Mennonite
Central
Committee

Penny Power

The purpose of Penny Power is three-fold: to connect children with MCC's global programs; to encourage children while still young to begin sharing their allowance money; and to raise money to support MCC's work around the world.

This activity is fun for both young and old!

 

Promotion and Preliminary Work

1. Contact your provincial or regional MCC office to obtain a master poster, project information sheet and coin container label (samples included) for this year's Penny Power drive. Modify these by adding your sale site information/date(s) and collection details, then have them printed in quantity.
2. Consider contacting individuals and businesses several months in advance of your sale asking them to provide matching funds for contributions received through the Penny Power effort. By making the schools and churches aware of these matching funds in your initial cover letter, there is often an increased interest in giving to the project.
3. About 2 months before your sale, send a cover letter with the above promotional materials to constituent congregations and schools. Suggest that these institutions adhere the coin container label to a 5 gallon plastic water jug for use in collecting the coins. The jug can be placed in a child's wagon for easy transport once full. Personal contact with these groups is strongly encouraged. Offer to bring an empty jug and promotional materials to their location.
4. Make arrangements with your relief sale treasurer for safe handling of the collected coins on the day of the sale.

 

Equipment and Supplies: (day of sale)

Ask your local bank to supply bags for pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters; also consult with them regarding how they would like to receive the coins following your sale.

• Borrow or rent coin counters
• Several calculators
• Scratch pads and pencils
• 4-6 clipboards with attached pens (for Donor Information Sheets)
• Donor Information Sheets (create a form to record the donor name, contact person, address, phone number and actual donation amount)
• Poster/chart to show donation progress throughout the day (this could be in the shape of a thermometer which is painted red as donations are counted, or another object relating more specifically to the year's project)

 

Day of the Sale

1. Arrive several hours early to arrange tables and coin counters, hang posters and prepare the Penny Power display/booth. Have project information sheets available for sale attendees to read. Place a collection jug by the Penny Power station to continue collecting coins from sale attendees throughout the day.
2. Appoint someone to receive collected coins as they are brought in by representatives from congregations and schools. Saying "thank you" is vital. Each representative needs to complete a Donor Information Sheet, leaving the donation amount blank.
3. An MCC staff person or relief sale staff person should oversee the coin counting operation. Solicit volunteers to help sort the coins, operate the coin counters and bag the coins. Often sale attendees and children will offer to help as well. Record the amount from each donor on the appropriate Donor Information Sheet.
4. Modify the poster hourly to show the donations counted thus far.
5. At the end of the day, work with the sale treasurer to transport the coins safely to the bank.

 

Follow-up

Following the sale, use the Donor Information Sheets to write a letter to each group which donated coins, reporting their contribution as well as the total received. Thank them for their participation and encourage them to get involved in Penny Power prior to the next year's relief sale as well.

 

Sell cold water drinks

At the sale you could also sell cold water drinks, and talk about how scarce water is in other countries.

Check News & Events for water stories.

 

Abe, The Giant Penny

One sale constructed a large wooden penny and traveled with it to churches prior to their sale. A child sat inside the penny and answered questions from the story teller, giving the impression of a talking penny. On the day of the sale, the penny could either be placed on a stand with rollers or be used to give rides to children.

For photos, instructions, or to borrow a video showing this amazing penny, contact the MCC Relief Sale Coordinators.

 

Other Collection Items

The sky is the limit at the Penny Power station!

Examples of collection items are washtubs, wheelbarrows, livestock watering troughs, windmills which draw water when coins are inserted, tall narrow tubes with a funnel on the top.

 

Resources

 

Jar wrappers, stickers, storybooks, activity sheets, giving calendars, DVD & VCS tapes, Penny Power jingle script and music

Water Facts