Fun Run donations are gifts made now, usually through each student's online fundraising page before event day. Donors pay by card, PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay or Google Wallet; cash and checks are tracked in FundHub. After the event, funds reach the school by automatic ACH transfer once approved.
How Fun Run donations work
A donation is money given now. A pledge is a promise to give later, often based on laps; our guide to Fun Run pledges (promises collected after the run) covers those.
Most schools make donations the main ask, collected during a two-week window that opens with a kickoff assembly. For how donations fit the whole event, see the complete guide to school Fun Runs.
Online student pages
Each student gets a personal fundraising page with a donation meter. A parent can set one up in about 5 minutes, from a phone, then share the link by text, email or social.
Pages do the reaching for you. There is no door-to-door and no cash envelope to chase, and FundHub reports a $140 average raised per student fundraising page.
Payment methods
Accept every way people pay today. Online, donors can use card, PayPal, Venmo, and Apple Pay or Google Wallet. Offline, families can still send cash or checks to school.
Record cash and checks against the student who brought them in, so student, class and school meters stay accurate. Schools keep 100% of in-school cash and checks; the usage fee applies only to online donations (see pricing).
What donors see
Donors land on the student's personal fundraising page, with a donation meter and a donate button. Checkout asks for an amount and payment details, with an optional donor credit that goes toward the fee.
Keep the page personal. A line from the student about what the money pays for does more than any school-wide description.
Getting out-of-town family to give
Grandparents, aunts and uncles who live far away can be generous donors, and they can only give online. Ask parents to text the page link to each of them individually, not just post it once on social.
Give the ask a deadline. "The run is Friday" gets more gifts than "whenever you get a chance." Our Fun Run donation letter and message templates include ready-to-send texts for relatives.
Employer matching gifts
Many employers match donations their employees make to schools. FundHub's Employer Match identified over $1.4 million in matching donations in its first year.
Remind families twice: once at kickoff and once in the thank-you. See Employer Match for how it works.
Receipts, thank-yous and reconciliation
Donors should get a receipt the moment they give online, and a thank-you from the student after the run. A short photo or video from event day makes the thank-you land.
Before payout, your Financial Planner reconciles online totals with logged cash and checks, then confirms prize and class totals. Funds are disbursed by automatic ACH transfer after the event, once approved.
How FundHub handles donations
FundHub puts student pages, online payments, cash-and-check tracking, donation meters and instant reports in one place. Schools keep 95–97% of funds raised, on average.
"incredibly easy for families to use, simple to manage on the back end"
Teresa Valencia, Fundraising Chair, Medlar View Primary
Set up online donations for your Fun Run
Take a free 15-minute FundHub demo with a Fun Run coach. No obligation, no contracts.
Frequently asked questions
How do people donate to a Fun Run?
Most donors give online through the student's personal fundraising page, which the family shares by text, email or social. Online, they can pay by card, PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay or Google Wallet. Families can also send cash or checks to school, where volunteers record them against the student in FundHub.
Can we still accept cash and checks?
Yes. Collect cash and checks at school and log each one against the student who brought it in, so meters and prizes stay accurate. With Get Movin', schools keep 100% of in-school cash and checks; the usage fee applies only to online donations.
When does the school receive Fun Run donations?
Funds are disbursed by automatic ACH transfer after the event, once the totals are approved. Before that, your Financial Planner reconciles online donations against logged cash and checks, so the approved total matches your records and your class and prize tallies. Schools keep 95–97% of funds raised, on average.
Are Fun Run donations matched by employers?
Often, yes. Many employers match gifts their employees make to schools. FundHub's Employer Match identified over $1.4 million in matching donations in its first year. Remind families to check with their employer at kickoff and again in the thank-you message.