Frequently Asked Questions
Questions
- What is Xerces’ federal tax identification number?
- What are the membership levels and costs?
- What are the benefits of membership?
- When does my membership expire?
- Can I renew for multiple years at a time?
- What if I don’t want to donate online?
- Can I designate my donation toward a specific project or program?
- How do I give a membership to someone else?
- May I give a donation honor or in memory of someone?
- Matching Gifts
- Bequests, Donations of Stock, and Major Gifts
- In-Kind Gifts
- How do I notify you of changes to my contact information?
- How much of my donation is tax-deductible? Will I get an acknowledgment letter of my donation?
- How many renewals notices will I receive?
- What other mailings will I receive?
- Why does Xerces not give out membership numbers or cards?
- How will Xerces use my information?
If your questions are not answered below please feel free to contact:
Suzanne Granahan, Membership Coordinator
The Xerces Society
628 NE Broadway, Suite 200
Portland, OR 97232
(855) 232-6639
What is Xerces’ federal tax identification number?
Our tax identification number is 51-0175253.
What are the membership levels and costs?
We offer both monthly and annual memberships. For monthly memberships we ask that you donate a minimum of $5 per month. The costs of our annual memberships are:
- Regular $35
- Supporter $50
- Friend $100
- Patron $250
- Benefactor $500
- Sustainer $1,000
- Living Lightly $15
What are the benefits of membership?
The biggest benefit of your membership is the knowledge that you are directly helping to protect invertebrates and conserve their habitat. Additionally, you will receive two issues of Wings: Essays on Invertebrate Conservation each year. Members with U.S. addresses also qualify for discounts on Xerces merchandise and publications, such as our popular book Attracting Native Pollinators: Protecting North America’s Bees and Butterflies from our store.
When does my membership expire?
Monthly memberships
Monthly memberships remain active as long as you continue to make monthly payments. You may make changes at any time to your monthly giving amount or end date by contacting Suzanne Granahan.
Annual memberships
Annual memberships expire 12 months after we receive your membership payment. If you submit a renewal payment before your membership expires you won’t “lose” any months; we will just extend your membership 12 months from your current end date.
Please note that if you are not directly responding to renewal request from Xerces, please be sure to include a note that says you are requesting a renewal, so that your renewal is not confused with a special contribution.
Can I renew for multiple years at a time?
Please call our office toll free at (855) 232-6639 to renew for multiple years at a time. You can also sign up online for yearly auto pay on our join or renew membership pages. If you elect for yearly auto pay, then you won’t receive renewal notices in the mail or have to remember when your membership renewal is due.
What if I don’t want to donate online?
Please call our office toll free at (855) 232-6639, Monday through Friday from 9am-5pm Pacific time, to donate over the phone with a credit card. We accept Visa or MasterCard. You may also mail in our downloadable donation form.
If you live outside the U.S. please do not send in foreign checks or money orders. We bank with a small community bank and they charge us $20 per check to deposit foreign checks or money orders, even if they are already converted to U.S. funds.
Can I designate my donation toward a specific project or program?
If you wish to make a restricted donation, the amount must be $5,000 or more. This parameter is made to keep administrative costs down and to encourage unrestricted giving, which ensures the greatest flexibility of your contribution. If you would like to make a restricted gift please contact Margo Connor our Contract Assistant.
How do I give a membership to someone else?
Giving a gift membership to a relative or friend is a wonderful way to mark a birthday, holiday, or special event. The recipient will receive notification of your gift and a complimentary recent issue of Wings. You can purchase a gift membership online or by calling our office at (855) 232-6639.
May I give a donation honor or in memory of someone?
Yes, a tribute gift is a wonderful way to celebrate a particular life event or to honor a special person’s life. We will send a card announcing your thoughtfulness. You may make a tribute gift online or call us at (855) 232-6639.
Matching Gifts
Yes, please ask your employer to make your gift go even further. We are happy to process your matching gift.
Bequests, Donations of Stock, and Major Gifts
For many, remembering a favorite organization in their will is an important legacy. Others prefer giving securities (stock), or would like to make a large impact on a specific project by contributing in support of that program. Please contact our Executive Director, Scott Hoffman Black, if you are interested in discussing these options.
In-Kind Gifts
If you are in the Portland (OR) metropolitan area, you might wonder if our office needs equipment, supplies, books, or other items. We gladly accept these in-kind gifts, but only if we can really use them. Please contact Katy Gray first for more information.
How do I notify you of changes to my contact information?
Just contact Suzanne Granahan via email, call us at (855) 232-6639, or mail us a note letting us know that your contact information has changed. It is always helpful if you provide us with your previous contact information as well, so we can easily look you up in our databases.
How much of my donation is tax-deductible? Will I get an acknowledgment letter of my donation?
The Xerces Society is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Because IRS rules change often, please contact a tax adviser or accountant for the most up-to-date information. Donations and dues to the Xerces Society are tax deductible to the extent allowable by law. To reduce paper usage and mailing costs, we acknowledge gifts under $74.99 with a postcard and gifts over $75.00 with a formal letter. If you would like to receive a letter for tax purposes, please contact Suzanne Granahan.
How many renewals notices will I receive?
If you are not set-up with automatic membership payments, then we send renewal notices two to three months before your membership expiration date. If we don’t hear from you, we will send two more renewals. We send multiple notices because renewals often get buried in kitchen drawers or lost in a move. If you are curious when your membership expires please contact Suzanne Granahan.
What other mailings will I receive?
Twice a year, in spring and fall, we send special appeals to all of our members, sometimes for general support and sometimes for specific programs. Our hope is that those who are able to contribute will make a donation in addition to their membership dues. We also mail out our member magazine Wings twice a year in late spring and late fall.
Why does Xerces not give out membership numbers or cards?
Sometimes members wish they had tangible evidence of their Xerces membership. We have decided, however, to save money and resources by funneling money directly into our conservation, research, and outreach programs, instead of managing membership numbers and giving out membership cards.
How will Xerces use my information?
Please read our Donor Privacy Policy to learn about what donor information we collect and how we use that information. Feel free to contact us if you have questions regarding the policy.
