of other athletic booster programs in Scarborough, also benefit from the snack stand during the fall.

This year Griffin took over the stand’s operation and allowed different booster clubs to staff it during the fall sports season.

Each time a club’s members worked at the stand, they earned one share, and if it was expected to be a busy event, the group received two shares. At the end of the year, the stand’s profits were divided by the number of shares and all participating clubs received $210 per share. Griffin said the softball team received three shares for their work.

There is some discussion about forcing the snack shack to offer healthy alternatives. Griffin said if the entire menu changed at once it would impact sales, but he said he is planning on offering some healthy choices this season to see what works and what doesn’t.

The keys to success

With so many groups asking for donations, one of the keys to success is offering a variety of activities as well as having a diverse number of sources.

This year the Cape Boys Basketball Booster Club hosted the Harlem Rockets, but there are no plans to make it an annual event, Allen said. In addition, the group has put a twist into the traditional 50/50 raffle, by offering participants the chance to be selected for a halftime competition where a person has the change to shoot baskets from the free throw line, three point line and half court line and win prizes if successful.

The prize for a half court basket is now up to $800 – a number that increases $100 every game. Blake, Hall & Allen insurance company sponsors the event.

There also are numerous organizations raising money to help pay for school related activities.

Scarborough’s Project Graduation pays for the school’s graduation night activities. Last year the group raised $15,000 to pay for a cruise, rent Saco Sport and Fitness for a night, pay for entertainment, provide gifts for seniors and photographs at graduation.

The group this year is hoping to raise $20,000 for the event mainly because the class is larger and requires renting a larger place and a bigger boat.

The biggest event held by Project Graduation is an auction where people bid on items donated by area businesses. But the group also is trying to find new revenue sources.

Last summer Project Graduation had a booth at Summerfest that featured a pie throwing contest, and while it didn’t raise as much money as hoped, Co-Chairman Paula O’Brien said the event could become profitable if some adjustments are made.

Another group that raises a lot of money is the Scarborough PTO, which raises more than $20,000 each year.

The money goes back into the primary schools for field trips and educational presentations. In addition, each spring the organization distributes money to teachers so that they may buy supplies that were not purchased by the district.

The group’s wrapping paper sale raises about $15,000 and has become a tradition in town, said Beth Caiazzo, president of the PTO, and the group is now beginning to organize for its annual Yankee Candle sale.

“It’s been a tradition for the PTO for years now and people expect it,” Caiazzo said about the success of the wrapping sale. “It’s really a huge fundraiser.”