Frequently Asked Questions

Your donation makes a significant impact on the lives of people living with the challenges of seizures. Since 1997, our used goods operation has provided over $10 million to fund programs and services for the 60,000 people with epilepsy in our community.

EFMN employees drive the trucks to pick up your items, service drop-off donation bins, and answer the phone when you call. We regularly negotiate contracts with buyers to ensure we receive the highest possible price for your donated items.

Yes, your donation of used items is tax-deductible. There is a receipt on our postcards for your records. If you do not have a postcard, or if you donated at an EFMN bin or did not receive a receipt as described above, download a receipt here. For more information, please see the Tax-Deductible Donations section of the FAQs.

Some donated items are not in good enough condition to sell at a thrift store or on the secondary bulk used items market, and can be sent elsewhere to help people in need.  EFMN is paid a competitive price for the bulk items we deliver to buyers. Each week, that’s over 150,000 pounds of used clothing and home items!

Click here to schedule a pickup or call 800.779.0777, ext. 3. Our office is open Monday-Friday from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM.

We offer Quick Pickup Service within a week to residents in the Twin Cities Metro, St. Cloud and its near suburbs, and the city of Rochester.  However, we cannot guarantee that we service your area. Click here to see if you are in a quick service pickup area.

We will do our best to add you to our mailing list, but because of the way we mail and volume we send, it’s not always possible. We may be able to contact you via phone or email regarding future pickups, though, so please call our office at 800.779.0777 ext. 3 or use our contact form to ask about options.

Often we can reschedule you very quickly, so please try rescheduling a new pickup here. Those in routes outside of the Twin Cities and St. Cloud may have to wait a bit longer for a rescheduled pickup, but please call to check potential reschedule dates. If you’d prefer to drop off your items instead, you can find available locations here.

Please place your donations curbside by 7:30 AM and mark them for us by attaching your postcard or a sheet of paper labeled “EF.” We prefer that you package donations in plastic garbage bags and tie them at the top in case of bad weather. If you place items in boxes, please be wary of rain or snow, and consider using plastic to protect the boxes. Our drivers cannot collect items that are wet.

Our drivers collect rain, snow, or shine. Please package your donations appropriately for rain or snow because we cannot accept wet items. The only time we might not collect is in severe or extreme weather conditions. In the event of bad weather, please check our website’s homepage for details.

We require that donations be placed curbside for the safety of our drivers and to protect your lawn, driveway, etc.

We cannot offer specific times for donated item collections. Our drivers begin collecting donated items at 7:30 AM and work until their routes are finished, generally around 5:00 PM.

No. As long as your items are curbside by 7:30 AM and labeled “EF,” our drivers will collect your donated items sometime during the day.

Yes, your donation of used items is tax-deductible. There is a receipt on our postcards for your records. If you do not have a postcard, or if you donated at an EFMN bin and did not receive a receipt, download a receipt here.

It is a donor’s responsibility to assign values to his or her donation. Values should be based on secondhand market values, and not what the items cost when they were originally purchased. For more information, we recommend consulting the IRS website at irs.gov, specifically Publications 526 and 1771.

You should keep a detailed list of the items you donated and the values of those items. You will also need our Federal Tax ID number and our mailing address:

Federal Tax ID 41-0874541
Epilepsy Foundation Minnesota, Inc.
1600 University Ave W, Suite 300
Saint Paul, MN  55104

In our industry, we cannot verify what items you donate or assign value to those items. Each week, we collect over 150,000 pounds of used clothing and home goods! With that sheer volume, it’s impossible to track or assign value to a single item. Please maintain records of what you donated and assign your items fair value. We recommend consulting the IRS website at irs.gov, specifically Publications 526 and 1771 for information.