If the donation wasn't triggered until her death, it is possible that it would be considered a donation from her estate. That may have some legal nuances to it that require knowing more than we can discuss in a public forum.
I'm inclined to believe that it would still be considered to be from her and, therefore, deductible by you, if it went straight from the personal account and didn't go through a conduit estate account. Particularly since there seems to be no estate tax issue at hand here.
The donation would still be showing as from her, personally, coming from her SSN rather than from an estate tax identification number.
However, as I said, there could be some nuances surrounding the intent that is laid out in the actual beneficiary designation that change that. If you this is a large donation that you are still not feeling comfortable with (or even a small one, if it just leaves you feeling uncomfortable), I think I'd reach out to a knowledgeable tax professional or attorney in your area for a bit more reassurance. It may benefit you to have someone take a look at the actual document that directed the donation.
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