7 Ways to Help Icing Smiles — For Free

You don’t always need to donate money to give back.

When you think about how to support Icing Smiles, or any other nonprofit you love, your mind might automatically go to making a monetary donation. However, there are other ways to help without having to give money.

“We’re never going to turn down a monetary donation,” says Icing Smiles Founder Tracy Quisenberry. “But there are so many other things you can do that are just as valuable. We rely on so much more than donations to provide smiles to our medical families.”

Here’s a look at seven ways to help Icing Smiles without making a financial contribution.

1. Use Your Social Media to Spread the Word

The average person spends two and a half hours on social media every day. Just one post, tweet, or Instagram story can dramatically increase awareness of Icing Smiles and our impact. 

You can write a post explaining why you care about Icing Smiles or how we’ve made an impact on your life. You can share about when you volunteer or are just thinking about the nonprofit. 

You can also follow us on Facebook, X, Instagram, and LinkedIn and sign up to receive our newsletters and blog posts. If one of our Facebook or Instagram posts or blogs catches your eye and makes you feel inspired, take the extra step and share it. The simple act of sharing could allow someone who might be eligible to receive a cake to discover us for the first time. Don’t underestimate the power of the post!

2. Host a Table at an Event

Another way to raise awareness of Icing Smiles and to attract and engage new supporters is to set up an Icing Smiles table at an event, high-traffic location, fundraiser, campaign, or on campus. 

For example, every year Sugar Angel LynnAnn Sklack has a table at the Green Band Boosters Craft Show where she sells her baked goods. About 5,000 people stop by the craft show. This year, she designated a portion of her booth to promote Icing Smiles. She handed out fliers, stickers, and chapstick and talked to anyone who walked about about our mission. 

“The last person who came through has family in California whose little one is sick,” LynnAnn says. “They got tears in their eyes to know that something like this is out there — that there are people willing to donate their time and energy to do something for someone else.”

There are two ways to involve Icing Smiles at events:

• Bring us along with you: If you have an upcoming bake sale, vendor event, or public event you are involved in, request promotional supplies to display on your table.
  
• Represent Icing Smiles at an event: We need vision carriers for the organization and love expanding our reach. Our Local Outreach Team is dedicated to setting up Icing Smiles booths at events to share more about the organization. To join the team, fill out our volunteer application. The Local Outreach Team works to find impactful events to be a part of. When you join the team, we will ensure you are prepped and ready with the knowledge of what we are, how we work, and why we are needed. If someone has a question that you cannot answer, just take their contact information and let them know that you will get back to them with the right answer.
  

3. Create a Cake or Cookie Sponsorship

If you’re a Sugar Angel, consider asking people you know to support your cake or cookies and Icing Smiles. Again, this works to support Icing Smiles not just by just raising money on behalf of our organization but also by expanding our reach past our own contact lists and into your network: You have direct access to friends, family members, co-workers, and other peers who may have never heard of Icing Smiles before. 

Creating a peer-to-peer fundraising campaign like a cake or cookie sponsorship really helps to increase awareness for our mission. Plus, your supporters will also feel good about helping us to create more smiles. Becoming a fundraiser for Icing Smiles is easy to do. We’ll give you all the tools you’ll need to get sponsors for your cake or cookies. 

4. Wear Icing Smiles Gear

Another way to help increase awareness in your local area and show your personal support for Icing Smiles is to wear Icing Smiles gear. We have an Icing Smiles bracelet with our logo on the front and “Baking a Difference” on the back. We also offer a Sugar Angel Smile Pack, which includes a purple T-shirt, a logo patch, and a window cling. 

Sugar Angel Heather Fields Sollers recently participated in a Girl Scout Sweet Shoppe workshop where the girls and parents saw her Icing Smiles patch, and she was able to share with them all the good that we do. “Maybe some of them will be future Sugar Angels,” Heather says.

5. Leave a Review

One honest, positive review can make the difference between someone trusting Icing Smiles or thinking twice about getting in touch with us. If you have had direct contact with us, leave a review on Facebook detailing your experiences. We would also love your review on GreatNonprofits. Your words will make a huge impact. 

6. Refer a Family

Do you know a family that has a child that may be eligible to receive an Icing Smile? The best way to connect them is to send them a link to our application. If you want us to do the work, we are in! Simply fill out our Refer a Family form, and we will send them an introduction that includes a link to our application.

7. Talk About the Mission

Word of mouth is one of the most powerful tools for supporting Icing Smiles. Hanging out with some friends after work? Mention the cake you made for Icing Smiles and encourage others to consider getting involved. Attending a meeting at your kids’ school? Tell them about an Icing Smiles story that had an impact on you. 

Tracy says vision carriers are critical to Icing Smiles’ growth and impact: “A vision carrier is someone who tells our story and makes an impact on another individual. Whether you share your cake on Facebook, talk about Icing Smiles at a cake show, or meet a medical family in need and recommend them for a cake, you are carrying the vision of what Icing Smiles is and does and are a part of growing the organization. It is incredible through word of mouth who this organization can reach. You never know who could be our next cake recipient, sponsor, or donor.”

Bake a Difference

​​There are so many ways to get involved with Icing Smiles, from baking or attending an event to referring a family. Learn more about how you can help create more smiles today.