Can items auctioned to raise proceeds for a non-profit ever be considered a non-profit donation?
Zoins
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Great Collections is selling what may be the first PCGS slab with the funds going to Witter University.
I was wondering when an item is sold this way, can the buyer's payment be considered a non-profit donation for tax purposes?
Also, can the seller, JD in this case, claim the realized price as a non-profit donation as well?
Calling @ianrussell @SethChandler 
See more here:
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1093387/the-start-of-pcgs#latest
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First question is whether Witter University is setup as a 510c3.
The value of what you get in return is reduced from the donation.
From the GC description of the 1982 quarter:
"The Witter Coin Scholarship Fund is a 501(c)(3) non profit organization. All donations are fully tax deductible.
GreatCollections will assist the winning bidder with a formal appraisal of this coin. Generally speaking, donors who purchase items at a charity auction may claim a charitable contribution deduction for the excess of the purchase price paid for an item over its fair market value."
That said, I do wonder how an appraiser would approach such a unique item, what types of coins he would use as comparable, etc. Generally speaking, a recent transaction price is the best indicator of fair market value but perhaps the charity nature of this auction will allow the appraiser to weight this result a little less than would be typical in their assessment. Maybe they could look at what other charity auctions of coins with more transparent pricing have yielded in the past and calibrate this result based on that calculation (e.g., coins sold at charity auction sell for, on average, X% of fair value and then apply that percentage to the 1982 quarter result).
I'm not a tax professional, and I'd suggest you ask one before doing anything buying or selling this way, but I can't imagine that the government would allow multiple people to donate more than 100% of the sum total of what the 501(c)(3) receives.
You should call a CPA.
This is fairly common practice. For example, buying a ticket to a fundraising dinner. In such a case, you can only deduct the donation in excess of the value received. If you pay $100 for a BIG Mac, you can deduct the $90.
In this case, I think it is unlikely that an auction result of a unique item would be viewed a gaming much "excess value".
The donor of the item can, of course, donate the value of the item.
All of this, of course, assumes that the charity is properly registered as a 501.