Material Donations

As a non-profit organization the Irish Cultural Center and McClelland Library is dependent upon your generous support in helping us meet our mission.
We have two separate procedures for accepting material donations for both the Irish Cultural Center and the McClelland Library respectfully.

If you are not in the position to give a monetary donation we also accept material donations you may have in your home or workspace.

Irish Cultural Center Donations 

If you are interested in making a material donation to the Irish Cultural Center please fill out our Material Donation Form and send it back to us for review. Once reviewed we will inform the contact person if we can accept the item or if we must deny the item.

For the Center we have a couple of Wish List items that if you or your business may have we would greatly appreciate;

  1. Fridge-Freezer
  2. AED Machine
  3. Golf Cart
  4. Medium sized ‘L’ couch 
  5. Digital Photograph printer

If you have any of our Wish List items please fill out the Material Donation Form above and send it back to us and we will contact you.

McClelland Library Gift Policies:

If you are interested in making a donation of materials to the McClelland Library please take a moment to review the guidelines for donated materials. Due to the high volume of donations received, ALL material donations of books, magazines, journals, art, or mixed media must be approved by the librarian before they can be brought to the Library. Donations without prior approval will not be accepted on the spot. Please email reference@azirishlibrary.org to discuss your donation.

The McClelland Library gratefully accepts gifts of books, journals, media, art, photographs, manuscripts, archival collections and monetary contributions for the development of its mission and collections. Especially valuable are books and journals that fill existing gaps and that support the library’s programming, as well as rare books, scholarly works, or works on little-known topics that would enhance our academic collection.

The McClelland Library encourages donors to provide a listing of materials, including the name, dates, and general condition of the intended donation. If gifts are accepted, it should be understood that, upon receipt, the McClelland Library becomes the owner of the material and, as such, reserves the right to determine its retention, location, and other considerations related to its use, maintenance or removal.

As a suggestion, we ask donors to also consider giving a minimum of $5 per volume donated, whenever possible, to help expedite processing, as well as defray costs of maintaining the material given to the McClelland Library.

If you are considering donating to the McClelland Library, we urge you to first contact the Library Staff to discuss the contents of the proposed gift and schedule a time to bring in your donation. At the time of donation, you will be asked to complete a Deed of Gift. The Deed of Gift and initial inspection must be completed before your gift will be accepted. Bequests and other large donations must be evaluated for the library’s ability to handle the scale of donation before they can be accepted. After the gift is accepted, the Deed of Gift serves as the basis for a gift acknowledgment.

Your signature on the Deed of Gift acknowledges that gift materials not added to the collection may be sold, digitized, offered to other institutions, or otherwise disposed of at the McClelland Library’s discretion.

Materials donated to the Library are considered for for acceptance to the collections based on the recommendation of subject specialist librarians. Donations are examined and evaluated in accordance with the Library’s collection development policies and procedures. Factors considered when reviewing gifts include:

  • The relationship of the materials to the McClelland Library’s mission and planned programming.
  • The strengths and weaknesses of the existing collections.
  • The inherent value of the donated items.
  • Potential duplication with materials already held.
  • The capability of the McClelland Library to process the materials.

The McClelland Library reserves the right to take gifts that do not fit current collecting goals and use them to benefit the McClelland Library through sale, exchange, transfer to other libraries, or removal.

Gifts are acknowledged via the donor’s copy of the Deed of Gift and a copy is maintained in the McClelland Library’s records. Donors of collections receive confirmation of the number of items donated and not a list of specific titles or monetary value. Individual books also receive a book plate with the donor’s name inside of them and a notation of donation within the online catalog system.
The McClelland Library and its staff do not appraise gifts. This policy is endorsed by the American Library Association. The IRS requires an independent appraisal if a donor plans to claim a charitable deduction above a certain value.

Gifts to the McClelland Library are tax deductible. The IRS requires donors to submit Form 8283 for gifts of property valued at more than $500 (single or in the aggregate) for which a charitable deduction is sought. In addition, for items valued at more than $5,000.00, the IRS requires that “Qualified Appraisals” be obtained if the donor wishes to take a tax deduction for the value of the gift. Please note that appraisals are solely the responsibility of the donor. The cost of an appraisal may be tax deductible. In accepting an appraisal, the McClelland Library is not undertaking to determine that it is a “Qualified Appraisal” as required by Federal Income Tax Regulation. It is always best for the donor to review this and other important tax matters with his or her own tax advisor or attorney.

Please note that once your gift is received by the McClelland Library, we cannot accommodate an appraiser; therefore, if you are considering a tax deduction and wish to have your collection appraised, you should do so prior to making the donation.

Gifts with restrictions such as separate housing, perpetual retention, loan or return of items not added to the collection or restricted access are not accepted. Exceptions to this policy are considered only in special circumstances and must be approved by the Library Collection Committee in advance of the donation.

Thank you for your support

We appreciate your interest in contributing to the Irish Cultural Center and McClelland Library and encourage you to contact us by email. For questions regarding the Center use info@azirish.org and for the McClelland Library use info@azirishlibrary.org

Policies adopted from Central Washington University’s Gift Policies: http://www.lib.cwu.edu/Gift-Policy-And-Procedures