Acknowledging Donors to a non-charity sponsored Silent Auction

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Magi Dabis
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in Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT®: General Discussion

 Hi all,

I work at the Hawaii Foodbank, a 501c3 organization in Honolulu, Hawaii. We reach out to hundreds of community groups and businesses each year to hold food drives and fundraisers on our behalf. In the past couple of years, a few of these groups have organized silent auctions in which the proceeds come to us. Sometimes, they'll ask the winning bidder to write a check directly to the Hawaii Foodbank. Then, they ask us to thank the donor with a thank-you letter and / or tax receipt. I've gotten away with a vague statement like, "Congratulations on your winning bid for a Doggie Grooming Package, as part of ACME Solutions' Silent Auction to benefit the Hawaii Foodbank. Proceeds from this event will feed Hawaii's hungry..." and not included any tax-receipt verbiage for anything under $250 coming to us. However, I'm not sure how to send a letter to a donor who writes a check to us for an amount greater than $250. In our thank-you letters to donors that send us a gift to our Direct Mail letter (so they are not receiving anything in exchange for their gift), we use a statement that reads, "No goods or services were provided by the Hawaii Foodbank in exchange for your donation." I've thought about using this same statement for the silent auction winning bidder--since technically we are not the one providing the goods / services to the winning bidder of the silent auction item. But the donor did receive something in exchange for their $250+. Does anyone have experience with this type of situation? if so, how do you write your letter?

Thank you,

Lara Grimm

Donor Relations, Hawaii Foodbank 

 


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  • JoAnn Strommen
    JoAnn Strommen ✭✭✭✭✭
    Ancient Membership Facilitator 4 Name Dropper Photogenic
    Lara Grimm:

     Hi all,

    I work at the Hawaii Foodbank, a 501c3 organization in Honolulu, Hawaii. We reach out to hundreds of community groups and businesses each year to hold food drives and fundraisers on our behalf. In the past couple of years, a few of these groups have organized silent auctions in which the proceeds come to us. Sometimes, they'll ask the winning bidder to write a check directly to the Hawaii Foodbank. Then, they ask us to thank the donor with a thank-you letter and / or tax receipt. I've gotten away with a vague statement like, "Congratulations on your winning bid for a Doggie Grooming Package, as part of ACME Solutions' Silent Auction to benefit the Hawaii Foodbank. Proceeds from this event will feed Hawaii's hungry..." and not included any tax-receipt verbiage for anything under $250 coming to us. However, I'm not sure how to send a letter to a donor who writes a check to us for an amount greater than $250. In our thank-you letters to donors that send us a gift to our Direct Mail letter (so they are not receiving anything in exchange for their gift), we use a statement that reads, "No goods or services were provided by the Hawaii Foodbank in exchange for your donation." I've thought about using this same statement for the silent auction winning bidder--since technically we are not the one providing the goods / services to the winning bidder of the silent auction item. But the donor did receive something in exchange for their $250+. Does anyone have experience with this type of situation? if so, how do you write your letter?

    Thank you,

    Lara Grimm

    Donor Relations, Hawaii Foodbank 

     


    Lara,

    I recommnend posting your question on the fund services site - lots of knowledgeable people who work in fundraising - broader scope than just RE users though many are.  It's www.fundsvcs.org   You can search archives too for related posts. 

    Or check with your auditor.  You're right the donor did receive something - I think that's pretty risky to not acknowledge that. I'd sure double check on it. 

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