Pledging is not mandatory, BUT pledging a small amount to the Ride, or simply collecting pledges from family and friends is a great way to increase the impact you have on Milwaukee’s cultural future. If every participant in UPAF’s Ride for the Arts raised just $15, together we would raise an extra $105,000 in support of the performing arts in Southeastern Wisconsin. How easy is it to raise $100? Just ask 10 coworkers for $10 each! Or four friends for $25 each! Or two family members for $50 each!
Here are some helpful tips to make raising pledges easy:
Ask for small amounts. They add up!
Ask family/friends and co-workers who may not give to the arts directly, but would support your efforts in the Ride.
This offers any donor who donates $100 to UPAF (through any means, even combined workplace and Ride donation, for example) buy one ticket get one to one performance by each of UPAF’s Member and Affiliate groups. This benefit is valued at over $400 (some restrictions apply)!
Talk up tax deductibility. UPAF is a nonprofit and often times your donation is deductible!
Furthermore, Pledge amounts will be combined with other donations (for example, through a corporate employee giving program) and can add up to qualify you for some excellent benefits! Additionally, the Ride offers pledge prizes ranging from Brewers tickets to Miller Lite gas grills to Trek bikes!
HOW YOUR PLEDGES AFFECT THE COMMUNITY
YOUR PLEDGE OF $12: -Pays for a pair of new ballet shoes for a student in Milwaukee Ballet’s Relevé program. Relevé is Milwaukee Ballet’s inner-city dance program. This program provides high quality ballet for over 150 students at four Milwaukee Public Schools.
YOUR PLEDGE OF $75 -Provides a Present Music Creation Project scholarship to a student who will work with a professional composer and her/his own composition. The Creation Project provides composers-in-residence to Milwaukee Schools and community groups such as the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra and results in original concerts of the students’ works.
YOUR PLEDGE OF $100 -Provides tickets for 25 children to attend one of Milwaukee Public Theatre’s shows at the Lincoln Middle School of the Arts.
YOUR PLEDGE OF $500 -Sponsors one boy's tuition for a year of Bel Canto Boy Choir.
YOUR PLEDGE OF $1,000 provides all of the following! -Allows for an entire classroom of students to see a matinee performance at Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, including a post-show talkback AND -Provides of one of First Stage’s Bully Ban workshops for a classroom of children AND -Allows a child to participate for a semester in Milwaukee Children's Choir, which uses the human voice to teach not only music but also important life skills such as poise, self-confidence, focus, problem solving and teamwork AND - Allows one student to participate in the Danceworks’ Mad Hot Ballroom and Tap program which provides desperately needed arts programming in Milwaukee schools while building artistic, academic and social skills among students.
