Unsolicited marginal gift collections: Saying no or coping with the unwanted

Paradoxically, gift collections of marginal value to institutions are accepted with regularity. One reason for doing so is the difficulty acquisition personnel have in saying no to donors of gift collections of marginal utility. In an exploration of some donor motives and donor-acquisition staff reactions to the gift process, the paper observes that saying no becomes a moral choice which acquisition personnel may be reluctant to make. The article concludes with suggestions on how to soften the process of saying no, and how to cope with collections which should have been declined, but were not.