The easiest way to leave a lasting legacy to the benefit of thousands of people who love automotive and local history, is to include the Seal Cove Auto Museum in your will. Your gift, regardless of size, will be both welcome and important to the Museum as it plans for the future. The Seal Cove Auto Museum has an exciting vision, including an improved and expanded facility with new exhibit spaces, a driving track on the site for visitor rides in the antique cars, and continued excellence in interpretation and collections care. Your gift can help ensure that this envisioned future becomes a reality.
You are strongly urged to discuss your gift intentions with the Museum at an early stage in your planning. Please call us at 207-244-9242, or have your attorney or financial advisor call if you have any questions or would like additional information.
Gift Planning Options
Gifts of Automobiles (cars and motorcycles):
The Seal Cove Auto Museum welcomes gifts of antique automobiles, motorcycles, and selected accessories to add to our collection, or to sell to support our mission. The Museum will accept unique antique autos into the collection based on the criteria outlined in our Collections Policy, if the automobiles advance the mission of the museum, and if they do not represent a duplication in the existing collection. Donors are encouraged to consider an endowment gift to support the long-term care and preservation of the automobile. The Museum’s Curatorial staff is happy to work with donors to ensure that Seal Cove is the appropriate home for your gift.
- Gifts of automobiles that fall outside of the mission of the museum can be donated with the intent that the Museum will sell the automobile and all proceeds will go to support museum programs, unless the donor designates otherwise.
- The Museum accepts outright gifts, which entitle the donor to a tax deduction at the time of the gift. Or, if a donor is not quite ready to part with an item, the Museum will accept promised gifts if a donor expresses the intent to give the Museum the item in the future.
Gifts of Securities:
These gifts have great benefits for donors, including a deduction for the fair market value of the stock, and no capital gains taxes. To avoid capital gains taxes, donors must donate the annual securities, not the proceeds from their sale. The Museum’s financial institution can help arrange for the transfer of securities.
Bequests:
A bequest is a gift of cash, property, or other assets given to the Museum through a will. A bequest allows you to give a substantial contribution without impacting your current assets. A gift to the Museum is deductible against estate taxes. A bequest may be designated to support a specific program or purpose, or may be undesignated, which supports the Museum’s mission and general operations. The bequest may be for a specific amount or piece of property.
- A residuary bequest allows the donor to donate what remains of an estate after all other gifts and obligations have been met.
- Contingent bequests can be arranged whereby the Seal Cove Auto Museum is the beneficiary only if the original beneficiary is unable to accept the bequest.
Sample language for including the Seal Cove Auto Museum in a will or codicil:
I give, devise, and bequeath _____ % of the remaining assets of my estate to the Seal Cove Auto Museum, a Maine charitable corporation, for its charitable purposes…
I give, devise, and bequeath the sum of $______ to the Seal Cove Auto Museum, a Maine charitable corporation, for its charitable purposes…
Retirement and Pension Funds:
These funds can be taxed when turned over to an individual beneficiary. By naming the Seal Cove Auto Museum as the beneficiary, a donor can continue to draw from these accounts throughout his or her life, but at the time of death the Museum becomes the beneficiary and income and estate taxes are not charged.
Federal Tax Identification Number: 01-0277592