Donate

Donate books or other materials

Your book donations make a difference! When you donate books, you are:

• Getting clutter out of your house or apartment;
• Giving your books a new life;
• Helping us raise money for the Santa Clara City Library; and
• Spreading literacy through the community.

Thank you for your support!

How to donate books, movies, and music

We are accepting books, textbooks, CDs, and DVDs. Large donations are only accepted at the Central Park Library. We will accept up to one box of books, music, and movies at Northside LIbrary.

Please bring your books, movies, and music to the Friends of the Library Bookstore in the Central Park Library in the lobby or drop them in the bin outside the Friends Bookstore. If you have multiple bags or boxes of books to donate and need help unloading your vehicle, please make a reservation and we will have someone on hand to assist you. Contact Onvipa De La Riva at 408.615.2988 or email odelariva@scclff.org.

What we accept

We accept gently used

• books (including textbooks),
• DVDs and
• CDs.

Books can be heavy! We ask that you be considerate of our volunteers. If after bagging or boxing up your donations you’re having trouble lifting them, our volunteers will too.

We do not accept encyclopedias, readers digest volumes, magazines, conference proceedings, books on CD or cassette, or VHS tapes.

We will not accept damaged, dirty, or moldy items. The library cannot add books in this state to the collection, and we cannot resell dirty or damaged books. Please wipe off any accumulated dust or dirt, especially if you can see it with the naked eye. Please recycle any items with water or fire damage. If you can see mold on your books (this often looks like black dots on the edges of the pages), please recycle them as well.

The vast majority of donations are both acceptable and desired! We appreciate your generosity.

Thank you for your understanding and generosity!

Do you have an old car or motorcycle gathering dust in your garage? Donate it to The Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends!

We have partnered with Donate for Charity to accept vehicle donations. Scan the QR code below to start the process or call 866-392-4483 to start the process today. It’s easy and a great way to support your local library.

What are the benefits of donating my car to the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends?
The Foundation and Friends benefits by receiving a cash donation to fund both library programs and its operational expenses. You may benefit by being able to reduce your taxable income when taxes are itemized. Plus you avoid the costs associated with selling your car. No need to pay for advertising, no loss of privacy and possible security risk, and no need to pay for vehicle registration, insurance, and repairs to keep your car in running condition while you wait for a buyer.

Do you only accept cars for donation?
Many types of motor vehicles are accepted including boats, motorcycles, trucks, RVs, and cars.

Must a car be operational when I donate it?
No. Vehicles do not have to be running in order to be accepted for donation.

How long will it take to pick up my vehicle?
We make donating your car as simple and convenient as possible. A tow company will contact you within two to three business days.

Thank you for donating your vehicle!

Make a bequest

When you include The Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends in your estate plan, your generosity provides books, classes, events, and other resources to everyone in our community. Thank you for ensuring that we and the Santa Clara City Library can impact Santa Clara well into the future.

It’s easy to extend your support for The Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends into the future. Start here by learning the different gift options available to you. You can find a charitable plan that lets you both provide for your family and support the causes you care about. These plans can either put your donation to work today, or benefit us after your lifetime.

Types of Planned Gifts: Bequests

A bequest is a gift from your estate – a transfer of cash, securities, or other property – made via your estate plans. A bequest costs nothing now and allows you to contribute to The Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends into the future. It doesn’t affect your current cash flow and ensures our prospects.

Give from your will or trust.

If you don’t have a will or trust – only one-third of Americans do – you can use a tool like Free Will to create one at no cost to you. (We have no connection with Free Will, they are just one tool you could potentially use.)

• Include a bequest to The Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends in your will or trust.
• State a specific amount, a percentage of your estate, or a percentage of the balance remaining in your estate or trust

Benefits

• Your assets remain in your control during your lifetime.
• You can change your bequest to address changing circumstances.
• There is no upper limit on the estate tax deduction for your charitable bequests under current tax law

Sample bequest language could be:
“I hereby give _________________* to The Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends, tax ID # 91-2125234.”

