Q:

How can I unlock museum donations as a non-very first relocator?

I can’t get the flimsy axe DIY recipe. I don’t have a prompt to show Tom Nook that, "I found a creature!"
I’m guessing this is because someone else on the island has the titles of:

Very first relocator

and

Resident Representative 

We’ve tried co-op but I still cannot get the prompt as leader (as opposed to follower where I can’t initiate any prompts) to donate anything to the museum.
I’ve purchased the "Pretty Good Tools Recipes" book, but now I can only craft better items without the ability to make flimsy ones.
Recipes don't seem shareable.

How can I unlock museum donations as a non-very first relocator? (and unlock the flimsy axe DIY recipe?)

A:

Not sure what the downvotes are about; Game Revolution has an article entitled Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ multiplayer has some major downsides which backs up what you said:

There are some major downsides to Animal Crossing: New Horizons multiplayer gameplay, with players complaining that Player 2 is unable to actually “share” the island in the way they were hoping to. As a result, those sharing an island with another player — the only way to experience Animal Crossing: New Horizons with two or more players using the same Switch — could be left very disappointed.

The article goes on to say:

The first person to create the island is more or less considered “in charge.” That means that Player 2 (or anyone else who isn’t the main player) has some major restrictions for Animal Crossing: New Horizons multiplayer. Other players can’t build buildings or really do anything that advances the story, instead tagging along on Player 1’s adventure. Additionally, the game’s resources aren’t duplicated if another player chooses to play separately on the same Switch. This means that if one player has chopped a bunch of wood or picked up some fruit in the morning, a player hopping on in the afternoon will be left without any resources to gather.

The museum seems to be something that does advance the story and at the moment if you are non-very first relocator it seems like it is off-limits to you.

Also: on day 2 you can start to buy the flimsy axe recipe from Timmy; just work co-op for museum donations for now.

