SUPPORT THE MARCH FIELD AIR MUSEUM
MAKE A FINANCIAL DONATION
A financial donation to the March Field Air Museum supports the preservation of historic aircraft, development of educational programs, and enhancement of exhibits. Contributions help maintain the museum’s collection, ensuring future generations can explore and learn about aviation history in an engaging and informative setting.
MAKE AN IN-KIND DONATION
In-kind donations to the March Field Air Museum, such as services, equipment, and supplies, greatly enhance our operations and exhibits. These contributions help us preserve history, maintain our collection, and improve visitor experiences. We deeply appreciate the generosity of our supporters in providing these valuable resources.
In-Kind Donation Form
DONATE AN ARTIFACT
As a museum, we are on a constant journey to keep expanding our collection to share with our community. Our collection is composed of thousands of original historical objects and archival materials, from imposing military aircraft to the smallest piece of military insignia.
The March Field Air Museum’s core mission is to educate the public on the rich history of military and civil aviation through the preservation and exhibition of artifacts relating to the pivotal role of aviation in general and March Field in specific, in the transformation of travel, culture and conflict within the global community.
Process for Donations
Gift Information for Artifact Donors
Thank you for your generous offer to donate an artifact, or possibly more than one, to the March Field Air Museum (Museum)! Many people have not worked through Museum donation processes before, so the information below is provided to explain how the collection works, how items are selected for inclusion, and what we can all do to make the process smooth and enjoyable.
The March Field Air Museum, like all museums, has a specific collecting scope as informed by its mission and shaped by our desire to share stories of service and sacrifice with future generations. We also, however, have limitations on our available storage and exhibition space. Because of this, we evaluate every offered item on a case-by-case basis, and not all items offered are able to be accepted. When we do accept an item, we agree to care for this item to the highest standard, and that the item will be preserved for as long as possible. During that time, we will use the item to share incredible history with as many people as we can.
Items collected are used for a wide range of purposes including exhibition, temporary exhibition, research, educational programming, online features, and some items are even used in the maintenance and upkeep of other items in the collection (think specialized aircraft tools and publications). While we cannot guarantee that a particular item will be used in a particular way (being placed on exhibition during a specific period, as an example), we can say that we only accept items that we have plans to use – and that we are committed to preserving.
At the present time, the collection is not accepting or processing any new long-term loans or indefinite loans of items. For a small subset of collections, particularly photographic or documentary collections, it may be possible to scan and return the items if they are determined to be historically significant and the donor is unwilling to part with them. The high-resolution scans would be considered the gift in this occurrence, with all appropriate paperwork being completed.
Acceptance Procedures
The Museum does not accept any items into the collection at the Museum front desk without prior knowledge, appointment, and approval from the collections staff. Collections staff will make arrangements for your gift to be received at the Museum once the process has been completed.
According to our Collections Management Policy, gifts offered for donation must be reviewed by the Museum Collections Staff. This can be accomplished electronically or in person depending on the item. We are happy to review any and all items, but also encourage the use of email to save a trip out to the museum! Please feel free to email [email protected] with photos and information about your item, and where it came from. Due to the traffic this email receives, it may take us a few weeks to respond, but we do prioritize responding to these offers of gifts.
After an item has been reviewed by the Collections Staff, it is shared with the Museum’s Collections Committee for an official acceptance of the item(s). Once this has occurred, you will receive an email acknowledgement and deed of gift paperwork to complete. A countersigned copy will then be returned to you for your records.
If an item is not accepted into the Collection, there are several possible outcomes. It may be proposed as part of the hands-on collection, which supports education programs, curatorial research library, operational collection or the props collection. Alternative arrangements may also be suggested – with another Museum recommendation being a possibility. All of these alternatives will be presented to you, the donor, so that you can make an informed decision.
Donation Paperwork
The only paperwork that needs to be completed during this process is once the Museum has agreed to accept an item. At that time, a Deed of Gift will be completed. Once this step is completed, the item is considered an official gift, and becomes property of the Museum.
The donation form must contain:
- Signature of the Museum’s Curator, as well as the Donor
- An itemized list of all items included in the donation
- A credit line for the donation, used to acknowledge the source of the donation in the museum’s database, exhibitions, and online presentations, where possible
- Confirmation that the gift is made WITHOUT RESTRICTION (The Museum is not currently accepting restricted gifts)
- Confirmation that the donor understands there is no guarantee of a donation, or any part thereof, being selected for immediate display at the Museum.
Appraisals
Donations made to the Museum are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law. If you wish to use your donation for your taxes, you must have it appraised. Offering an appraisal ourselves creates a conflict of interest, and it is for this reason that our internal policies, national museum best practices, and federal tax law prevent us from doing it.
We encourage anyone who wishes to have a valuation attached to their item to have it appraised by a third party prior to completion of the donation paperwork. Our recommendation on where to find an appraiser is to visit the American Society of Appraisers. They have a resource on their website where you can search by discipline and/or location – http://www.appraisers.org/find-an-appraiser .
In addition to your appraisal, the IRS will require the completion of a Form 8283 (Non-Cash Charitable Contributions), if the total declared value of all non-cash contributions exceeds $500 for the whole year. The IRS further requires any gifts of similar property totaling more than $5,000 within the same year to attach a qualified appraisal in order to substantiate tax deduction – this is something you can discuss with your selected appraiser of course! More information can be found in IRS Publication 526 Charitable Contributions and IRS Publication 561 Determining the Value of Donated Property available at http://www.irs.gov.
Frequently Asked Questions about Collections
Does the Museum still accept items?
Yes, March Field Air Museum continues to be a collecting institution, and we do have areas of planned growth for the collection.
Why can't I leave my items here now?
You cannot leave your items here now, because in order to accept gifted items, we have to review the proposed items, and work to ensure that we are preserving a story along with an artifact.
What items do we accept, is there a list?
There is not a list of what we DO accept, because the range of items within the scope of our collection is very broad, and within that subset, many items CAN be accepted if the appropriate information on their STORY can be provided.
Are there items we don’t accept?
Yes, there is a short list of items that we generally do not want to accept. This includes items not related to the scope of our collection, live explosives, human remains, toxic or radioactive elements, significantly damaged items, items containing mold, insect infestation or waste products. The list also includes items that are obtained illegally are also prohibited from entering the collection – including those stolen, looted, or otherwise recovered or removed from protected sites.
Do I need to call the Museum Director?
In general, during the process of accepting a donation the Museum director does not need to be called. Your friendly collections team will be happy to help, Dillon should be the first call as right now, he is the one regularly in the office. He can share with me what information has been gathered about the item, and a determination can be made.
What if I am here alone, and none of the collections team is here?
We want to encourage the guests to photograph their items, and send the details, including information about who the item belonged to, along to the [email protected]
Again, please help us manage expectations! We will check this as often as we can, but it may take a little time to get all caught up!
Object Donation Form
If you would like to donate an artifact to the March Field Air Museum, please fill out the form below, including photographs and provenance (history of the object).
Please note items cannot be processed same-day, or dropped off at the Museum without the appropriate paperwork having been completed and the items being accepted.
Thank you again for your interest in making an artifact donation to the March Field Air Museum. We are grateful to the donors who have built this incredible collection, and to those who add to it each and every year. The artifacts that support our aircraft collection enrich the Museum experience for visitors of all ages and help us share important history that might otherwise be lost.