Donate

We set out to inspire everyone within our reach by illustrating the incredible sacrifice, accomplishments, and spirit of Chinese Americans. With your support, this great undertaking will continue to grow. To explore how you can further help us, please take a look at the support options below.

Become a Member

Membership offers a flexible way to support the museum and its programs while enjoying some great benefits! Get advance notice of events, discounted rates at paid programs, discounts at restaurants, reciprocal membership at museums across North America, and invitations to special events. Choose a membership level that is right for you.

2024 Annual Fund

The 2024 Annual Fund marks a critical moment in our museum’s development. There are a number of meaningful ways that you can support our efforts to bring the Chinese American story to people across the country and beyond. Your donation, at any level, is greatly appreciated.

  • Make a donation that will go where it is needed the most. This includes general operating support, capacity-building, or programs and projects in need. Make a Contribution

  • Contribute directly to a permanent or special exhibit, program, or event that is meaningful to your interests and objectives. Choose a Program/Initiative

  • Discuss custom donor opportunities that play a significant, visible role in our key initiatives, galleries, and facilities.

    The museum offers customized sponsorship and naming opportunities for programs, events, exhibits, initiatives, galleries, and facilities. These provide critical support to the museum and its initiatives while giving donors highly-visible ways to support the Chinese American story and meet their giving needs.

    To learn more about additional sponsorship and naming opportunities please contact together@ChineseAmericanMuseum.org.

Other Ways to Give

  • A Donor-Advised, or DAF, is a giving account established at a public charity. It allows donors to make a charitable contribution, receive an immediate tax deduction and then recommend grants from the fund over time.  The charitable assets in the DAF may be invested, and any investment growth is tax-free for the donor. Donors can contribute to the fund as frequently as they like, and then recommend grants to their favorite charitable organizations whenever it makes sense for them.

    Our EIN - 82-1782141

    Legal Title – Chinese American Museum Foundation

    Address – 1218 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036


    Contact your financial institution or select from some of these DAFs below:

    American Endowment Foundation or Blackbaud

    American Online Giving Foundation

    Ayco Charitable Foundation

    Bank of America Charitable Gift Fund

    Catholic Community Foundation

    Fidelity Charitable

    Global Impact

    Goldman Sachs

    National Philanthropic Trust

    Network for Good

    New York Community Trust

    Raymond James Charitable

    Renaissance Charitable Foundation

    T. Rowe Price Charitable

    Schwab Charitable

    Silicon Valley Community Foundation

    Vanguard Charitable

    The information on this website is not intended as financial, legal, or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. Information cited in any examples are for illustrative purposes only. References to tax rates include federal taxes only and are subject to change. State law may further impact your individual results.

  • We accept donations of commonly-held, publicly-traded stocks. You can donate stock by electronic or certificate transfer. Please email Sheldon.ray@raymondjames.com or Karen.burt@raymondjames.com for details.

  • Consider establishing a legacy gift through planned giving. Speak with your investment or estate advisor to support CAMDC in a way that meets your personal financial goals and objectives. Thank you for including the Chinese American Museum in your legacy planning.

    Have you already included us in your estate plan? Please let us know by sending an email to together@ChineseAmericanMuseum.org or calling 202-423-7512.

  • A Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) is a direct transfer of funds from your IRA custodian, payable to a qualified charity. QCDs can be counted toward satisfying your required minimum distributions (RMDs) for the year, as long as certain rules are met.

    In addition to the benefits of giving to charity, a QCD excludes the amount donated from taxable income, which is unlike regular withdrawals from an IRA. Keeping your taxable income lower may reduce the impact to certain tax credits and deductions, including Social Security and Medicare.

    Also, QCDs don't require that you itemize, which due to the recent tax law changes, means you may decide to take advantage of the higher standard deduction, but still use a QCD for charitable giving.

    Option 1:

    Contact your IRA custodian and request a direct transfer to:

    Chinese American Museum Foundation
    Attn: Development
    1218 16th St. NW
    Washington, DC 20036

    Chinese American Museum Foundation’s Tax ID (EIN) number is 82-1782141.

