How to Host a Virtual House Party

A great way to raise funds and friends for the New York State Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival is to hold a virtual fundraising party. Virtual parties help build relationships and commitment to the Campaign, and raise resources for upcoming activities.  

Before you start: Be clear that the funds are supporting the New York State Poor People’s Campaign, which will also support regional efforts.  Feel free to highlight events and programs coming up (in 2020: Harriet Tubman Institute, , making virtual events accessible in terms of language and internet access, Fall People’s Assembly).

Read on for some virtual party styles and a sample event flow & planning schedule.  If you’re ready to host a party or have any questions contact Rev. Beth DuBois at svpcpastor@gmail.com.

Party Styles (pick and choose from these or create your own style)  

Traditional – 20 or 30 people on zoom or another platform for 1.5 - 2 hours. Enjoy your favorite cocktails, snacks or fancy finger foods.  Plan some ways to mingle – introductions, small group breakouts, show and tell – use your creativity. The guest list could be “half and half” – about half the invitations go to people connected to the host(s) and about half go to Campaigners (someone from NYS PPC can help you with this). You can have a suggested donation or leave it open.

Hijack another party – Planning your birthday party, graduation or another celebration? Invite who you would normally invite and proclaim “It’s my party and I’ll Campaign if I want to” – ask folks to donate instead of giving gifts.

BBQ –Share a virtual backyard cookout and trade recipes for the best burger, barbecue sauce, seasoning …Ask everyone to chip in $10 or $20 toward the cause.  

Community Breakfast or Morning Coffee– This might be a great event for early-risers who would enjoy getting together before moving on to the tasks for the day. Ask for a suggested donation, inspire folks with a Campaign video and invite people to donate more if they are so moved.

Sample Event (1 hour)

• Greet guests and introductions (5 minutes)

• Short program (30 minutes or less)

1. Welcome – have the hosts introduce themselves, welcome everyone, and introduce a few Campaign leaders and/or special guests (5 minutes)
2. Play a campaign music video (see resources below)
3. Inspiring presentation -- show a short video and have someone make a short presentation on why the Campaign is so important and exciting to them (5-10 minutes)
4. Make “the Ask” – invite people to give so this Campaign can be successful and grow. Be sure to tell guests what to do with their donations.  (5 minutes)
5. After - answer a few questions and/or point out folks in the room who can answer questions after the presentation (5 minutes)
6. Close - with a Campaign song (or similar) & let folks know to continue to enjoy themselves (5 minutes)

Planning Schedule

3 weeks out the host will

1. Pick a team of 3 or 4 folks to help make the party happen – friends, family or other Campaigners are all great. A good host/team will be:

• Passionate about the Campaign & throwing the party
• Eager to invite their own friends, family, colleagues, congregation members, etc.
• Willing to make calls to get rsvps in the weeks before and make thank you calls after
• Able to make the attendees feel welcome
• Ready to make their own donation (of whatever amount) during the party

Decide on date, time, place, number of people you want to attend, and style of party

2 weeks out the team will

1. Plan the party

• What is the basic flow of the event (outline above)
• Is there a suggested donation?  If so, how much?  And if you’re planning a Giving Tree party, start brainstorming the Wish List for donations.

2. Make a guest list. Invite about 3 times as many people as you would like to come. For a 20-person party, invite 60 people. Keep a list (the team could share a spreadsheet on Google Drive) that includes names, whose contact they are, phone numbers, emails, if they have been invited, and their rsvp).  Who to invite really depends on the team and the style.  
3. Send the invites. Include time, place, hosts, how to rsvp & who to call with questions. Let them know that it’s a party to raise funds and friends for the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival in your state.

1 week out, the team will  

1. Assign detailed tasks (ask other Campaigners to help with any of these roles).

• Who will make phone calls?
• Who will do each part of the program? (Welcome, Presentation, Ask, After, Close)
• Who will run “tech” (music, showing a video, etc.)? Monitor the waiting room? Monitor the chat?

2. Begin making phone calls to get rsvps – track them on the spreadsheet (be sure to let folks who can’t come know how to donate if they’d like to)
3. If you’re doing a Giving Tree, make the notes outlining the contributions.

1-3 days before, the team will

1. Send a reminder to everyone who has RSVP’d yes (or not yet responded) and give them the zoom information. (NOTE: If you need a Zoom line, contact Emily at emcneill@labor-religion.org.)
2. Review the plan for the evening & confirm that everyone is all set with their assigned roles
3. Set a debrief phone call for a day or two after the party so the team can talk about how it went

Day of, everyone should have fun at the party.

The week after, the team will

1. Debrief (how many people came, what contributions did you raise, were there any other offers of support, any funny stories, what went well, what would you do different next time)
2. Make follow up calls to thank everyone who came & helped out
3. Let the state house party coordinator know how it went! Follow up with Rev. Beth DuBois at svpcpastor@gmail.com.

NY State Donation Logistics:

Our fiscal sponsor is the Labor Religion Coalition of New York.  They ensure that accounting occurs accurately, there is an annual review and thank you notes are sent.

To donate: The best way to donate is at nysppc.org/donate. Donating with check is fine, too. Checks should be made out to Labor-Religion Coalition of NYS with "PPC" in the memo line and mailed to 800 Troy-Schenectady Rd, Latham, NY 12110.

Current Campaign Video Options:

There are many national and New York State PPC videos to choose from!

Here are some options:

Empire State Rumblings: This is a half-hour film about the launch of the PPC in New York.

We Cried Power: A 45-minute preview of a forthcoming full-length film is available for PPC use. The versions and criteria for screenings may change as the official release gets closer. Please contact Iliana Sosa to confirm what options are available at the time of your house party. sosa.iliana@gmail.com

The Other America – Short film from national PPC’s tours around the country.

PPC Demands Video - Short video including all the PPC demands.

NYS PPC Video Library- A library of videos produced by and about the New York State PPC.

Music videos:

Somebody’s Hurting My Brother

We Are a New Unsettling Force

Everybody’s Got a Right to Live

Everybody’s Got a Right to Live June 20 YouTube playlist