Have a DAF? Recommending a grant to illuminAid is easy
If you've opened a donor-advised fund(DAF), you already hold one of the simplest tools in philanthropy. A DAF is a charitable giving account held at a sponsoring organization, whether that's a community foundation or a national provider like Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, or Vanguard Charitable. You contribute to the account, the funds are invested, and from there you recommend grants to the nonprofits you want to support, on whatever timeline makes sense for you.
If you don't have a DAF, you're welcome to stop reading and make a one-time or recurring donation online here: donorbox.org/illuminaid.
You may have heard a few things about DAFs along the way: that they're only for major donors, that the money just sits there earning interest, that recommending a grant takes real effort. A quick internet search will show you that none of these myths hold up. The better question to ask is: are you using your DAF the way it was intended?
It's easy for a DAF to sit untouched longer than you mean it to. If it's been a while since yours made a grant, you're not unusual, but you're also not doing what you opened the account to do.
Opening a DAF was itself a kind of commitment, a decision to be a deliberate, ongoing philanthropist rather than someone who sets money aside once and moves on. That fund isn't doing its job sitting untouched between tax seasons. It's doing its job when it reaches organizations doing the work.
So here's the real question: when did you last recommend a grant from your DAF, and why did you choose that organization? If you're drawing a blank, or if it's genuinely been longer than you thought, take that as your sign. illuminAid would be glad to be the organization you think of next, and following through takes just a few minutes, however long it's been.
Recommending a grant in four steps
Go to our donate page at www.illuminaid.org/donate.
Find the DAFDirect widget and search for your DAF sponsor. Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable, Vanguard Charitable, and many community foundations are typically listed.
Log in through your sponsor's secure portal, right from the widget. illuminAid's information is already on file.
Enter the amount you'd like to grant, add any notes, and submit your recommendation.
If your sponsor isn't listed in the widget, you can also submit the request directly through your DAF's own portal by searching for illuminAid by name or by our Tax ID, 26-1616943.
However you get there, thank you for thinking of illuminAid when it's time to put your DAF to work.