The Oakland Public Library welcomes your financial support as well as gifts of materials (such as books and CDs) and also volunteer time.

Donating Money

How do I make a donation to the Library?
Send a donation by check to: Oakland Public Library, Attn: Grants and Development Office, 125 – 14th Street, Oakland, CA 94612. You may use the donation form to make your gift.

Is my donation tax deductible?
Donations to the Oakland Public Library are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Will I receive a tax receipt?
The Library will send a written acknowledgement for all donations. A tax receipt with the information required by the IRS will be sent for donations of $250 or more.

Can I make a donation by credit card?
Donations to the Friends of the Oakland Public Library (FOPL) may be made online through Network for Good at www.fopl.org. FOPL is an independent non-profit organization whose mission is to support the Oakland Public Library.

I want my donation to be used only for a specific purpose or branch – how do I do that?
Inquire at your local branch or contact Winifred Walters, Manager of Grants and Development at the Library, at 238-6932 or wwalters@oaklandlibrary.org.

How will my gift be used?
Your donation will support special programs and projects and enhance the library’s collections of books and other materials. You may use the donation form to make your gift.

The Oakland Public Library is currently seeking private support for a new branch library. Donations to the Buildings Fund will count toward a 1-for-2 matching grant thereby leveraging the value of your gift! (East Oakland Community Library Web Page)

Who can I contact for more information?
Winifred Walters, Manager of Grants and Development at the Library, at 238-6932 or wwalters@oaklandlibrary.org.

Donating Books and Other Items

The Oakland Public Library regularly receives gifts of books and non-book material from our patrons. While we are able to add some gift material to our shelves, not every gift to the library is appropriate for the collection.

For a gift to be added to the collection, it must meet the same standard as purchased material. Gifts must be timely as to content and format, in excellent physical condition, have either contemporary significance or permanent value, and be consistent with existing library collections.

Some examples of gifts that the library encourages are:

• Current bestsellers (in excellent physical condition) in fiction and nonfiction
• Classic fiction or nonfiction in excellent physical condition
• Books on Tape or CD (unabridged complete sets only)
• Musical recordings on CD only
• Timely nonfiction (two years old or newer) in excellent physical condition
• Large-print books in excellent physical condition
• Popular or classic DVDs in excellent condition

Some examples of material that the library will not accept include:

• Computer or medical books over three years old
• Non-book material in outdated formats (e.g.: phonograph records)
• Almanacs or encyclopedia yearbooks
• Abridged or condensed books or audio books
• Book club editions

Magazines are not accepted by Oakland Public Library branches. Some magazines may be accepted after prearrangement by the Magazine and Newspaper Room of the Main Library. Please call 238-3176.

Gifts are also evaluated for their condition. Books with:

• yellowed or missing pages,
• damaged spines,
• musty smells,
• stains,
• visible mildew, or
• underlining or highlighting

cannot be added to the collection and are not accepted.

Audio-visual materials that are damaged or incomplete sets are not accepted.

Exceptions to the above guidelines may be made for gifts to specialty collections such as the Oakland History Room (238-3222) and AAMLO, the African American Museum and Library at Oakland (637-0200).

Unused gifts cannot be returned to the donor. At the library's discretion, they may be offered to the Friends of the Library for public sale, discarded, or disposed of in some other way. We encourage donors to recycle books themselves, as this is a time consuming activity for our staff. Scroll down for information on book recycling.

The Library provides a receipt describing number and type of donated material. The Library cannot be responsible for the appraisal or valuation of gifts for income tax or any other purpose.

Gifts of children’s and teen material are evaluated separately by Children’s Services and Teen Services librarians and are subject to additional criteria. Contact your local library for further information.

Who can I contact for more information?
Randy McDevitt-Parks, Senior Librarian for Collection Management, 238-4704 or rparks@oaklandlibrary.org.

Local Information on Book Recycling and Reuse

Note: Paperback books can be recycled with other paper recycling. The book can be of any size as long as it does not have a hard cover.

Alameda County Recycling Hotline
1-877-786-7927 (STOPWASTE) or email info@stopwaste.org.
www.stopwaste.org
Click here for places to donate/recycle hardcover books
Click here for places to donate/recycle soft cover books

California Waste Solutions – Oakland (will accept hardback books)
3300 Wood Street, cross streets are 32nd and 34th because there is no 33rd.
Near Pac & Save at the Oakland/Emeryville border. Wood Street is behind Toys R Us.
510-836-6200
8am to 5pm Monday through Friday
Okay to drop off large quantities of books for no fee or paperwork

Sutta Company - Oakland
1221 Third Street
510-873-8777

Books for the Barrios – Concord
2350 Whitman Road , Suite D
925-687-7701 or email joinus@booksforthebarrios.com.
www.booksforthebarrios.com
Donates educational materials to third world classes, especially in the Philippines. Desperate for dictionaries. Will accept material up to college level in English, science, classics, math, encyclopedias after 1985, world history, and children’s storybooks. Will accept all National Geographics! Will not accept American history or American biography. Especially wants 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade level materials.

St Vincent de Paul – Oakland
9235 San Leandro Street
510-638-7600 or email: info@svdp.alameda.org.
www.svdp.alameda.org

Moe’s Bookstore – Berkeley
2476 Telegraph Avenue
510-849-2087 email: moe@moesbooks.com.
www.moesbooks.com
Donates books to Prisoners Literature Project.

East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse – Oakland
4695 Telegraph Avenue
Please phone first: 510-547-6470 email: eastbaydepot@hotmail.com.
www.creativereuse.org
Open 11 – 6 daily
The Depot accepts some, but not all books. Phone first or take a look at their website.

Alameda County Computer Resource Center -- Berkeley
1501 Eastshore Highway
510-528-4052 email: info@accrc.org
Open 9 – 5 Monday-Friday, 12-5 on Saturday
This organization accepts donations of computer manuals for its “free shelf” where the manuals rotate in and out.

Children's Hospital Oakland
Takes donations of children's and young adult books in good condition. Please phone first: 510-428-3471.