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Quick answer: An online check writer, such as OnlineCheckWriter.com, is a browser-based tool for creating, printing, and logging checks on blank check stock instead of a pre-printed checkbook. Each check logs its date, payee, amount, and approver right away. A small nonprofit like a Tulsa food bank gets a digital audit trail for vendor payments, volunteer mileage reimbursements, and grant reporting, not a shoebox of paper stubs.
Key Takeaways
Why a Tulsa Food Bank Needs a Clean Paper Trail for Every Check
Picture a small community food bank in a warehouse on the edge of Tulsa, Oklahoma, run by two paid staff. The executive director splits time between grants and the loading dock. The operations coordinator pays suppliers and the landlord, and reimburses volunteer drivers who deliver to shut-in seniors and partner pantries.
The org, in three lines:
Staff: 1 executive director (grants, oversight) + 1 operations coordinator (vendors, mileage).
Money moving weekly: vendor checks to food suppliers and the landlord, plus reimbursement checks to volunteer drivers.
What’s at stake: a regional foundation grant renewal and a board that expects to see who approved each payment, not just that it cleared.
A handwritten check register answers “who approved this and what proves it” slowly, if it answers it at all. An online check writer answers it the moment the check is created, because the record exists before the check is even in an envelope.
What Printer and Check Stock Does This Actually Require?
A staff member builds the check on screen and prints it on blank check stock. The printer needs to be a laser printer loaded with MICR magnetic-ink toner. That keeps the routing and account number line machine-readable to a bank. A standard inkjet printer or ordinary toner will not produce that line correctly, so budget for MICR toner as a real, small line-item cost. Check details created this way can also be exported to accounting software like QuickBooks, so the operations coordinator isn’t re-entering the same payment twice.
Manual Checkbook vs. Pre-Printed Check Stock vs. Online Check Writer
| What matters to a nonprofit | Manual checkbook | Pre-printed check stock | Online check writer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Second-approver record | Only if someone manually logs it elsewhere | Same limitation as manual | Approval is tied to the check record itself |
| Grant/program code on record | Handwritten in a memo line, easy to skip | Same as manual | Memo field is searchable after the fact |
| Running out mid-week | Waiting on a reorder | Waiting on a reorder | Print another whenever it’s needed |
| Record for an auditor | A paper register, if it’s kept up to date | Same as manual | A digital log pulled up in a few clicks |
How to Pay a Volunteer Driver’s Mileage Reimbursement by Check
- Have the volunteer submit a mileage log with the date of each delivery run, the route or stops covered, and the total miles driven.
- Have a second person, such as the operations coordinator or a board member, review the log against the delivery schedule before approving it.
- Calculate the reimbursement using the IRS charitable-purpose mileage rate, currently 14 cents per mile and set by statute rather than adjusted the way the IRS business mileage rate is. It applies to volunteer driving, not the higher business rate. Reimbursement at or below that rate is generally not taxable income to the volunteer.
- Create the check in the online check writer with a memo line noting “volunteer mileage” and the date range covered.
- Print the check on blank check stock, sign it, and file the underlying mileage log with the check record rather than in a separate folder.
Dual-Signer Controls for a Two- or Three-Person Team
A weakness auditors commonly flag at a small nonprofit is a single person who writes the check, records it, and reconciles the bank statement, all without a second set of eyes. That’s not a comment on anyone’s honesty. It’s a structural gap that’s easy to close even on a lean team.
- Checks under a set threshold (the board picks the number): one signer, but the payment still shows up in a log a second person can see.
- Checks at or above that threshold: require sign-off from a second person, such as the executive director or a board treasurer, before the check goes out.
- Bank statement review: assign it to someone who does not write checks day to day, even if that’s a board member reviewing it once a month.
A logged approval means little without a bank-side control to back it up. Add the second approver to the account’s signature card, or turn on a bank dual-control or positive pay feature that blocks a check from clearing without that approval. A software log by itself is a record, not a lock. None of this requires a new hire. It just takes a rule the board writes down once, and a tool that makes following that rule the easy path.
What a Grant Auditor Actually Asks to See
When a program officer or auditor reviews a disbursement, a cashed check alone rarely satisfies the request. A documentation checklist worth keeping for every vendor payment or reimbursement:
- The check image or record itself, with date, payee, and amount.
- A memo or code tying the payment to a specific program or grant, not just a vendor name.
- Proof of a second approver on payments above the board’s set threshold.
- A W-9 on file for any vendor paid as a contractor.
- The underlying support: an invoice for a vendor payment, or a mileage log for a volunteer reimbursement.
- A note on which fund the payment drew from, if the organization holds more than one restricted grant at a time.
- Confirmation the expense was budgeted or pre-approved for that program, not just documented after the fact.
Keeping this list next to the checkbook, digital or paper, turns a stressful audit week into a matter of pulling records that already exist.
See How Checks Get Printed and Logged
Look at how a nonprofit sets up its account and prints vendor and reimbursement checks from a browser, with no pre-printed checkbook to order.
Mistakes That Put a Small Nonprofit’s Paper Trail at Risk
- Commingling restricted and unrestricted funds in the same mental bucket, even when they’re in the same account. A grant-funded purchase needs its own note tying it to that grant.
- One person handling the full cycle: writing the check, recording it, and reconciling the statement, with no second reviewer at any step.
- Reimbursing volunteer mileage in cash with no log, which leaves no record if a board member or auditor asks about it later.
- Skipping the memo line on a check, so reconciling it against a specific grant becomes guesswork months later.
- No backup for a lost or voided check, leaving a gap in the sequence that an auditor will ask about.
A positive pay style check-verification step adds one more layer against a forged or altered check clearing without anyone noticing; see how automated check fraud prevention works if that’s a gap for your organization. For more on printing checks on blank stock in general, see OnlineCheckWriter.com’s guide to printing checks yourself.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as an online check writer, exactly?
It’s a browser-based tool for creating and printing checks on blank stock. Each check is logged automatically, so nobody has to hand-record it in a paper register afterward.
Does a printed check still need a signature?
Yes. Printing a check builds the layout and the record, but a person still signs it before it’s mailed or handed to the payee, the same as any other check.
How should we document a volunteer’s mileage reimbursement?
Keep a mileage log with the date, route or purpose, and total miles for each trip, reviewed by a second person before the check is cut and filed alongside the check record.
What happens if a check is lost before a vendor cashes it?
Because the original check is already logged with its amount and payee, voiding it and issuing a replacement leaves a clear record instead of an unexplained gap in the check sequence.
Can more than one person on a small team share the same account?
Give each team member their own login, with the role and approval limits your organization sets for them, instead of sharing one login.
Do we need special check stock to print our own checks?
Yes. Checks need to be printed on blank check stock using a laser printer with MICR magnetic-ink toner, so the routing and account number line is machine-readable to a bank. A standard inkjet printer or regular toner will not produce a bank-compliant line, even though no pre-printed checkbook is required.
Will an auditor accept a digital record instead of paper stubs?
Digital records are widely used in place of paper stubs, provided they show the date, payee, amount, approver, and supporting documentation for each payment. Confirm your specific grant or audit requirements with your organization’s auditor.
What if our food bank only has one paid staff member?
A board treasurer or another board member can serve as the second approver and statement reviewer, so the control still works even without a second paid role.
Ready to See the Pricing and Setup Steps?
Set up your food bank’s checking account once, then create, print, and track vendor and reimbursement checks whenever a payment is due.
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