Did you receive an thank you for your donation to your private school?

[Anonymous]

Hs- yes. Our K8- not always.

[Anonymous]

I would cut next donation in half after every time I don’t get a thank you

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So this is the second year we have donated to our school's annual fund. Both years we made a $1500 donation through our donor advised fund. Last year we never received a thank you from the school and this year it has been a month since the check cleared and again, we haven't gotten any acknowledgement.

Last year I did reach out to the development office, just to make sure the check got into the right hands, and they were apologetic about not sending the acknowledgement. I sense this will be another year of the same situation of no letter of thanks.

It's not that we need a letter for taxes, but we are just feeling under appreciated at this point and don't feel very motivated to donate again in future years.

I realize in the scheme of things, our donation isn't a huge one compared to large donors, but it is certainly more than the suggested donation in the appeal.

For what it's worth, when we donate to my husband's alma mater, we not only get a letter from the school, but we also get a phone call from a student, which is a very nice touch.

I would write to the development office (top person) and let them know about this issue. For all you know they may not know and whoever has the job to send out the thank you's is not doing their job. I would also mention the lack of acknowledgment is making you second guess donating again and you wouldn't want others to feel the same.

[Anonymous]

PP and if the top development person pushes you off or doesn't change it then go straight to the HOS. This is 101.

[Anonymous]

Devil's advocate here. I work in development (not in a private school), and while we always send thank yous to donors who direct contributions from DAFs, the paperwork that comes from some of these is murky and in some instances makes it sound as if no thank you should be sent. We know of course, that there's nothing wrong with ever saying thank you, but it can be confusing. Remember, that money was not yours. You gave it to a DAF and got your deduction. Now you can say where you want it to go, in most cases, but it wasn't yours anymore. Just another point of view. DAFs are the scourge of fundraisers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Always. 100%.

We don't care but not getting one is just REALLY shoddy and poor business practice.
There are donors who will cease to give if they do not receive acknowledgement.

Trust me, most private schools could care less about donors who direct $1,500 from a DAF then complain in public about getting a TY.

[Anonymous]

From this thread, I can see that there are plenty of donors who need a TY so indeed it is poor practice not to send one and risk having those people reduce their donation or stop giving altogether.

Personally, I don’t need a thank you as long as I can see the money is being used to support the students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Devil's advocate here. I work in development (not in a private school), and while we always send thank yous to donors who direct contributions from DAFs, the paperwork that comes from some of these is murky and in some instances makes it sound as if no thank you should be sent. We know of course, that there's nothing wrong with ever saying thank you, but it can be confusing. Remember, that money was not yours. You gave it to a DAF and got your deduction. Now you can say where you want it to go, in most cases, but it wasn't yours anymore. Just another point of view. DAFs are the scourge of fundraisers.

OP here. We use our DAF for numerous donations to large and small organizations and always get a thank you letter. When I submit the grant request, I always make sure to check the box that indicates they will put full name and address of donors. We have gotten thank you notes for donations as small as $200 from this fund.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Devil's advocate here. I work in development (not in a private school), and while we always send thank yous to donors who direct contributions from DAFs, the paperwork that comes from some of these is murky and in some instances makes it sound as if no thank you should be sent. We know of course, that there's nothing wrong with ever saying thank you, but it can be confusing. Remember, that money was not yours. You gave it to a DAF and got your deduction. Now you can say where you want it to go, in most cases, but it wasn't yours anymore. Just another point of view. DAFs are the scourge of fundraisers.

OP here. We use our DAF for numerous donations to large and small organizations and always get a thank you letter. When I submit the grant request, I always make sure to check the box that indicates they will put full name and address of donors. We have gotten thank you notes for donations as small as $200 from this fund.

If you want to pay someone to tell you a great you are, just do it directly.

[Anonymous]

Yes. An email, a card in the mail and a receipt for taxes that also said TY.

[Anonymous]

Wow. That's kind of pathetic. We gave $250 to our private, and got a thank you letter

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Devil's advocate here. I work in development (not in a private school), and while we always send thank yous to donors who direct contributions from DAFs, the paperwork that comes from some of these is murky and in some instances makes it sound as if no thank you should be sent. We know of course, that there's nothing wrong with ever saying thank you, but it can be confusing. Remember, that money was not yours. You gave it to a DAF and got your deduction. Now you can say where you want it to go, in most cases, but it wasn't yours anymore. Just another point of view. DAFs are the scourge of fundraisers.

I thank someone who buys me a cup of coffee. I don’t think expecting an automated form email for a donation to an organization that depends on donations is asking too much. To not put in that effort feels a bit entitled and ungrateful. For me, it’s not about the gratification, it’s more about confirmation/acknowledging it. Without any sort of confirmation, the money feels like it’s just going into a black hole.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Devil's advocate here. I work in development (not in a private school), and while we always send thank yous to donors who direct contributions from DAFs, the paperwork that comes from some of these is murky and in some instances makes it sound as if no thank you should be sent. We know of course, that there's nothing wrong with ever saying thank you, but it can be confusing. Remember, that money was not yours. You gave it to a DAF and got your deduction. Now you can say where you want it to go, in most cases, but it wasn't yours anymore. Just another point of view. DAFs are the scourge of fundraisers.

This. I have a role in this for a volunteer org and I'm confused by DAF's.


But generally support the org or don't. Don't a demanding jerk over a TYs that are not need for tax purposes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Devil's advocate here. I work in development (not in a private school), and while we always send thank yous to donors who direct contributions from DAFs, the paperwork that comes from some of these is murky and in some instances makes it sound as if no thank you should be sent. We know of course, that there's nothing wrong with ever saying thank you, but it can be confusing. Remember, that money was not yours. You gave it to a DAF and got your deduction. Now you can say where you want it to go, in most cases, but it wasn't yours anymore. Just another point of view. DAFs are the scourge of fundraisers.

This. I have a role in this for a volunteer org and I'm confused by DAF's.


But generally support the org or don't. Don't a demanding jerk over a TYs that are not need for tax purposes.

Nobody is being a demanding jerk over a thank you. My donations are charity and there are thousands of other places it can go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. An email, a card in the mail and a receipt for taxes that also said TY.

They already used their DAF contribution for a charitable deduction, so they do not get a tax letter. With donations at that size, I doubt OP itemizes to need tax letters anyway. But yes, of course, it's basic best practice to thank donors, even those who are directing the gift from a fund that they gave to previously.