Donations

The Donations module is used to record and manage all donations, whether entered manually by staff or processed online via Stripe.

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Recording a Donation

To record a donation, navigate to the Donations tab and select the appropriate donation type:

Type	Notes
Cash	Amount only
Check	Amount, check number, check date
Credit Card	Amount, card type
In-Kind	Description and optional estimated value

For each donation you will also select:

• Fund — which fund the donation is assigned to (only active and online funds appear)
• Date — defaults to today; can be set to any date
• Donor — the donor record to link the donation to

In-Kind Donations

In-kind donations have an optional estimated value field. Example entry:

• Description: “Three books on computer science”
• Estimated value: $30 (optional)

Viewing Donations

Click on the “Donations” tab on the Donations page. By default, you’ll see all donations recorded in the system sorted by most recent.

Editing a Donation

Existing donation records can be edited. Click on the eye icon to view more details and then “Edit”.

When you make a change (e.g., correcting an estimated value you forgot to record initially), the system allows you to add a note explaining the change. This creates an audit trail.

Example note: “Forgot to record estimated value at time of entry.”

Online donations cannot be edited. Stripe transactions have immutable timestamps and amounts. If an online donation has an error, contact FSH Tech.

Filtering Donations

On the donations list view, you can filter by:

• Date range
• Fund
• Staff member who recorded the donation
• Online donations (separate filter option)

Online Donations

Online donations are processed automatically when a donor completes a payment on a public fund page. The system:

1. Charges the donor via Stripe
2. Sends a receipt email using the fund’s assigned template (or the default template)
3. Attempts to match the donor to an existing record by name
4. If no match is found, creates a new donor record automatically

Stripe Processing Fee

The Stripe fee (2.9% + $0.30) is deducted from the amount the library receives. Donors are shown the option to cover this fee themselves before completing payment. If they opt in, the fee is added to their total and the library receives the full donation amount.

Recurring (Scheduled) Donations

Donors can set up recurring donations directly on a fund’s public donation page. The system supports monthly, quarterly, and annual frequencies. Donors can also choose a future start date if they want their first charge to happen later.

How a Recurring Donation Works

Immediate Recurring

1. Donor fills out the donation form and selects a recurring frequency
2. Donor completes payment via Stripe checkout
3. Their card is charged immediately for the first payment
4. A receipt email is sent automatically (see Email Flow below)
5. Stripe automatically charges the same card on each subsequent billing cycle

Future-Dated Recurring

1. Donor selects a recurring frequency and picks a future start date
2. Donor completes a card setup in Stripe — no charge occurs today
3. A confirmation email is sent immediately with the scheduled start date
4. On the start date, Stripe charges the card and the donation record is created
5. Recurring billing continues from there on the chosen schedule

How Recurring Donations Appear in the System

Each time a recurring donation bills, a new donation record (Gift) is created automatically. These records are marked as recurring and linked by a shared subscription ID, so you can see the full history of a recurring donor’s payments.

Staff do not need to do anything to process recurring billing — it happens automatically via Stripe.

Email Flow for Recurring Donations

The system sends emails at key points in the lifecycle of a recurring donation. All emails include a subscription management link that lets the donor manage their donation themselves.

Event	Email Sent?	What It Says
Immediate recurring checkout completes	Yes	Receipt for first payment; includes management link
Future-dated checkout completes (card saved, no charge yet)	Yes	Confirms scheduled start date and amount; no receipt
Each subsequent billing cycle charges successfully	Yes	Receipt for that payment; includes management link
Admin or donor updates the donation amount	Yes	Shows old amount → new amount and next billing date
Payment fails	No	Stripe handles retries internally; subscription is marked past due
Subscription is canceled	No	No automated email; contact the donor directly if needed

Subscription Management Link

Every receipt email for a recurring donation includes a link that takes the donor directly into Stripe’s self-service portal. From there, donors can:

• Update their payment method (e.g., a new credit card)
• Change their donation amount
• Cancel their recurring donation

Staff can also cancel or update recurring donations from within the admin portal without needing to contact the donor.

Handling a Failed Payment

If a recurring charge fails:

• The donation is marked past due in the system
• Stripe automatically retries the charge over the next several days
• If retries keep failing, contact the donor and ask them to update their payment method via the link in their last receipt email