Memorial donation page

How to set up a donation page in memory of someone, what to write on it, and how to share the link in the obituary.

A memorial donation page lets friends and family give to a cause in your loved one's name, instead of (or in addition to) flowers. It is also the cleanest way to track who gave what, so the family can send thank-you notes later. This page is the practical setup.

Pick a cause that fit the person

Specific is better than vague. A teacher's family directs donations to the local literacy program where she volunteered. A father who beat lymphoma once and then lost the second time has donations directed to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The animal lover, a no-kill shelter. The veteran, the local VFW post. Two or three causes is fine; a list of seven is too many for the obituary.

Three ways to host the donation

Direct to the nonprofit. Most large nonprofits have a memorial gift form on their site. Give the URL in the obituary. Donations are tax-deductible. The nonprofit will notify the family of each gift.
A fundraiser on a giving platform. Facebook Fundraisers, GoFundMe, and Givebutter let you create a memorial page in minutes. You get a single link and a public donation count. Choose this if the family wants to see the running total. Note Facebook and GoFundMe take a small platform fee.
A memorial page that links out. Many Stillwith-style memorial pages have a donation section where you can link to one or more causes, with a short note from the family about why each cause was chosen. This is our preferred setup: the memorial page is the single destination, and donors choose where to give.

What to write on the donation page

Three or four sentences is enough. Why this cause. Why it mattered to him or her. A short, specific story. The link to give. Example:

Mom spent eighteen years teaching second grade at Holy Family School. She believed every kid deserved a book of their own. In her memory, we are asking for donations to First Book, which puts books in the hands of kids in low-income classrooms. Click here to give. We will read every note.

How to share the link

In the obituary, after the service details. See in lieu of flowers wording for the standard phrasing.
On the back of the funeral program. (Our funeral program template has a slot for it.)
On the memorial page itself, where it will live for years.
In thank-you notes sent six to eight weeks after the service.

The follow-up that matters

Two to three months after the service, post a short update on the memorial page: how much was raised, what it funded, and the family's thank you. Donors will return to that page. It also lengthens the life of the memorial, which is exactly what most families want.

For the rest of the week's logistics, see our funeral planning checklist.

When you are ready, Stillwith helps you draft yours.