Support the Library

Shaker Library is a valuable community resource. Hundreds of people turn to the Library every day seeking a book, a job, free Internet access, a place to gather with friends and a connection with the community. While the Library receives much of its funding from public sources, contributions from generous people like you enrich the library experience for all.  Donations to the Shaker Library are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Thank you for remembering the Library!

Shaker Library is honored to accept your memorial or honor donation to remember or acknowledge someone special or to generally support the library. Send a check, along with a letter noting the designated fund or the person’s name for which the donation is being made, and any special book requests to:

Director
Shaker Library
16500 Van Aken Boulevard
Shaker Heights, Ohio 44120

cleveland foundation logo

What is the Shaker Heights Public Library Endowment Fund?

The Shaker Heights Public Library Endowment Fund provides ongoing financial assistance to the Shaker Heights Public Library and its programs. The fund is held and managed by the Cleveland Foundation, which invests the gifts for greater return on investment and prudent growth.

Each year, a percentage of the fund is available for the needs of Shaker Library. Unless it is determined otherwise, the remainder is reinvested in the fund to protect against inflation and to meet the future needs of the organization.

Gifts to the fund provide Shaker Library with an important source of revenue now and into the future. This revenue, combined with Shaker Library’s partnership with the Cleveland Foundation, provides a measure of security that allows Shaker Library to focus on its mission. The fund offers donors a wide variety of giving options

How can I help Shaker Heights Public Library through its fund?

GIVING NOW

Cash or Stock Gifts
These gifts are simple to make and immediately effective. All cash contributions are tax-deductible (up to 50 percent of a donor’s
adjusted gross income). Appreciated assets can include stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and real property, and are tax-deductible up to 30 percent of adjusted gross income.

FUTURE GIVING

Bequest
An outright bequest to Shaker Library is the simplest way to provide a future gift. Please contact Shaker Library for specific bequest language that can be included in your will or trust.

Charitable Gift Annuity
A charitable gift annuity is an irrevocable gift that returns a stream of payments to the donor or another beneficiary, based on the recipient’s age at the time of the gift. The donor qualifies for a charitable tax deduction for part of the gift, while the payments may receive favorable tax treatment. Most importantly, the gift annuity will substantially help meet the future needs of Shaker Library.

Life Insurance Policy
Unused life insurance policies make excellent charitable gifts. Please contact Shaker Library for more information.

Charitable Remainder Trust
Charitable remainder trusts allow donors to make gifts using payment options that best meet their needs. Additionally, remainder trusts are flexible enough to permit the use of a variety of assets, including cash securities and real property. Donors qualify for a charitable deduction for part of the gift, and trust beneficiaries receive a percentage of the trust returned to them annually. These payments may offer some tax benefit to the recipient.

Charitable Lead Trust
Through charitable lead trusts, donors can support the charitable needs of Shaker Library now, and the remaining assets can be transferred to other individuals or even themselves at a future date. Assets in the lead trust would come to Shaker Library for a fixed number of years or over a donor’s lifetime. When payments are no longer being made to Shaker Library, the remainder can be returned to a beneficiary or beneficiaries with possible tax advantages.

Your gift today can have an impact on the lives of others for generations to come. Please consider how you might create a legacy through the Shaker Heights Public Library Fund of the Cleveland Foundation.

For more information, please call the Advancement team at the Cleveland Foundation at 216-861-3810 (toll-free 877-554-5054), or the Shaker Heights Public Library Director at 216-367-3001.

 

Friends of the Shaker Library was founded by a group of volunteers in 1980 to support the library. Their activities include a membership drive, book sales, merchandise sales and other friends and fund-raisers.

Donate books to the Friends

Donations to Shaker Library are used exclusively for library purposes. Recent donations have funded supplies for the Bertram Woods Branch Children’s Department and the Local History collection, and to purchase books for the Marilyn Kammer Memorial Popular Collection.

Donations designated for general purposes will be used where they are most needed. The Library will honor requests that a donation be used for a specific purpose.

You may choose to direct your contribution to an existing fund:

  • Ruth Levenson Fund for children’s material
  • Frances Belman Fund for large print material
  • Marilyn Kammer Memorial Fund for new and popular fiction
  • Sheldon “Skip” Bauomel Fund for Local History material
  • Walter N. Lawson Fund for Local History material
  • Elaine “Boots” Fisher Fund for Caldecott and Newbery award and honor books
  • Bertram Woods Branch Fund
  • Barbara Luton Art Fund

To discuss donations intended for a specific purpose, please contact the Library Director at 216-991-2030 x3001. If you are using PayPal from our website, select “Add special instructions to the seller” to indicate if you wish to direct your contribution to an existing fund:

  • Ruth Levenson Fund for children’s material
  • Frances Belman Fund for large print material
  • Marilyn Kammer Memorial Fund for new and popular fiction
  • Sheldon “Skip” Bauomel Fund for Local History material
  • Walter N. Lawson Fund for Local History material
  • Elaine “Boots” Fischer Fund for Caldecott and Newbery award and honor books
  • Bertram Woods Branch Fund
  • Barbara Luton Art Fund