8 Best March of Dimes Fundraiser Ideas | Nonprofit Point

The March of Dimes is a nonprofit that helps mothers who have healthy babies. They support pregnant women who are at risk and fund research to prevent premature births and birth defects. These causes are important because they improve the lives of parents, children, and families everywhere.

The March of Dimes is one of many non-profit organizations that assist those in need. And if you know anyone who has a baby on the way, you’ll be happy to hear that the March of Dimes also provides financial assistance for those who qualify. However, as with any non-profit organization, raising funds can be challenging for them on a regular basis. The same goes for any other charitable organization in your area or community; monetary donations tend to dry up after the holidays or during hurricane season when everyone is trying to rebuild their homes or businesses again. Raising money for charity can be difficult year-round. But don’t worry — we have some ideas you can use to raise money for the March of Dimes and other worthy causes!

8 Best March of Dimes Fundraising Ideas

1. March of Dimes Signature Events

Since 1931, the March of Dimes Signature Events has helped people from all walks of life come together to celebrate, learn, and raise money for mothers and babies. Because these events are annual fundraising events for the March of Dimes that are hosted by the organization, there is no cost to participate! You can find events in your area by signing in on the March of Dimes website, clicking on ‘Events,’ and then ‘Find an Event.’ You can also select your state from the drop-down menu and scroll through the listings until you see something that you like!

2. Fundraisers for Kids

When you’re trying to raise money for a good cause, nothing is more effective than involving children and teens. Kids, especially young children, love to help and participate in fundraising events, and they’re usually happy to receive a reward for doing so. This is especially true if you’re trying to raise money for the March of Dimes children’s charity. There are many different fundraising ideas for kids only, and all you have to do is choose one based on your child’s age and interests.

3. Use an Online Donation Platform to Raise Money

When you’re trying to come up with fundraising ideas for the March of Dimes, it’s important not to overlook online fundraising platforms. You can choose from dozens of fundraising platforms, each with its own unique features. Some of the most popular options include:

Donorbox: If you are looking to accept donations seamlessly and start your fundraising campaign within minutes, then sign up for Donorbox. You can just sign up, create a campaign and share the link to the donation page within 15 minutes.

4. Hold a March of Dimes Walk-a-Thon

One of the best and easiest fundraising ideas for the March of Dimes is to host a walk-a-thon in your community. Walk-a-thons are a great way to get your friends, family, and neighbors involved, and they’re incredibly easy to put together. To host a walk-a-thon and raise money for the March of Dimes, you’ll need to select a date and location, promote the event in your community, and then invite your friends and family to participate! It’s helpful to host a walk-a-thon during the spring or summer when it’s warm outside. This makes it more comfortable for everyone to get involved and walk for a cause! Depending on your community, you may need to apply for a permit to host a walk-a-thon.

5. Bingo night or game day fundraiser

Bingo is one of the most popular fundraising ideas for the March of Dimes. Bingo night fundraisers are a great way to bring your friends, family, and neighbors together for a fun evening and raise money for a good cause. Bingo is easy to organize and there are plenty of free printable bingo cards you can use to get started. You can also choose to play a different game like cards or dominos instead of bingo if you’re worried about over-crowding your space or want to avoid any potential issues with noise complaints. To host a successful event, you’ll need to select a date, rent or borrow a space to host the event, and then invite your friends and family to participate!

6. Host a food truck festival

Food truck festivals are a popular event in many cities and towns. If you live in an area with a lot of food trucks, you can use a food truck festival to raise money for the March of Dimes and other charitable causes. To host a food truck festival and raise money for a cause, you’ll need to select a date and time for the event, find a location for the event (if you can), and contact food truck owners in your area and invite them to participate. Whether you’re trying to raise money for the March of Dimes or another charitable cause, it’s important to work with your city or town to make sure the food truck festival you’re hosting is legal.

7. Door-to-door donation drive

If you want to raise money for the March of Dimes or another worthy cause, a door-to-door donation drive is one of the best fundraising ideas you can choose. To organize a successful door-to-door donation drive, you’ll need to select a date, create a list of houses you want to visit, and then knock on doors and ask residents if they want to donate to your cause! You can ask residents to make a donation or you can ask residents to sign up for a recurring donation.

8. Food Drives and Food Donations

You can use food drives to raise money for the March of Dimes and other charitable causes. To organize a food drive for a cause, you’ll need to find a place to store the food and beverages that people donate. You can use your church, school, or community center to store the food, or you can ask residents if they’ll let you store the food in their garage or basement. You can also ask businesses in your area if they’ll donate food or beverages, and then donate them to families in need.

