School auction donation requests that fill your table.

A school auction donation request is a short, specific ask to a local business or a family for an item or experience to auction. The ones that work name the school, say what the money is for, ask for something particular, and give a date. Below are templates you can copy for each kind of ask, plus what to put on a receipt. For where donations fit in the wider plan, see the school auction timeline.

Start close to the school and work outward.

1. Businesses school families own or work at. A parent asking their own employer or their own customers gets a yes more often than a letter from a stranger.
2. Places families already spend money: the pizza place near school, the dance studio, the orthodontist, the trampoline park. Your families are their customers, and they know it.
3. Businesses that have supported the school before. Check last year's list if there is one.
4. Regional and national companies with donation programs. Many take requests only through an online form and need several weeks' notice, so send these first even though they're the least likely to say yes.

Send requests six to eight weeks before bidding opens, and national-company forms earlier. Ask for items to arrive two to three weeks before the auction, so there's time to photograph them and write descriptions.

Keep it to one page. Change every bracketed part.

Subject: [School name] auction: would [business name] donate an item?

Dear [name],

I'm a parent at [school name] and I'm helping run our [PTA/PTO] auction this [month]. Money raised will go to [specific purpose, e.g. new playground equipment for our 400 students].

Would [business name] donate [a specific item, e.g. a family dinner for four, or a gift card]? Families from [school name] are regulars at [business name], and we'll credit [business name] by name in the item's description, where [number] school families will see it.

The auction runs online from [date] to [date]. If you're able to help, I'll collect the item by [date], or you can send a gift card to [address].

[If your group is a 501(c)(3):] [PTA/PTO name] is a 501(c)(3) organization, EIN [number]. We'll send you a written acknowledgment for your records.

Thank you for considering it. I'll follow up in a week.

[Your name]
[Your role, e.g. Auction committee, [school name] PTA]
[Phone] · [Email]

Ask when the owner or manager is there and the shop isn't busy. Bring a printed copy of the letter to leave behind.

"Hi, I'm [name]. My kids go to [school name] and I'm helping with our school auction this [month]. It's raising money for [purpose]. A lot of our families come here, and I wondered if you'd donate something we could auction, like [specific suggestion]. Your business would be listed with the item, and every family at the school sees the auction. I've brought a letter with the details. Can I check back with you next week?"

If they say no, thank them and leave the letter anyway. Some businesses give next year.

Families often have more to offer than businesses: a vacation week, a skill, a service, season tickets they can spare. Send this with the first announcement of the auction date.

Subject: Can you help our [school name] auction?

Our [PTA/PTO] auction runs [dates] and raises money for [purpose]. Some of the most popular items every year come from our own families.

Could you donate something? Ideas:
- A week at a vacation home or cabin
- A service you offer professionally (photography, tutoring, tax prep, lawn care)
- A dinner you cook, or a party you host for a group of kids
- Tickets you can spare to a game or show

Tell us what you can give using this form: [link]. We'll need it by [date].

Thank you,
[Name], [role]

Follow up once, about a week after the first ask. A first request often gets buried under everything else a business owner receives; a short second note gives it another chance.

Hi [name], I'm following up on my note about the [school name] auction. We'd love to include [business name] if you're able to donate. Items are due by [date]. Is there a good time for me to stop by?

Thanks, [name]

Send it within a week of the close, and say what the item raised. It's the easiest way to get the same donor back next year.

Dear [name],

Thank you for donating [item] to the [school name] auction. It sold for $[amount], and the auction raised $[total] for [purpose].

[One sentence on what the money will do, e.g. The new playground equipment goes in this summer.]

We're grateful for your support, and we hope to include [business name] again next year.

[Name], [role]

What your group can say depends on its tax status. Many PTAs hold 501(c)(3) status through their state PTA; many PTOs are independent and may or may not. Our guide to PTA and PTO auctions covers how to check whether your parent group can issue receipts.

If your group is a US 501(c)(3):

• For donated items, send a written acknowledgment that describes the item and says whether the donor received anything in return. Don't put a dollar value on it; valuing the gift is the donor's job.
• For any single gift of $250 or more, the donor needs that written acknowledgment to claim a deduction.
• For winning bidders, a payment above $75 that includes an item calls for a written statement giving the item's fair market value, because only the amount paid above that value can be deductible.

The IRS sets out these rules in Publication 1771. This is general information, not tax advice. Your treasurer or accountant should confirm what applies to your group.

Keep one list with a row per ask: business or family, who asked, what was promised, date asked, date followed up, date received, value, and thank-you sent. The gap between "promised" and "received" is where auctions come up short, and a list shows it weeks before the auction instead of the night before.

On 32auctions you can add each item as it arrives, with its photo and donor, so the auction itself becomes the list of what you actually have.

For a general-purpose version of the letter, see our general donation letter. For what to ask for, see our school auction ideas.