Established in 2016, the Give Lively Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization (tax ID 81-0693451) that collects charitable contributions and then re-grants them to other 501(c)(3) public charities and private operating foundations across the United States.

The Give Lively Foundation works in tandem with Give Lively LLC, which builds and supports powerful and practical fundraising solutions that are free for nonprofits and intuitive for donors. Learn more about why we’re free for nonprofits.

In most cases, donations made through the Give Lively LLC platform are disbursed directly to the beneficiary nonprofit; Give Lively LLC serves as a donation facilitator, and does not actually hold, store or transfer any funds. However, in select circumstances, funds must first pass through the Give Lively Foundation after donations are made to a nonprofit via a Give Lively LLC digital fundraising service. For example, this occurs when donations are completed in Charity Navigator’s Giving Basket, powered by Give Lively (see more below).

Advantages of the Give Lively Foundation‍

The Give Lively Foundation makes it possible for donors to give to nearly any 501(c)(3) public charity or private operating foundation in the United States, even if that nonprofit has no established relationship with Give Lively LLC (such as membership) or the Give Lively Foundation.

This is a win for donors, nonprofits and organizations whose fundraising engine is powered by the Give Lively LLC digital fundraising service. All parties benefit from the flexibility of donors being able to support any worthy cause.

Additionally, the Give Lively Foundation plays an integral role in the Give Lively LLC fundraising platform. The Give Lively Foundation therefore shares the Give Lively LLC belief that nonprofits, no matter their size, should not sacrifice their means to satisfy their missions. Neither Give Lively LLC nor the Give Lively Foundation charges nonprofits for use of our fundraising platform – no setup fees, no platform fees, no membership or subscription fees, no annual or monthly fees, no hidden Give Lively fees. (Note: Give Lively does rely on third parties to power payment processing, check printing and disbursement. These market-leading service providers attach their small fees to every transaction, just as they do with all of their clients.)

Give Lively Foundation in action

‍There are are two steps to completing a donation when the Give Lively Foundation is involved:

• First, a donor makes a charitable contribution to a nonprofit, but it is collected by the Give Lively Foundation. These donations initially become part of the Give Lively Foundation's general pool of donor funds. However, donors do not have an account with the Give Lively Foundation and are not able to issue directives about a specific donation beyond the nonprofit designation provided at the time of donation

• Second, once the funds have been received by the Give Lively Foundation and been approved for redistribution, the Give Lively Foundation re-grants the funds to the beneficiary nonprofit. The Give Lively Foundation takes seriously its commitment to re-granting the funds it receives to the nonprofit(s) identified by a donor. In limited cases where this proves to be impossible (for example, due to the beneficiary nonprofit’s legal status), the Give Lively Foundation uses its discretion to pass the donated funds on to other causes.

• Importantly, donors will see any contribution that passed through the Give Lively Foundation listed on their receipt and in the Give Lively Donor Portal as a "Contribution to <Nonprofit Name>, Directed through the Give Lively Foundation” with the EIN of the Give Lively Foundation. A donor's credit card or bank statement may also list "Give Lively" or “Giving Basket Donation” as the descriptor on your bank statement, not the nonprofit designated to receive the donation.

For more details about the relationship between Give Lively LLC and the Give Lively Foundation, please see "Donations and Payment Processing > Through the Give Lively Foundation to a Nonprofit" in our Terms of Use.

Special note for Giving Basket nonprofits‍

If you are receiving donations through Charity Navigator’s Giving Basket but (a) you are not a Give Lively member nonprofit, (b) you are a Give Lively member without a Stripe account in good standing or (c) you are receiving donations made via PayPal, then your donations are collected and re-granted by the Give Lively Foundation, disbursed to your nonprofit by check. You can track the delivery of checks and other data in the secure Reports Portal using a provided claim code. To receive Giving Basket donations (except those made via PayPal) via direct deposit instead of by check, you can apply for free Give Lively membership.