Bottom Line

The best fundraising ideas for the March of Dimes are those that work best in your community. If you want to raise money for this cause, you need to get creative and find fundraising ideas that work well in your area. If you’re looking for ideas on how to raise money for a good cause, the best thing to do is to get creative and explore different fundraising ideas. No matter how small your community or group of friends or family is, there is definitely a way to raise money for a good cause!

_{Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links and we might earn a small commission on qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. This helps us run this website and share more such valuable posts.}

March of Dimes Fundraiser FAQ

How much of a March of Dimes fundraiser actually reaches NICU families?

March of Dimes reports program spending of roughly 73 cents per donated dollar on maternal and infant health programs, with the remainder split between fundraising costs (about 18 cents) and management/general (about 9 cents) based on their most recent IRS Form 990. Funds flow into national research, NICU Family Support sites, advocacy, and the Mom & Baby Action Network rather than direct cash to individual families. If donors want their gift earmarked for an on-the-ground NICU at a specific hospital, ask the local March of Dimes chapter office before campaign launch whether a designated-gift agreement is available; many chapters can route restricted gifts to the partner hospital’s NICU Family Support program when the request is documented in advance.

What is the minimum amount a March for Babies team needs to raise to be worth running?

March of Dimes does not enforce a team minimum to register or walk, but internal benchmarks shared with team captains suggest a team of 10 walkers should aim for $1,000–$2,500 to cover the per-participant administrative and event-day cost and produce net program funds. Below $750 in total team raise, the operational overhead (chapter staff time, t-shirt fulfillment, event-day logistics) eats most of the gift. Captains hitting the $2,500–$5,000 band typically qualify for additional recognition tiers and can request a chapter rep to attend their workplace kickoff. The fundraiser ideas in this post are designed to stack on top of a March for Babies team page so a single walker can plausibly raise $500–$1,500 themselves before recruiting teammates.

Are March of Dimes fundraisers tax-deductible for the donor?

March of Dimes is a 501(c)(3) public charity (EIN 13-1846366), so cash gifts and most non-cash contributions are tax-deductible to the donor in the year given, subject to standard IRS limits (60% of AGI for cash, 30% for appreciated assets). The deductibility hinges on the donor receiving a written acknowledgment for any single gift of $250 or more — ask the chapter office or the online platform (Classy, Salesforce Donations, or the March of Dimes peer-to-peer tool) to confirm receipts are issued automatically. For event-based gifts (raffle tickets, dinner seats, auction items), the deductible portion is the amount paid over fair market value of goods received; the event invitation must state this split or the IRS treats the full payment as non-deductible.

Can my workplace match a March of Dimes fundraiser donation?

Yes, and matching gifts are one of the highest-ROI levers most teams under-use. March of Dimes is recognized by virtually every Fortune 1000 corporate matching program (Microsoft, Bank of America, ExxonMobil, Coca-Cola, Verizon, JPMorgan Chase, IBM, Pfizer, and roughly 18,000 other employers with match programs run through Double the Donation, Benevity, YourCause, or in-house portals). Donors should submit a match request through their employer’s giving portal within 30 to 90 days of the gift, depending on the company’s policy window. Team captains who include a one-line “ask your HR about matching gifts” reminder in every campaign email typically lift total raised by 12–18%.

What fundraiser idea works best for a March of Dimes campaign with only 4 weeks of lead time?

For a 4-week window, the online peer-to-peer page paired with a single in-person catalyst event outperforms longer-tail formats. Concretely: stand up the team page on the March of Dimes peer-to-peer platform in week one, run an email-and-text push to your immediate network targeting a $500 baseline by end of week two, host a low-prep catalyst event (Bingo night, bake sale, or jeans-day-at-work) in week three to drive a second push, and use the final week for matching-gift reminders and last-call texts. Avoid: gala-style events, multi-vendor food festivals, walk-a-thons with logistics dependencies, and corporate sponsorship asks — all require 8–12 weeks minimum to execute without underperforming.

Where can NICU families themselves get direct cash assistance during a hospital stay?

Direct-cash help for NICU families is a real gap that March of Dimes programs do not fully close. Three vetted directories families and fundraisers should know: the charities that give money to individuals directory aggregates hardship-grant programs accepting NICU-stay applications; the charities that help pay utility bills resource is critical when a parent has lost income to bedside duty; and the charities that help with car payments list addresses the hospital-parking and commute gap during a multi-week stay. Pair your fundraiser materials with these links so donors see the full ecosystem of help.