How the FamilyTreeDNA Group General Fund Supports DNA Research

By: Janine Cloud

The FamilyTreeDNA Group General Fund turns small donations into big breakthroughs, helping genealogists worldwide advance DNA-based family research.

One of the most useful and unique features of a FamilyTreeDNA Group Project—whether it focuses on a surname, haplogroup, or geographical area—is the Group General Fund. Simply put, this fund is a pool of money maintained by FamilyTreeDNA on the project’s behalf. These funds are dedicated entirely to furthering the group’s specific research goals.

In essence, the Group General Fund pioneered crowdfunding, having been in place for over twenty years. It acts as a financial engine for genealogical discovery, allowing researchers with the means to strategically fund DNA testing for individuals who hold the key to the project’s success, but may not have the financial resources to do so.

What Is a FamilyTreeDNA Group General Fund?

Each Group Project has the option to maintain a general fund to be used for tests. These can be used to purchase kits for new project members, or to purchase additional tests for existing project members.

How Are General Fund Donations Used?

The goal of any Group Project is to expand the study and find new genetic connections. The General Fund is a tool that makes this financially possible. The volunteer Project Administrators use the fund to cover the cost of tests in a highly targeted way:

Testing Key Individuals

One use of the Group General Fund is purchasing new test kits (often Y-DNA or Big Y-700) for individuals who are critical to the project, but who may not be able to afford the test themselves. These are often men who represent an unbroken line from a crucial, yet untested, ancestral branch—or who may form a new branch from existing lines.

Upgrading Existing Kits

Funds are frequently used to upgrade the tests of existing members (e.g., from Y-37 to Y-111, or to Big Y-700). Upgrades provide higher-resolution results that are essential for breaking down genealogical “brick walls” and establishing the time frame of a common ancestor.

Targeted Research

Funds ensure that the right test is done on the right person at the right time to prove or disprove a theory about a specific ancestral line.

Who Can Donate and How Are Funds Managed?

Anyone can donate to a Group Project’s General Fund, whether you are a Group Member, a distant relative, or simply a genealogist interested in the research.

FamilyTreeDNA securely collects these funds via credit card or PayPal, handles any currency conversion, and allocates the money to the correct project, providing peace of mind that the funds are managed securely by FamilyTreeDNA.

How to Donate or Earmark Funds

If you’d like your donation to go toward a specific purpose, you can earmark it using the donation form. Here’s how:

1. Select the Group Project you’d like to support from the drop-down menu.
2. Enter your donation amount. Any amount helps—many projects are funded by small contributions that add up over time.
3. Choose your donation type from the list:
   • Anonymous
   • Honor (in honor of someone)
   • Individual (in your own name)
   • Memory of (in memory of someone)
   • Unknown
4. Enter the appropriate name. If donating in honor or memory of someone, include their full name so the project administrators can recognize the contribution correctly.
5. Add a note. In the “Note” section, you can include specific instructions or details about how the funds should be used. For example:
   “Please apply this donation toward a Y-DNA test for any descendant of John Smith born in 1750.”
   There’s no character limit here, so feel free to provide as much detail as needed.

Administrator Discretion

Undesignated funds are used at the discretion of the volunteer Project Administrators, who apply them strategically to tests that offer the maximum benefit to the group’s research.

The Group General Fund transforms passive support into active, collaborative research. The collective efforts of the group can overcome financial hurdles that might otherwise prevent critical DNA evidence from being brought into the light.

How Does the Group Fund Support Genealogy Research?

Just like other forms of crowdfunding, a single person doesn’t need to pay for an entire test by themselves. Many times, members of a particular line donate small amounts—$10, $20. When added together, a major test like a Big Y-700 becomes more affordable. Some Group Administrators also offer to sponsor a portion of the cost of a test through the general fund account, with the test taker covering the remainder.

Why Donate to a Group General Fund?

Group Funds help to open doors and break through brick walls for group projects in ways that would not otherwise be possible. There are many ways to make the most of the donations, but that’s only possible if those donations are made.

Donations can even be made in honor of a specific living person, or in memory of one who’s gone to be with their ancestors.

If you have a genetic genealogist on your holiday gift list, a donation to a Group General Fund in their honor is a thoughtful way to support their passion and honor their family lines!