Current Events: Adding a New Twist to Some Fund-Raising Standbys

Art auctions, benefit balls, cocktail gatherings, and bicycle rides are common fare in the fund-raising world, and few such events push the bounds of creativity. But several nonprofit groups have found that putting an original spin on such events can make them more popular with volunteers and donors — and more lucrative.

The Chronicle examines how four nonprofit groups have taken innovative approaches:

• The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Northeast Ohio hosts an “Art in August” event that raises thousands of dollars by auctioning off works that seriously ill children and local artists work together to create.
• Cocktail Charities, in Washington, encourages volunteers to work as bartenders at local drinking establishments and contribute their tips to charitable causes.
• The Eastern Pennsylvania chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society holds a benefit ball where women compete for prizes by wearing their ugliest bridesmaid dresses.
• March of Dimes, in White Plains, N.Y., raises thousands of dollars from motorcyclists who participate in a mechanized bikeathon.