Donate

Support Our Mission - Make an Impact

Your support is more crucial than ever. Your donation will help us expand our reach and enhance our programs, allowing us to impact even more young writers for a wildly successful future!

Join us in making an impact by: donating (we accept card, Venmo, PayPal, or bank transfer) or becoming a monthly donor by joining our Future Bestsellers Club! Read on to learn how to give via a DAF, estate planning, stock, corporate matching gift, or by mail!

Donate now - Support Young Writers!

Become a Monthly Donor!

For as little as ten dollars each month, we'll deliver writing from our brilliant, emerging authors right to you!

Monthly donations help us plan ahead, making our free writing programs for students more sustainable.

Other Ways to Give

Donate By Mail

Please make checks payable to 826LA and mail to:

Jaime Balboa
826LA
1714 W. Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Corporate Match

Ask your employer about corporate matching to increase the impact of your gift! Many companies facilitate matches through Benevity. Check in with your HR department, or contact our Senior Development Coordinator, Cole Montgomery, at cole@826LA.org if you have any questions.

Corporate Sponsorships

Corporations have an opportunity to support students in a major way by sponsoring an event, the publication of one of our books, or ways we haven’t even dreamt of yet! Please reach out to Alma Carrillo, our Senior Manager of Strategic Partnerships and Communications, at alma@826la.org

In-Kind Donations

To make a gift of goods or services, please contact Cole Montgomery, our Senior Development Coordinator, at cole@826la.org or 213-459-1837. Some of the most powerful in-kind gifts we’ve received have been from corporate partners offering free or discounted goods and services to our constituents (i.e. students, parents, and volunteers). You can also help us furnish the writing lab, feed our volunteers, and keep our pencil cups stocked by checking out our Amazon Wishlist.

Stock Donations

A gift of stocks or securities can be a powerful way to contribute to 826LA. Stock that has increased in value is one of the most popular assets used for charitable giving. Making a gift of securities to us offers you the chance to benefit 826LA while realizing many important benefits for yourself.

Want to donate stock to 826LA? Get in touch with Christie Thomas, our Director of Development, at christie@826LA.org.

Planned Giving

Bequests: Consider naming 826LA as a beneficiary in your will and living trust. Donating a percentage of your estate to 826LA would result in significant tax savings.

Life Insurance Policy and Retirement Assets: Often overlooked, you can name 826LA as a partial beneficiary to provide support.

Life Income Gifts: Life income gifts allow you to leave a gift in the care of 826LA while earning income for you during your lifetime. The two most popular life income gifts are charitable remainder trusts and charitable gift annuities.

We hope you'll consider exploring these opportunities. Please consult your financial advisor or contact donations@826LA.org to discuss possibilities and to learn more.

Shop The Time Travel Mart

The Time Travel Mart

Shop for memorable books, gifts, and more at our stores in Echo Park, Mar Vista, or online and directly support 826LA!

Give Via Your Donor Advised Fund (DAF)

Consider donating to 826LA via your DAF! You can use our DAF Direct tool, or contact your DAF holder to recommend a grant of any size to 826LA, tax ID #38-3722092.

Use Ralphs Rewards

Ralphs Community Contribution Program: After you sign up with your Ralphs Rewards Card, within 72 hours, you’ll be giving back to 826LA!

Impact Report

826LA’s Impact Report highlights the power of creativity and community. Thanks to the support of volunteers, donors, and partners, we’ve been able to provide thousands of students across Los Angeles with free, high-quality writing programs that build skills, boost confidence, and nurture a love for storytelling. From publishing young authors to offering college essay support, our programs are helping students find their voice and write their future. Explore our latest Impact Report to see how your support is making a difference.

Read the Report

“Working with 826LA has been a wonderful experience. Watching students grow and being able to help them tell the stories that live in them has been life-changing.”

