Scrip Website update

Funding challenges for the band

Running the Madison Band program takes a lot of time, energy and money to be successful. Unfortunately, with the budget cuts that schools are continuously receiving, there is not enough money to effectively run programs such as ours, so it is left up to the individual programs to find ways of raising money for uniforms, music, instructional support, equipment, etc.

Scrip program to the rescue

The Madison Band Parents Association is trying to do one "fundraiser" that continuously raises money for the band without having to go door to door selling marked up merchandise that often times is not easy to promote. We have teamed up with the Great Lakes Scrip Program, a company that purchases gift certificates/cards from a huge number of participating retailers from all around the United States and then sells them to the participating groups like us with a percentage of each sale coming back to the group.

Scrip can reduce your fees

If you designate a student, 2% of your order will be allocated to that student’s fair share.  That fair share can be used for band fees and trip fees.  Say you spend $200 per month on gas. You can buy gas scrip cards and get $4 applied toward your student’s fees.  That can add up to $48 per year.  Please note that all the fair share requirements and rules apply.

How does it work?

For example, if you know that you are going to buy $25 worth of gas, you could purchase a gas gift card for $25 and the band would profit a percentage from that sale. You spend $25 and you get a $25 gift card in return. You lose nothing! The percentage that the band makes varies depending on the agreement between Great Lakes Scrip and the retailer. During holiday seasons, many of the retailers offer extra percentages as incentives to get your business.

How easy is it?

Madison Band Parents Association has a new, free program called Shop with Scrip.  This program allows families to place their orders on line for scrip cards.  The orders are held in a queue until the coordinator releases the order upon receipt of payment.  The program has the following advantages:

• It allows the family to place the order in the system
• It tracks the family order history.  You can see for yourself how many dollars you have in scrip.  We can easily get a summary report at the end of the year.
• It will minimize keystroke entries and errors made by the coordinator.

Participating retailers

We have combined a list of retailers in the Madison, Columbus, Clarksville, Louisville and Cincinnati areas, as well as online retailers to make it easier to order. This form is updated on a continuous basis as new retailers may join or percentages may change. If you have relatives or friends in other areas and you would like to send them a gift for their area, you can view a complete list of retailers participating in the Great Lakes Scrip Program at http://www.glscrip.com. Choose which certificates you want, and simply write them in on the blank lines on our order form.

How do you get started?

1.      If you are a new participant, print out the Enrollment Form, fill it out completely, and return it with your first order. You only have to do this once.

2.      If you are a new participant, print out the Waiver Form, fill it out completely, and return it with your first order. You only have to do this once.

3.      Go to the Shop with Scrip website at www.shopwithscrip.com .  Read the terms of use and privacy agreement.  Our non-profit's enrollment code, used by the participating families for registration, is: E55BC1187926.   Use this code when you create a family account at ShopWithScrip.com.  It ensures your orders will be properly credited to our organization.  You only have to do this once.

4.      You can place your order on line.  You may see a note that our shopwithscrip.com scrip program is currently coordinated by Tim Brooks whose email address is timerixana@seidata.com.

5.      Send a check to the coordinator.  The orders will be released at the next scheduled scrip order.  Your check or money order should be made payable to Madison Band Parents Scrip Program (no cash please) and mail it in or drop it off to our coordinator, Tim or Erixana Brooks at 1741 E. 400N, Madison, IN., send it in with a band student to school, or call (812) 265-1961 and we will arrange to pick it up.

6.      When your order comes in, they will be forwarded to you via your request on the form.  If your order is greater than $600, we provide the option to have the order sent right to your home.  This could be a benefit if  you have family or friends from out of town who wishes to support the band.

It really is that easy!

We place orders on the first and third Tuesday of each month and usually have them back by the following Friday. If our success continues to grow, we will place more frequent orders.

Thank you for supporting the Madison Band program!