A Dollar Self Storage facility in Corona, Calif., recently teamed with Charity Storage to auction off a storage unit. The $700 raised during the auction will be donated primarily to The Young Americans, a national nonprofit performing-arts and educational company, organizers said.

The auction was a hit, said Maria Smith, manager at the Dollar Self Storage facility. Several bidders were eager to win this unit because of the nice items that had been donated by our tenants, customers, friends and business partners.

Charity Storage is trying to establish a national network of participating storage facilities that serve as collection points for goods donated by tenants as well as the general public. Donated goods are stored and later sold during the facilities public auctions.

Self-storage operators that join the Charity Storage network can encourage departing tenants, current tenants, auction buyers, local residents and businesses to donate items to a designated Charity Storage unit at their facilities. Donors receive a tax-deductible receipt. When the storage facility holds a public auction, the Charity Storage unit is sold along with the other units, and any revenue earned from the sale of that unit is allocated to charity.

Net proceeds from the sale of each Charity Storage unit are split three ways, with 60 percent going to charities chosen by the self-storage facility, 30 percent to Kure It Cancer Research, and 10 percent to the Self Storage Association Foundation scholarship program.

Dollar Self Storage operates 15 facilities in Arizona, California and Nevada.

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