    Do not withdraw the funds and make a contribution yourself, or you will have to report the withdrawal as taxable income. If you are requesting the transfer at the end of the tax year, allow enough time for the transfer to complete by December 31.

    Option 2:

    Instruct the custodian that manages your IRA to send you a check made out to Chinese American Museum Foundation, which you can then mail to us (in order for the QCD to count, you cannot collect the money and then donate it). Allow extra time for the gift to clear in order to take a tax deduction in the current calendar year.

    Contact together@ChineseAmericanMuseum.org with your name, the exact amount of your gift, what you would like the gift to support and the name of your IRA custodian so we can provide you with substantiation for your tax return.

    The information on this website is not intended as financial, legal, or tax advice. For such advice, please consult an attorney or tax advisor. Information cited in any examples are for illustrative purposes only. References to tax rates include federal taxes only and are subject to change. State law may further impact your individual results.

  • Choose #62749 - Chinese American Museum Foundation - Are you a Federal Employee or know of a Federal employee or group interested in supporting the Chinese American Museum DC through the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC)?

    We’re developing the first and only museum in our nation’s capital dedicated to the Chinese American story. Since 2019, we’ve already launched a number of exhibits (both permanent and special temporary) and in-person and online programs that elevate the history, culture, and contributions of Chinese in America. Your support helps us to:

    - Transform our facility into a state-of-the-art museum and cultural center

    - Recruit leading experts and staff, and volunteers

    - Grow and conserve our collection, loaned artifacts, and content

    - Develop exhibits and stories for the museum and online

    - Create educational programs for in-museum, traveling exhibits, and online

    - Collaborate with other museums and cultural organizations

    - Engage visiting artists, historians, and speakers

    - Connect with museum visitors from around the world

    - Secure the museum’s long-term mission

    By giving through the CFC, Federal employees can support designated charities in a way that really makes a difference to all of them, both large and small ... Not only does that allow people to give more, it also gives charities a steady stream of support through the year, which allows them to plan and do more. Donations can be made incrementally over time directly from your payroll.

    Pledges made by Federal employees, Federal civilian, postal and military donors during the campaign season will support eligible non-profit organizations of their choosing. The Chinese American Museum DC (Chinese American Museum Foundation) is an approved CFC charity.

    Learn more through the CFC Web Site: https://givecfc.org.

Artifact and Content Donations

The Chinese American Museum in Washington, DC (CAMDC) is interested in donated artifacts and materials that enrich our collection and assist in telling the Chinese American story. This includes but not limited to the categories below.

PLEASE DO NOT SEND OBJECTS TO THE MUSEUM WITHOUT CONTACTING OUR TEAM AND READING BELOW.

We collect legally and ethically obtained artifacts including but not limited to:

  • Books (historically significant as an object or useful reference for Chinese American topics)

  • Signs

  • Clothing, uniforms, accessories

  • Tools, products, and materials

  • Documents, letters, certificates

  • Art

  • Photographs, illustrations

  • Political or advocacy material

  • Newspapers, advertisements, posters

  • Film and video

  • Written, audio, and video notes, histories, diaries, family history records

  • Personal effects of well-known or historically significant figures from current or past Chinese-American culture

Prior to your donation, please email together@chineseamericanmuseum.org, and a member of the museum’s collections team will contact you. Thank you for your support.

A curator at CAMDC will consider your intake information and will contact you for additional information if required. At the time of intake, please provide as much information as possible about your donation. Photographs and inventories are extremely helpful. Once all information is received, the CAMDC Collections Planning Committee will consider the donation.

In most cases, the physical condition of the item(s) must be acceptable for potential exhibit use. CAMDC must be able to properly store and provide long-term care for the item(s). Donations are typically an unrestricted, permanent transfer of ownership. Under special circumstances, a loan to the museum may be considered.

Please email together@chineseamericanmuseum.org with any questions. Thank you for your support!