In-Memory Gifts or Memorial Donations

Quick answer: In‑memory gifts (also called memorial donations) are charitable contributions made to honor someone who has died. Donors give to support your mission while remembering a person, and nonprofits record and acknowledge those gifts as part of donor stewardship and family outreach.

What is In-Memory Gifts or Memorial Donations?

In‑memory gifts, sometimes called memorial donations, are gifts donors make to a nonprofit to honor the memory of a person who has died. Donors often give after a funeral, in an obituary, on an anniversary, or through a tribute or memorial page. These gifts are directed to your organization — not to an individual — and are typically processed and acknowledged like any other charitable donation.

Development staff use memorial donations to deepen relationships with bereaved families, recognize community support, and sometimes to fund programs associated with the deceased’s interests. Memorial gifts can arrive as one-time online donations, recurring gifts, or part of peer-to-peer campaigns. Recording the honoree, the requester (who asked for gifts), and any family contacts in your donor records helps you personalize acknowledgments and steward both the donor and the honoree’s circle respectfully.

Why In-Memory Gifts or Memorial Donations Matters for Nonprofits

Memorial donations connect emotion with action: people grieving want to honor someone’s life in a way that supports your mission. That makes these gifts a unique opportunity to build trust, welcome new donors, and strengthen community ties. Without clear processes, memorial gifts can be misdirected, go unacknowledged, or create awkward communication with families — which risks losing future support and goodwill.

When you track memorial gifts carefully, you turn a sensitive moment into a meaningful relationship. Thoughtful acknowledgment — timely, personal, and respectful of the family’s wishes — increases the chance that donors will give again, tell others, or become volunteers or advocates. With consistent handling, memorial donations become both a compassionate response to loss and a sustainable part of your fundraising mix.

How In-Memory Gifts or Memorial Donations Works in Practice

Riverbend Hospice Foundation, a mid-sized nonprofit with about 1,200 donors, gets several memorial donations after a beloved volunteer dies. Here’s how the development director manages them:

1. A family requests memorial gifts in lieu of flowers and includes a link to Riverbend’s tribute page.
2. Donations come in through the online giving form; each gift includes a tribute field where donors enter the honoree’s name and an optional message.
3. Development staff capture the honoree, requester, and donor contact info in the CRM, tag gifts as “memorial,” and note any family communication preferences.
4. The finance team issues a proper tax receipt to the donor; the development team sends a personalized acknowledgment to the family and, if appropriate, the requester.
5. Riverbend tracks memorial donors separately for stewardship — sending anniversary notes or invitations to relevant events.

If you’re setting this up, our guide on launching tribute notifications walks through the technical and communication steps to do it well in this blog.

In-Memory Gifts or Memorial Donations: Key Metrics and Benchmarks

• Number of memorial gifts (count): track absolute volume and as a percentage of total gifts to see seasonal patterns or spikes after community events.

• Time to acknowledgment: days between gift receipt and family notification; goal = same week or within 3 business days for sensitive cases.

• Memorial donor retention rate: year‑over‑year giving among donors whose first gift was a memorial donation — use this to measure long-term stewardship success.

• Percent of memorial gifts with tribute page or designation: shows adoption of tribute tools and can be tied to conversion rates on tribute pages.

If you want numeric targets, establish your baseline for each metric over 12–24 months and set incremental improvement goals tied to staffing and communications capacity.

How Bloomerang helps you track In-Memory Gifts or Memorial Donations

Bloomerang CRM tracks donor and family relationships and includes a Tribute Notifications feature that automates family notifications and syncs memorial gifts from your online giving forms into donor records. That means memorial gifts land in the right donor profile, tagged and dated, with the honoree and requester recorded — so you don’t miss a thank-you or create duplicated communications.

You can also use Bloomerang’s reporting to see memorial gift trends, segment memorial donors for stewardship, and automate timely, respectful acknowledgments. For practical setup tips and a walkthrough of Tribute Notifications, see our how-to post: /blog/launch-tribute-notifications.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between an in‑memory gift and an in‑honor gift?

An in‑memory gift honors someone who has died; an in‑honor gift recognizes someone who is living. Both are tribute gifts to your nonprofit, but the wording and timing of acknowledgments differ to match donor intent and respect.

How should I acknowledge a memorial donation to a family?

Send a timely, personal acknowledgment that names the donor (unless the donation was anonymous), the gift amount for tax purposes, and a short empathetic message noting the honoree. Ask the family if they have communication preferences and record them for future stewardship.

Can donors designate memorial gifts directly to a person or family member?

No — gifts to a nonprofit must support the organization’s mission. If donors want to help an individual, they can do so through a separate mechanism (like a crowdfunding platform that distributes to individuals). Make this clear in your communications to avoid confusion.

How does a nonprofit record a memorial donation for tax purposes?

Record and receipt the donation in the donor’s name, indicating it was a memorial gift to the organization. The organization issues the receipt showing the amount and date; donors use that receipt on their tax filings as allowed by law. For legal advice on tax reporting, consult a tax professional.

When should I set up tribute pages or automated tribute notifications?

Set them up as part of your standard online giving infrastructure so they’re available year-round. Automated notifications are especially important when you expect multiple memorial gifts or when families ask for electronic donations — they ensure fast, consistent, and respectful communication.

The Bottom Line

In‑memory gifts or memorial donations are charitable gifts made to honor someone who has died; they matter because they let grieving supporters support your mission while creating a meaningful stewardship opportunity. Track, acknowledge, and record these gifts carefully — start by adding a tribute field and family‑contact workflow in your CRM.