* Fill in the blank with the dollar amount or percentage of estate you intend to donate to the Foundation and Friends.

Bequests are a good way to keep control of your cash today while ensuring the future of the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends.

Types of Planned Gifts: Life Insurance

Life insurance can provide an important gift for your Library’s future. You may contribute all or part of your insurance policy.

Contact Us

It’s easy to designate the Santa Clara City Library as a recipient of your planned gift. Simply call us at 408-615-2936 and speak confidentially with Foundation Executive Director JoAnn T. Davis or email at jdavis@santaclaraca.gov to discuss how these and other planned giving options might work for you. Consult with your legal and tax advisors regarding your specific situation. If you have already named the Santa Clara City Library in your estate plans, thank you and please let us know.

Donating Stock

Why donating stock or bonds instead of cash is advantageous:

• When you donate stocks or other appreciated assets that you’ve held for more than a year, you can avoid capital gains taxes that would be due if you sold the assets.
• You are eligible to receive a charitable income tax deduction for the full fair market value of the assets at the time of the donation, not just the amount you originally paid.

How to give:

• Contact your financial advisor or broker to initiate a transfer. You will need our brokerage information, which is below, or you can call our office at 408-615-2936.
• Inform us of your gift so we can provide proper acknowledgment for your generosity.

Our brokerage information is Vanguard Acct. #28572237, DTC #0062. You will need to include our full name (Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends) and address (2635 Homestead Rd, Santa Clara, CA 95051). You’ll need to include the name of the security and number of whole shares with the ticker symbol.

If you have any questions about donating stock, please contact our offices at director@lovethelibrary.org or 408-615-2936

What is a Qualified Charitable Distribution, or QCD?

• A QCD is when you donate to a non-profit, like the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends, directly from your IRA.

Why it’s beneficial:

• If you are 70½ years old or older, a QCD allows you to donate up to $100,000 directly from your IRA to a qualified charity without having to include the distribution as taxable income.
• This can satisfy your required minimum distribution for the year, potentially lowering your income tax liability.

How to make a QCD:

• Direct your IRA plan administrator to transfer funds to the Santa Clara City Library Foundation & Friends.
• Ensure that the distribution is made directly to the Foundation to qualify as a QCD.

If you have any questions about donating via your IRA, please contact our offices at director@lovethelibrary.org or 408-615-2936

Grants from Donor Advised Funds (DAFs)

What is a Donor Advised Fund?

• A Donor Advised Fund is a separate account that you set up with a sponsoring organization, like Fidelity, Vanguard, or other financial institution. You place assets like cash or stocks in the account for a potential immediate tax benefit.
• Those assets grow while they are in the fund.
• You tell the DAF administrator where you’d like those funds to be donated, like to the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends when you’re ready to give.

Why it’s a smart choice:

• Donor Advised Funds allow you to make a charitable contribution, receive an immediate tax deduction, and then recommend grants from the fund over time to your preferred charities.
• It simplifies your giving and record-keeping, as you receive one deduction when you contribute to your DAF.

How to recommend a grant:

• Advise your DAF sponsor to direct a grant to the Santa Clara City Library Foundation and Friends.
• You can designate the grant for a specific purpose (eg literacy) or allow us to apply it where the need is greatest.

If you have any questions about donating via a DAF, please contact our offices at director@lovethelibrary.org or 408-615-2936

Donor Bill of Rights

Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To assure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the not-for-profit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:

I. To be informed of the organization’s mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.

II. To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization’s governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.

III. To have access to the organization’s most recent financial statements.

IV. To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.

V. To receive appropriate acknowledgement and recognition.

VI. To be assured that information about their donation is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.

VII. To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.

VIII. To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization or hired solicitors.

IX. To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.

X. To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers.

2017, Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), all rights reserved. Reprinted with permission from the Association of Fundraising Professionals.