Well - it turns out we can go directly through the college. They have a secure site set up for donations through PayPal or credit cards. PayPal will get their 2.9% but that’s it and the donations will be completely tax deductible. And yes checks can absolutely be sent directly to the school. I’ll have to get creative to see if I can add a donation tracker on Facebook. All in all this seems like the best option.
So sorry for your loss. It is very kind of you to set up a memorial scholarship fof your D. Yes, I think folks are most comfortable donating to a school and good that only processing fees for CCs will be taken and presumably nothing from checks.