Fundraising

Robinson Crew is a competitive varsity sport that receives no funding from Robinson Secondary School. All funding comes from fees and fundraising. During the regular season, Robinson Crew can have 100 athletes participating, and an annual operating budget of over $150,000. The budget pays for boats, rowing machines, coaches, busing, and other costs.

The Robinson Crew Booster Club actively supports the Robinson Athletic Boosters with 100% Athletic Booster membership.

Commitment is a very important part of Crew at Robinson. Commitment is required to withstand the grueling physical demands of the sport, to raise the large amount of money needed to sustain the team, and to keep the second largest Robinson sport at the forefront. Robinson Crew exists not only because the athletes are committed to their sport, but also because the parents are committed to their rowers. Rower unit commitment is a hallmark of Robinson Crew.

All Crew families participate in fundraising and other Club activities throughout the year and in so doing establish a bond and share unique experiences, which is increasingly valuable between teens and parents today. Booster families participate with their rowers in fundraisers, workdays, and regatta support.

To ensure that everyone does their fair share of fundraising, Robinson Crew has established a service hour system. In order to compete, every rower must earn the required service hours. Rowers and parents can earn service hours volunteering time at fundraising events and other activities, see the Service Hour System section below for more details.

Rowers are expected to participate in these fundraising events:
Tag Day - Every crew member is expected to participate in the Crew Tag Day (door to door soliciting) held annually in February. All rowers are encouraged to participate in one of the tag days. Any participation on the second day will earn the team member service hours.

Letter Writing Campaign - Letter writing consists of team members sending letters to friends and family members soliciting donations. Every novice team member is asked to send 10 letters and every returning team member is asked to send 5 letters. Student-athletes may send additional letters to earn service hours. Novice members may send up to 15 additional letters and returning members may send up to 20 additional letters. Each additional letter will earn the athlete 1 service hour credit. Specific details regarding the letter writing fundraiser will be provided in the winter.

Service Hour System

How to Earn Service Hours - Since no family dynamic is the same and it is recognized that some families may not be able to meet their service hour requirements entirely by physically being present, service hours may also be earned through the donation of various goods that are required throughout the season. It is generally recognized that the donation of necessary goods carries with it a service component. While the donation of goods is welcomed and offered as a way to assist our team member’s families, that for whatever reason have a difficult time physically donating their time, what the Robinson Crew Boosters Club wants and what the team really needs is your time.

Additionally, for those families experiencing financial or other personal difficulties that make it impossible to meet their service requirements through time or donations, please download, read, fill out and submit the Service Hour Reduction or Exemption Request Application and follow the instructions on the form.

Review the Robinson Crew Boosters Club Volunteer Positions for additional ways to earn service hours through volunteering.

If You Have a Question about Service Hours - If the service hours shown do not match your records, please contact the person responsible for the event, do not contact the service hour coordinator. Requests for service hour corrections must be initiated by the event coordinator and must be approved by the governing vice president, who will notify the service hour coordinator.

How to Reach the Goal - In order to reach the required service hours for the year, the following guidelines are suggested for athletes and their families:

Pace yourself - Do not leave your service hours requirement until the last minute. It can be much easier if you work at it gradually. Take advantage of service hour opportunities as they arise.
Sign in - Every time you work for service hours, sign in with your athlete's name. The event coordinator and service hour coordinator can report service hours properly only if athlete information is provided.
Keep a log - Keep a detailed log of your service hours as you accumulate them. This is the athlete and family's responsibility. If an error occurs in reporting service hours, you can use your log to help get the error corrected.
Act quickly - Respond to service hour opportunity notifications quickly before they are taken.
Volunteer - If you have an area of expertise or interest, volunteer to serve as an event participant, event coordinator, board member, or other volunteer. Contact an RCBC Board Member or volunteer to learn more about how to contribute.

Policy

Novices are required to earn 25 service hours per season, and all other athletes are required to earn 75 service hours per season. In the case of two or more novices, the family maximum is decreased to 40. The maximum number of service hours any one family must accrue in a season is 150.
Service hours for the season are measured from February 16th of the previous school year through February 15th in the current school year. Service hours earned on February 16th and after will be applied to the next season.
It is the responsibility of the event coordinator to notify the responsible Vice President in writing (using a spreadsheet) within two weeks of the event identifying the workers, service hours earned and athlete receiving the service hours. Event Coordinators are required to send their event service hour spreadsheets to the responsible vice president no later than the third week of each month, unless the two-week window prevents this. The Vice President is required to send the approved spreadsheet to the Service Hour Coordinator by the end of the month. The Service Hour Coordinator is required to publish the service hours the second week of the month.
Service hours will be awarded based on the athlete and family's participation in booster-approved activities. Hours may not be given away to other rowers after the event has passed and there is a maximum of 10 total hours, per service hour year, that may be given away by a family to a single rower.
Each athlete and family must participate in the necessary activities to accumulate the required service hours in the specified period. In the event an athlete does not earn sufficient service hours by the deadline, the additional service hours must be purchased for $15 per service hour. The athlete will be ineligible to participate in any crew activities including practice after the deadline until the service hour deficiency is funded.
Awarded service hours cannot be transferred except between siblings, however, an athlete or volunteer may earn service hours for another rower. Service hours earned for another rower must be notated upon signing in for an event.
All service hours earned after the deadline by underclassmen will be applied to next season.
It is the responsibility of the rower and their family to keep track of their service hours and bring any discrepancies to the attention of the Event Coordinator immediately upon discovery.
You have 60 days from the date of the event to bring any discrepancies to the attention of the Event Coordinator.
Service hours will only be credited after they are earned. Service hours will be awarded to coordinators and participants per the published schedule.

Donations

Although we have the full support of the Robinson administration, Robinson Crew receives no financial support from Fairfax County Schools or the State of Virginia. We rely on individual contributions and fundraising efforts to cover our expenditures, which include equipment purchases and maintenance, coaching salaries, and regatta participation fees.

Individuals or businesses interested in making a tax-deductible donation should contact the Robinson Crew Booster Club President at president@robinsoncrew.org.

To send a donation by mail, please send it to:
Robinson Crew Booster Club
PO Box 7086
Fairfax Station, VA 22039

We appreciate your donations!