Grace Lyde, 826LA Write On! After School Intern

“I love watching students workshop their writing with 826LA volunteers. The volunteers treat young people not just as students faced with an assignment, but as writers whose stories and ideas are important. “

Andy Molnar, Educator at Academic Leadership Community at Miguel Contreras High School, participant at 826LA for over 10 years

Financials

Form 990

Audited financials

Frequently Asked Questions

Our Commitment to Our Donors
We will not sell, share, or trade our donors’ names or personal information with any other entity, nor send mailings to our donors on behalf of other organizations.
This policy applies to all information received by 826LA, both online and offline, on any Platform (“Platform” includes the 826LA website and mobile applications), as well as any electronic, written, or oral communications.
No Sharing of Personal Information. 826LA will not sell, rent, trade or transfer your personal information to outside organizations. Use of donor information, including donations processed through a third-party service provider, will be limited to the internal purposes of 826LA and only to further the mission of 826LA. Nevertheless, security measures may not prevent all losses, and 826LA is not responsible for any damages or liabilities relating to security failures.
Removing Your Name From Our Mailing List. Please contact us if you wish to be removed from our mailing list. Email Donations@826LA.org or call 213-413-3388.
70% of each dollar received by 826LA goes directly to program services! The remaining 30% supports operations, management, and fundraising.
In 2020, 70% of our expenses were for programming, 18% for development, and 12% for admin.
826LA’s Annual Report and complete audited financial statements can be found posted here.
The Future Bestsellers Club is a subscription giving program for 826LA’s supporters. Subscribers receive student writings delivered to them via email, or, for higher levels, directly to their doorstep! Through their important contributions and commitment, subscription donors provide for the future of 826LA and keep our student programs fresh, imaginative, and available to Los Angeles’s students.
Donors who contribute $10 or more each month will receive a monthly email with an exemplary piece of writing by one of our students.
Donors who contribute $25 or more each month will receive a printed copy of our chapbooks as they become available throughout the year, in addition to the monthly email from the previous tier.
Donors who contribute $50 or more each month will receive a copy of the Young Author’s Book Project, our annual publication, in addition to the benefits from the two previous tiers.
We’re sorry! Please email us at donations@826LA.org.
Yes! On the donation page, enter the name and address of the recipient in the fields provided for shipping, and we’ll make sure they receive student writing delivered to their inbox or mailbox. If you have questions about this, please email donations@826LA.org
Send us an email at donations@826la.org
All of it! You’ll receive an email with a receipt for your donation with each contribution you make. The receipt comes from Classy, our donation platform.
For online donations, you’ll receive a receipt (a tax letter) as an automated email from Classy, our online donations platform. If you need a new copy, email Donations@826LA.org and include the date and amount of your donation.
For offline donations, 826LA will mail you a letter of thanks and tax receipt for all donations of $50 and above. Please check that the address listed on your check or donation envelope is current to ensure that you will receive your letter.
According to the US tax code, non-profit organizations are only required to issue tax receipts for donations of $250 and up. Although we issue receipts for donations of $50 or more, if you require a tax letter for a donation of less than $50, email us at Donations@826LA.org. Please note that cancelled checks, bank statements, and credit card bills (stating your contribution to 826LA via PayPal) legally suffice as documentation for any gift under $50.
Of course! Simply email us at Donations@826LA.org and we will send you a PDF version of your gift letter. If you would prefer that a hard copy be mailed to you, please specify this in your email message.
Yes! All proceeds from the Echo Park and Mar Vista Time Travel Marts directly support 826LA’s educational programs for students.
Certainly! You can make a donation in person by visiting the Time Travel Mart (open daily from noon to 6 pm in Echo Park and from noon to 6 pm Friday-Sunday in Mar Vista). If you’d like to donate over the phone, please call 213-413-3388 between 10 am and 6 pm, Monday through Friday, and have your credit card information at the ready! You can also mail a check to 826LA at 1714 West Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90026 at the attention of Jaime Balboa Executive Director.
Wow, thanks! Please check our Wish List to see if you can contribute something that we especially need! You can purchase a Wish List item yourself, or tell us where you want your cash donation to go by specifying the Wish List item you wish to cover in the “In Honor Of” field. If you would like to make an in-kind donation and do not see the item listed on our Wish List, please email donations@826LA.org and describe the goods you’d like to donate. We’ll let you know if we are able to accept the items!
Yes! Please visit us on Cars4Causes.
Please contact us at donations@826LA.org to discuss possibilities and learn more.
Please send us an email at Donations@826LA.org and we will be sure to answer your question.
Thank you!