By Sandra Yates, Head of McGovern Historical Center
The TMC Library is celebrating Archives Month with our Adopt a Box campaign. You can help the McGovern Historical Center secure the history of the Texas Medical Center by adopting a box. During October, every tax-deductible gift of $50 or more will get your name permanently inscribed on an actual collection box in the archives.
Tribute Option When You Give
Did you know that you can add a tribute when you Adopt a Box? When you make a gift through the library website, you can add a tribute “In Honor” or “In Memory” of someone you love. For all donations of $50 or more made to the Give2History campaign, this tribute will be included on the permanent box label inscription. Below are some example labels to give you an idea of possible tributes. You’ll notice that tributes are for everyone! We will inscribe the tribute to match the text that you provide. Tributes are optional.
A generic example of a tribute honoring a student graduating from medical school. We will inscribe tributes to match the text that you provide in the Make a Gift form.
A playful example of a tribute in memory of a beloved pet. We will inscribe tributes to match the text that you provide in the Make a Gift form.
A loving example of a tribute in memory of a family member. We will inscribe tributes to match the text that you provide in the Make a Gift form.
Tributes are optional. Here’s an example of a Give2History box label without tribute.
How to Add a Tribute When You Give
You can specify a tribute when you complete the Make a Gift form on the TMC Library website. See image below and follow these steps:
- Pledge $50 or more
- Select McGovern Historical Center / Give2History as the designation of your gift.
- Select “In Honor of” or “In Memory of”
- Type in the Tributee Name as you want it to appear on the the box label. We will inscribe tributes to match the text that you provide in the Make a Gift form.
What does it mean to Adopt a Box?
It cost roughly $50 to preserve the historical materials within a single unprocessed. Your donation provides us enough funds to purchase preservation supplies for this box. That includes a new acid-free archival box and all the folders, buffered paper, and polyester document/photograph preservers needed to preserve the materials in that box.
While there is no additional responsibility on your part, your name will be permanently labeled on an existing box in the archive. As a thank you, you will also receive a portrait of your box (like the image above) and letter of certification that indicates the collection and box number location in the archives. You are welcome to visit your box at the McGovern Historical Center to just say, “Hi!” or take a selfie with it for your Instagram page. Make an appointment at our El Rio location, and we’ll have your box ready when you arrive.
All levels of donation are welcome and support our work. Every donation goes a long way at the McGovern Historical Center. Here are a few examples of how we utilize financial support:
- $10 buys an archival box to preserve papers
- $50 preserves one box of collection materials
- $250 buys permanent archival labels for boxes
- $500 digitizes a 20-minute 16mm film with sound
- $1,500 supports a year of online access to our collections archives.library.tmc.edu
- $2,000 processes a small collection
- $5,000 helps us fund a 12-week internship for an archives student
Help the campaign follow and tag #Give2History on Instagram, Threads, and Facebook. With your support, we hope to preserve 20 boxes for the month.
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Download our Give2History social media graphics and share on any social platform. You can also print and share the Give2History-flyer (PDF).
