Our "publicity" person in the club goes to local businesses and asks for support for our organized ride. The natural food store gives us bananas, etc; sometimes we've gotten Clif Bars, the grocery store gives us a coupon for food,too. We get a little something from the local hospitals. THey got their logos and thank yous on all our literature about the ride and signs up at the headquarters.
Most of these places have funds that they want to give to local organizations. We also got jerseys made with contributions from businesses that got their imprint on the jersey pockets.
It takes some persistence for finding the right person and sending the right letter of request at the right time, but it really helps a *lot.*