Do you have an item that you would like to donate? If you would like to donate an object or archives materials to the collection of the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education, please follow these steps:
Call and Talk to Us!
Please call and arrange a meeting with the director of collections at 503-226-3600 before bringing in your items. The Museum has a set of guidelines that staff must follow in deciding what we accept — for instance, we do not collect unidentified photographs, or items that are in poor condition, or things that are not related to the story of the Jewish experience in Oregon. Your object may be more appropriate at another museum or organization, and our collections staff may be able to help you with that over the phone.
Make an appointment to bring them in.
Having arranged a specific meeting time with museum staff will save time, effort, and frustration. We would hate to miss you or be too busy to see you, and realize it is frustrating to have made a trip to the museum for nothing. To avoid this, we ask that you make an appointment in advance while talking with the collections staff.
It warms my heart to know that my family’s items will be cared for and included in OJMCHE’s archives. It makes me feel like a piece of them will always be remembered. Jordan Shenker, on the donation of his Cousin Myra Enkelis’ archival papers to the OJMCHE archives.
Bring in your items.
Come to the reception desk. If you have arranged to drop off an item, there will be a Temporary Receipt waiting for you to fill out. If you have arranged to meet with collections staff, we will come down and escort you up to the collections office. The Temporary Receipt includes your name, address, phone number and any information you can share about your object. You will receive a copy of the Temporary Receipt. This is the first step in the donation process. The donation is not official at this time. The collection manager will follow up your meeting by mail with a Deed of Gift for you to sign and an acknowledgment letter that is your receipt for tax purposes.
For gifts of fine art, the museum director and curator of collections meet quarterly with the Acquisition Committee. This is the opportunity to ensure that the museum’s art collection follows the established set of collecting guidelines. If you would like to read those guidelines please ask one of the collections staff for a copy. Once Acquisition Committee accepts the donation, you will be sent a Deed of Gift in the mail to sign and return. This is the legal document that officially transfers ownership from you to the Museum. When you sign and return the Deed of Gift, the curator of collections will sign it as well and send you a copy. Then the donation process is complete. If an object is not accepted, you will receive a letter in the mail asking you to pick it up within 30 days.
Donations to the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education are tax deductible. Museum staff are not allowed by the IRS to appraise your gift. Appraisals for tax purposes must be done by an outside, independent appraiser and provided at the time of the donation.
What does the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center For Holocaust Education collect?
- Architectural drawings
- Artifacts Audio and video recordings
- Club and summer camp memorabilia
- Correspondence, emails, telegrams
- Diaries, scrapbooks, and journals
- Genealogical information
- Judaica and objects of Jewish significance
- Memoirs/reminiscences
- Military service records and keepsakes
- Minutes/reports
- Photographs and albums