Running a fundraiser for a funeral or memorial

We’re sorry for the circumstances that have brought you to GoFundMe. This is likely a very challenging time with many different things needed from you. We’ve put together helpful information to make managing your fundraiser as easy as possible. 

Fundraisers for funerals or the families left behind often have a quick turnaround time – we’ve found it to be about 1-2 weeks. With this in mind, we’ve put together important tasks to complete in your first few days.

Launch your fundraiser

To launch, you’ll choose a cover photo and write your story. We've found that many organisers take this as an opportunity to celebrate their loved one. You can share your favourite photos of them and include details about their life and legacy in the fundraiser story. Funeral/memorial fundraisers also have a tool that shows the service date on the fundraiser page, and we encourage organisers to fill that in when launching your fundraiser.

Share with your loved ones

While you’ll want to share your fundraiser daily, the first few days are very important. Share your link with friends and family as you inform them about service details and other end-of-life tasks. Sharing the news of a deceased loved one is already difficult, and other organisers have asked the following of donors: 

• To share with their communities
• For donations instead of flowers in your announcement
• That donors leave comforting Words of Support when they donate

Set up transfers

We encourage you to set up transfers as early as possible. From set up to delivery, receiving funds can take 2-10 business days. It’s also good to have images of your ID and bank statement ready in case they’re requested. If you have any issues, please feel free to contact our team using the "Contact us" button, and we’ll see what we can do to help.

Update and thank donors

If any developments occur, like the time of the funeral or changes to the need for funds, you can post an update to your fundraiser page, and all donors will receive an email notification. Also, if you are able to, sending thank yous directly to donors helps keep connection with those who care about you and your loved one.

You can leave your fundraiser live and continue to accept donations for as long as you like, but we encourage you to complete the items above in the first week. If you continue to run your fundraiser, it’s good practice to continue sharing and updating donors for the length of your fundraiser.