Inspired by the charity project “Münchner Geschenkeregen” in 2020, our marketing colleagues Anja and Lena, together with us vocational trainers, Marco and myself, founded the “SupplyOn 4 Children” initiative last year. We raise money internally to fund a special event for the kids at the Children’s Home in Feldkirchen which takes place each year on World Children’s Day, September 20. Last year the kids could jump around in the Maxxarena, a huge trampoline park in the east of Munich. This year’s plan: go-karting and bowling at the GoKart Arena in Neufinsing.
The fundraising platform: a very special trainee project
A fundraising event of this kind needs to be well prepared. After all, our employees can either support a child directly by paying . Or they can make a flexible donation of their choice for food and beverages. All of this is handled through a dedicated platform. Charlotte from our UX team designed this year’s website. Our trainees Christos, Lukas, Paul and Tim did all the programming and testing.
As part of their vocational training to become IT Specialists, our first- and second-year apprentices took this project completely on their own and even added their own ideas. For example, Paul came up with a feature allowing donors to add their personal greetings to the children. These very touching words were then printed on the children’s personalized tickets.
All in all, a lot of hard work went into the platform, front-end and back-end were diligently coded—and the result was really something to be proud of: appealing design, user-friendly forms, PayPal connectivity, email notification and reporting were all implemented by the four of them.
The response was simply incredible: the same day the web page went live, 80 percent of the planned trip had been funded by donations already. In total, we raised more than 1,800 euros. Thanks to this generous support from SupplyOn employees, the kids of the children’s home had a memorable trip full of fun and adventure on World Children’s Day 2023.
Go-karting: a fast-paced start to the adventure
Shortly after three o’clock, the SupplyOn delegation, consisting of the trainers Marco and myself as well as the two trainees Christos and Paul, arrived at the GoKart Arena in Finsing and were welcomed by Nici, Division Manager of the children’s home. She and a colleague were on site there with some of the kids. Outside the entrance was a discarded go-kart where the children took their first souvenir photos. The children’s faces were already filled with anticipation. A little later, all the other children and caregivers arrived, and registration for the go-kart race could begin.
After the children had registered for their driver’s license, the instructions for the upcoming go-kart race were supposed to follow. But first, the children wanted to thank the SupplyOn employees, whose donations made this wonderful day possible. They presented us with lovingly designed cards and boxes of chocolates as a thank-you.
Then the go-kart race began. The two trainees also joined in. The first laps were for getting familiar with the karts and you could feel the ambition in everyone. The smallest girl had great respect for the speed, but still she bravely managed lap after lap. Again and again, she waved excitedly and proudly to her caregiver. After the warm-up, the race was on! On the scoreboard, the lap times improved steadily. There was a fierce battle for places. From time to time there were small touches on the barriers, and it was often very tight in the corners. When everyone crossed the finish line, it didn’t matter who had the best time. They were all fearless racers and winners! “Let’s do it again! That was so great!” they exclaimed enthusiastically.
Bowling: simply smashing
But there was no time for another round because the next adventure was waiting: bowling. The kids picked out shoes, found the right sizes, and headed downstairs to the bowling alley. Not one, but three lanes were reserved for the children. The rules were quickly explained, and the appropriate balls were selected.
At first, the shots were a little tentative. But with a little practice, the first pins fell. The children became braver, stronger, and more accurate in their throws. Every hit was cheered and celebrated. Another hour with a lot of fun, but also physical exertion, passed and hunger began to set in. This was also taken care of, and we headed to dinner together.
Action makes hungry: a delicious end to an eventful day
The friendly staff at the GoKart Arena had prepared a long table for everyone. Soon, large plates of chicken cutlets and generous portions of French fries were being served. Everyone was obviously enjoying the food. When everything was completely devoured, the landlady returned with two more large portions of fries and a lollipop for dessert for everyone. Even the older “kids”, the interns, got one each 😉
Three and a half hours passed quickly, and it was time to go home. But not without once again thanking the SupplyOn employees for such an exciting day. “Can we please do this again? It was so much fun!” they asked longingly. So, we were all the more delighted to be able to tell them that we will soon start planning for World Children’s Day 2024. In the meantime, thanks to the many generous donations this year, we have a surprise for the backyard of the children’s home. What that surprise will be is still under wraps. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a surprise, would it? All we can say is that the children will have a lot of fun with it for a long time to come.
