The North Allegheny Rowing Association participates in the Scrip Gift Card Fundraising program. The Scrip program allows families to earn money to offset their individual rowing fees simply by buying many of the things you would normally buy at stores, restaurants, and other businesses you patronize. A percentage of each purchase is returned to NARA in the form of a credit, which will accrue each month in your personal account, and will be applied toward your next invoice.

Here is how the program works:
Scrip partners with over 750 retailers, restaurants, and other vendors. You purchase gift cards (or eGift cards – more on that below) that you can use for everyday purchases and earn a rebate. For example, the rebate for Home Depot is 4%. If you purchase $200 worth of Home Depot gift cards at face value through Scrip, you will receive 4% of that amount – $8 in this case – credited to your account for use against rowing fees.

While that $8 does not necessarily sound like much in the context of rowing fees, if you are diligent about using the Scrip gift cards for purchases, the credit can add up quickly without spending any extra money on fundraiser items you would not necessarily purchase otherwise (e.g., wrapping paper, popcorn, hoagies, etc.). As a general rule, grocery and big box retailers (Target, Sam’s, Walmart, Whole Foods, Giant Eagle, Home Depot, Lowe’s, drug stores, etc.) range between 2-5% credit, restaurant, hotel, and airline rebates range between 6-10%, and retailers typically range between 8-20% (Macy’s, Gap, Banana Republic, etc.).

While options exist for receiving gift cards (e.g., eGift cards vs. reloadable plastic cards) and making payment (e.g., linked bank account vs. credit card), we recommend using eGift cards (to avoid postage fees, we will not be ordering on a regular basis) and paying directly from your bank account (avoid credit cards fees of 2.6% that could wipe out the rebate from some retailers). The entire process is easily managed from your phone using the RaiseRight app, which allows you to purchase, store and redeem your eGift cards. The processing is quick, typically allowing you to purchase your eGift card while in the store waiting in line for the cashier.

When you register, you will use NARA’s Enrollment Code (see below), provide your student’s name so that the rebate can be directed to your account, and list NARA in the box for “Classroom/Group”. If you have family or friends who would like to help your fundraising efforts, they can register the same way. More information can be found at shopwithscrip.com.