As a former Fund Raising chair for my chapter, I saw many an effort blow up. We had some success with the credit cards (sorry, I can't remember how we did that one. I saw that question a few threads down). We also had some success with USA Today.(not sure if they are still doing that)
But hands down, the easiest and most profitable cash dash we ever had was with
Wolfgang Candy . Since most of you are not from the Central PA area...
They are a manufacturer of mostly seasonal candies and gifts. They send you the catalogs, you take orders, collect money, and deliver the candy. YOU DO NOT BUY ANYTHING TO SELL!!! This is not like the crap you had to do in JR. High, going door to door with overpriced candy bars. This is quality stuff at reasonable prices.
It worked for my Brothers, and I hope it might work for you. Swing by the website. It's not very informative, but it will get you started. I punched "Wolfgang Candy" into Google and got a ton of hits.
pman