Frequently Asked Questions

Bring Light connects donors and charities to create a way for more informed and effective online fundraising. On Bring Light, approved Charities describe specific fundraising needs. Donors can then make donations via credit card or they can establish a Donor Account. Donors also have the ability to form or join Giving Groups to multiply the impact of their contributions.

All donations on Bring Light are immediately deposited in to the Bring Light Fund at American Endowment Foundation (AEF). This donor advised fund ensures that 100% of donations go directly to charities and that donors receive the maximum tax benefit.



Through the Bring Light Donor Account, we can facilitate administering multiple donations to charities. As a service to Bring Light donors, AEF is not charging a fee for the processing of donations and administration of grant making.

A donor advised fund is a type of charitable giving program that allows you to combine the most favorable tax benefits with the flexibility to support your favorite charities at any time. Once you deposit money in to a donor advised fund, it becomes an irrevocable donation and you benefit from an immediate tax deduction.

Founded in 1993, AEF is 501(c)(3) public charity with total donor advised fund assets exceeding $130 million. Their sole business is donor advised fund administration, which includes compliance monitoring, state and federal filings, charity review, and grant disbursements - all in accordance with IRS guidelines.

When a donor makes a donation on Bring Light, 100% of the amount charged to their credit card goes into the donor advised fund at American Endowment Foundation. AEF sends 100% of the collected donations to the charity in one grant check. AEF does not charge any fees for their service (to Bring Light or to the charity).

There is no fee or subscription charge to join Bring Light. After registering on the site (which is free), charities can post as many fundraising projects as they wish.

Bring Light is a for-profit company designed to provide fundraising and marketing services to nonprofits and to provide donors with the information they need to make informed donations. Our intention is to donate 25% of our company profits to the Bring Light Donor Advised Fund.

The charities on Bring Light pay a service fee for using the site. This service fee is based on the actual funds they raise, and is on a sliding scale ranging from 7% to 10%. The service fee is assessed at the end of the project, after they receive their funds. There is no up-front risk -- if the charity does not raise any money, then they pay no fee. This service fee is used to cover all transaction and processing costs.

For charities, using Bring Light is a fundraising and marketing initiative, no different from a direct mail campaign or an event. In those cases, the charity gets all the money given to them, but they have also spent a great deal of money trying to reach donors. These costs include printing and postage, labor, administration and the time it takes to process each individual donation. It can also take longer for charities to get the funds.

100% of your donations go to the charity.

Our goal is to get the donations to the charities as quickly as possible. Once a project is completed (either by reaching its funding goal or its project end date), AEF issues a grant to the charity. This way, the charity receives a single check, easing their administrative burden.

Yes. Bring Light uses the latest in encryption and secure storage technology to ensure your donations are safe and secure.

Online donating is the fastest growing way of making charitable donations. On Bring Light, donating is safe, secure, private and environmentally friendly. You can also see the specific projects charities are raising money for, interact directly with charities, and join together with your friends and family to make an even larger impact.

Once you make a donation to a charity, or put money into your Donor Account, it is irrevocable. This is because the money is going directly into the Bring Light donor advised fund at American Endowment Foundation.

The minimum donation to a single project is $5.00. There is no maximum. You can also join together with friends or other Bring Light community members in a Giving Group to maximize the impact of your donations.

A Donor Account allows you to put money aside for charitable causes and receive the immediate tax benefit. You can choose to donate right away, or you can make donations over time as you find projects that are important to you.

When you make a donation or deposit to your Donor Account on the Bring Light website, you will receive an email tax receipt from American Endowment Foundation.

When you make a donation on Bring Light, you will receive an email receipt from AEF with all the information you need for tax filing purposes.

Currently you can only make monetary donations via credit card to the charities on Bring Light.

You can view your grant history on your Donor Account page.

There is no fee to join – for donors or for charities.

If you are a donor just fill out your user profile. You can start making donations as soon as you enter a valid credit card. You can also put money in to your Donor Account to receive an immediate tax benefit and then choose the charities you want to support at a later date.

If you represent a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and would like to register your charity, go to the Add A Charity page to apply.

Your privacy is important to us and we will never sell or give your personal Information to anyone without your permission. The amount of money you donate to charities will only be known to the charity and to American Endowment Foundation, our donor advised fund provider. Please read our Privacy Policy for more information.

Charities will only know your identity if you check the box “It is OK to share my contact information with charities to which I donate.” on the Edit My Profile page.

Select "Edit" on the right-hand side of your account profile page and follow the steps to update your contact information, photos and more! You can share as much or as little information as you’d like, however, a valid email address and screen name are required.

When you register with Bring Light, Bring Light will ask for your email address. Click "Forgot Password?" under the password field, and your password will be emailed to you.

A Giving Group lets you multiply the power of your donation by building a community of support for your favorite project. No matter how small or large the amount you have to give, you can increase the impact by inviting friends and family to join you in supporting a cause.

Giving Groups can be set up for just about anything. You can rally your classmates, teammates, officemates or your entire neighborhood to contribute to a cause you all care about. Invite family members to join you in supporting a charity project in honor of a birthday, special event or holiday. Or you can start a Group and let anyone in the Bring Light community jump in because their philanthropic interests match yours.

From the Giving Groups page, click Create a Group. You can give your group a name, description, and even a photo. Be creative! Once your group has been created, send a message to your friends to come and join. You'll be making a difference in no time.

As the leader of your Giving Group, you select what projects show up on your Giving Group page. When you are viewing a project page, you will see a link to add the project to your Giving Group. If you have multiple groups, you can select which project should be in which group.

By inviting friends to your group and choosing projects, you can help influence how others give. When others click to Donate to a project from your Giving Group page, your group gets credit. Watch the stats on your Giving Group page to see the impact!

Yes. You can email to an unlimited number of contacts.

Unlike other online donation sites that simply provide a database of registered nonprofits, the charities on Bring Light have chosen to work with us to raise awareness for their cause and to help fund specific needs.

Each charity that joins Bring Light is screened to validate their legitimacy and status as a 501(c)(3) organization in the United States. We also approve all projects before they are posted to ensure they meet legal and quality standards.

For charities, this means that they can accept contributions and offer donors a tax deduction for their gifts. For donors, this means your contributions are fully tax-deductible to the amount allowed by law. The email receipt you receive from American Endowment Foundation meets all the IRS requirements as a record of donation.

Currently only charities that are registered as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the United States can participate. However, many charities registered in the U.S. have an international scope.

There is no fee for charities to join Bring Light.