How The Johnsons Raised $10K+ For IVF!
It’s common for folks going through infertility to see the financial burden of treatments like IVF as a barrier of entry. We (the Johnsons) would like to share how we thought the very same thing, but with creativity, a lot of hard work, and a loving community, we were able to raise over $10K!
But first, here’s a little more of our story…
The Johnsons have been together for a decade, having met at eighteen years old. Growing up together was special, and of course we always dreamed of having a family. Mr. Johnson even went to school to get a degree in Child Development and works with kids today.
We’ve been trying to conceive for almost three years. Long story short and many, many doctors and tests later, Mr. Johnson was diagnosed with azoospermia, meaning he does not have any sperm. Mr. Johnson did have surgery to fix a minor varicocele (blockage) issue, but there was no change in sperm count. The only option left for the Johnsons to have biological children is microTESE (exploratory surgery to find and extract sperm), followed by IVF.
The price tag of both procedures will be approximately $30K. We are SO fortunate Mrs. Johnson’s employer offers $20K of financial assistance for fertility treatment, which left $10K for us to come with.
Here’s a list of everything we did to raise $10K+!
Garage sale - $3,956
Donation puzzle - $2,330
Cornhole tournament, which included a raffle/silent auction & basketball shooting challenge - $2,041
Sold items online (e.g. Facebook Marketplace, eBay) - $1,833
Clothing drive - $545
Sold used clothes to a thrift store - $45
Sold used books to a book store - $42
Tips & Tricks:
The key to all these events is embracing that it is okay to ask for help, it is not a sign of weakness. It was incredibly special for us to make ourselves vulnerable, share our infertility journey, and then see an outpouring of love from dear friends and family to complete strangers. It opens the door for true fellowship, allowing others to support you in a time of need.
The other key is promotion! Spread the word near and far to everyone you know. Promote on your personal social media platforms, community Facebook groups, post flyers in local coffee shops, etc.
Garage Sale, Clothing Drive:
We found it most successful to start with the garage sale. We asked our community if they had any items they were going to say donate to Goodwill, to donate to us instead. Our biggest lesson learned here is we completely underestimated how much prep went into this, so give yourself plenty of time for sorting, pricing, setting up, etc. Also, encourage drop offs versus pick ups to save yourself some time.
These donations also opened the door to:
Setting aside valuable items to sell online (e.g. Disney items, antiques).
Pulling nicer clothing to resell to a local thrift store.
All leftover books post-garage sale were sold to a local book store.
All leftover clothing was saved for our clothing drive.
For our clothing drive we partnered with an organization that collects at minimum 100 kitchen bags full of clothes, shoes, linen, purses, etc. The organization pays about $.25 per pound then flips/recycles the items to folks in third word countries. The biggest challenge here was storing many, many bags of clothing before the organization picked up all the bags, so you’ll need lots of space for this!
Donation Puzzle:
The donation puzzle was by far the easiest to execute. We purchased a big, blank heart-shaped puzzle and asked our community to help us expand our family “piece by piece.” Supporters were able to “purchase” a puzzle piece for $25. Then we wrote the donator’s name on the blank puzzle piece. The intention is this completed puzzle will be hung in future baby Johnson’s nursey as a visual reminder of how much he/she is loved.
Cornhole Tournament:
Lastly, we hosted a cornhole tournament, which was a blast! Teams were able to enter the competition by donating $40. We had 18 teams, which was amazing, but it took some serious organization to figure out the playing bracket and keep things running smoothly the day-of. The top three teams won various gift cards, which again, we asked for donations from our community. For example, Mrs. Johnson used to work in the food industry, so she was able to ask previous coworkers for gift cards from various food establishments.
Half-way through the cornhole tournament we hosted an “intermission” – a quick basketball shooting challenge where participants could sign up for $5 and they had 30 seconds to shoot as many free throws as possible. The participant that shot the most baskets won a donated gift card.
Lastly, we asked our community and local businesses to donate high-end items for an on-site raffle and silent auction. We received items like a used TV, sports memorabilia, jewelry, a painting, custom welcome mats, and more. This was another item that took a lot of effort to organize with buyer sheets, raffle tickets, and overall logistics. In hindsight, we recommend completing a raffle and silent auction virtually, rather than pairing with the cornhole tournament. Hosting online would have expanded our audience to far more than just the ~50 folks at our cornhole tournament.
In Conclusion…
If the Johnsons can do it, so can you!
