Home/Stories

The people we love and serve

Their story is theirs.

We do not trade stories for donations. Every recipient story you'll read here was reviewed, approved, and signed off by the person living it — and can be withdrawn at any time, for any reason, no questions asked.

…

Stories will appear here after our first awards cycle.

Our 501(c)(3) determination is under IRS review. The first live grant cycle begins Q1 2027 (pending letter of determination). Once we have funded grants and recipients who choose to share their journey, we'll publish their stories here — in their words, with their consent.

Until then, this page exists for a different reason: to publish the framework we will live by long before there's a single story to tell.

Our consent framework

What we ask. What we never share. How we make sure.

Most nonprofits will tell you they care about recipient dignity. We wrote down what that means before we accepted our first donation — so anyone we serve can read it, hold us to it, and walk away if we ever fail to live it.

We ask

Explicit, written, revocable consent

Before any recipient story appears on the website, in a donor report, or in social media, the recipient has reviewed the exact words and signed off in writing. They can revoke that consent at any time, for any reason, and we take it down immediately.

We ask

Approval of every quote and image

Recipients see the exact quote we plan to use and the exact image before publication. No "creative paraphrasing," no stock photos pretending to be them, no AI-generated faces. If they didn't say it or sit for it, it doesn't run.

We ask

Permission to share by audience

A story shared in a private donor letter is not automatically shared on social media. We ask for each channel separately so recipients control exactly how widely their story travels.

We ask

Confidence in their own choice

Saying no — or saying yes to one thing and no to another — never affects current or future support. Grant decisions and story decisions are separate. Always.

We never share

Financial details without permission

Specific dollar amounts, household income, debt details, or medical bills are not published in any recipient story unless the recipient explicitly approves the exact figure.

We never share

Children's identities without parental consent

No photos of minor children, no first or last names, no school identification unless the parent or guardian provides written consent specific to that piece of content.

We never share

Religious belief or affiliation

We never publish a recipient's faith status, denomination, or church affiliation. We do not "redemption-arc" anyone for donor appeal. Faith is theirs. It is not our marketing.

We never share

The story of anyone who declined

If a recipient declines to share their story, we do not tell it anonymously, composite it with someone else's, or have a staff member "retell" it. Declined means declined.

The right to withdraw

Your story. Your right to take it back.

Even after consent, even after publication, even after a story has been live for years — if you ever want it removed, we remove it.

How to withdraw: Email kevin@fearnotfoundation.net or call us. We do not require a reason. We do not ask follow-up questions. We take the content down within 7 days, replace any printed materials at their next revision, and confirm with you when it's done.

Withdrawal of a story never affects current grant support, future eligibility, or any relationship with the Foundation. Story decisions and grant decisions are separate. Always.

Why we wait

Empty page on purpose.

We could fill this page right now with stock photos and stitched-together "composite stories" the way many sites do. We won't.

An empty stories page costs us donor conversion in the short term. We accept that. The people we will serve get exactly one chance to be treated like people instead of marketing assets. We're going to take that chance seriously, even when it costs us money.

When we have funded grants and recipients who choose to share, this page will fill with the real thing — their words, their faces, their permission. Until then, the framework above is the story.

Ready?

Apply for a grant.

Or nominate someone you know who could use a hand up.

Go to Apply →