Processing contributions

A contribution is when someone gives Free Geek money that is not associated with a gizmo donation. We want to track this type of income separately from donations where money may come in voluntarily when we receive gizmos from a donor, and from fees which are required (and typically accompany gizmo donations).

There are four things that need to be done to properly process a contribution:

Notification of contribution

Sometimes the money arrives on the same day that we learn about it, for example when someone mails us a check or manually gives us money in person.

Sometimes we received advance notification, for example when someone gives money online (in certain instances) but the money won't arrive until later on.

Bookkeeping

Money should be counted as income on the date of notification (as opposed to the date of receipt in case they're different). In general the amount of the donation should be recorded along with the donors name as a separate transaction. In some cases (such as a large fundraising drive with lots of expected contributions) we may want to consolidate the information into daily, weekly, or monthly totals, rather than break them out into contributor specific transactions.

Database

The contributor's information should be recorded in the database, even if it's incomplete. Their "contributor" check box should be flagged.

Eventually, we will be able to enter contributions into the database to generate receipts. When that happens, we will also be entering contributions at this point, but for now it's just the contributor information.

Thank you letter

A proper thank you letter is necessary for maintaining good relations with contributors. It may accompany a receipt.

Receipt

A proper receipt is necessary for the contributor's records (and tax deductions). There is specific wording that needs to be on a proper receipt when the contribution amount is above a certain amount. The receipt may accompany the thank you letter.