On Thursday, October 1, my friends Joey, Anna and Sara held the first
Bacon Cupcake
Cupcakes4Charity event in New York City at the Roger Smith Hotel. Through the power of social media, goodwill and cupcakes, they were able to raise $1,100 for the American Cancer Society.
Joey had never met Anna or Sara before, but had been following them on Twitter. Anna tweeted out something about cupcakes and the three began conversing and the conversation evolved into the idea of doing a bake sale to raise money. Within 24 hours, the concept of Cupcakes4Charity was born. They reached out to our friends at the Roger Smith Hotel to host the event, which they were more than happy to do.
Anna, Joey and Sara- The Cupcakes4Charity Founders
Quickly, they created a twitter account, Facebook fan page and an Eventbrite ticketing page. The concept was simple, entry was free to all, but anyone attending could get an attendee ticket or a ticket stating they would attend and bring cupcakes. People quickly signed up for both types of tickets as word spread.
As the time lapsed, the buzz spread and people got more excited. A blog was quickly added two days before the event. Pictures of cupcakes being baked covered the tweets of attendees. Companies donated prizes for raffles for additional fund raisers at the event. And Joey finally met Anna the night before while setting up for the following night.
On the night of the event, not only did two penthouses of the Roger Smith Hotel get
Me and my new Dyson
filled with cupcake loving attendees, but Joey also got to meet Sara. From traditional chocolate and vanilla cupcakes to more exotic mojito and bacon cupcakes and cupcake shaped cookies, the variety was as plentiful as the crowd. People mixed and mingled and tasted the treats at two dollars per cupcake for hours that evening. I was also lucky enough to win a Dyson vacuum in the raffle (maybe it was a hint to clean my apartment from someone).
To me, the most interesting part was the mix of attendees. At most of the social media events I attend, the crowd tends to be a more male, tech oriented crowd, but reaching out through the same channels these other events use, they were able to bring in a higher female to male ratio and a larger mix of people of diverse backgrounds.
With $1,100 raised for charity that evening, it was deemed a success by the organizers and all who attended. Anna, Joey and Sara are contemplating how to continue on and do more good through cupcakes. Although nothing is set yet, I know that not only would they like to do more good, but all the attendees would like to help a good cause while enjoying baked goods.
If you were unable to attend the event, but would like to donate to help cancer research, Sara will be running a marathon soon to support the American Cancer Society. To donate to support her, please visit her ACS Runner Page.
