Bluestem Communities
Legal name: Bluestem Communities Management Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 461203388
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2013–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2012
- Location
- North Newton, KS, USA
- Phone
- 888-388-7445
- Rating
- 85
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Fund Raising and Fund Distribution
- Affiliation
- Christianity
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $28,058,600
- Expenses
- $27,868,830
- Assets
- $1,038,119
- Liabilities
- $505,591
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
20 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JAMES KREHBIEL (PRESIDENT/CEO)
- JEFFREY RITCHA (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
- JENNIFER TRAGLIA (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
Highest reported compensation
- JAMES KREHBIEL (PRESIDENT/CEO): $313,599 total reported compensation
- JON CASIMIR (MEDICAL DIRECTOR): $255,058 total reported compensation
- JUSTIN LOEWEN (PACE STRATEGY & DEVELOPMENT): $192,853 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Bluestem Communities mission is to have a positive impact on quality of life by promoting lifelong wellness, purpose, choice, genuine connection, and personalized care with Christian compassion. Established on Christian principles and operating on relationship-focused values of community and generosity, Bluestem Communities maintains a non-profit status that allows us to provide personalized care for every individual. Bluestem Communities works to promote a vibrant and inclusive atmosphere amongst all our services and locations. We believe life always has purpose at every age. Everyone has an incredible story to tell, and we can all learn from one another. You’ll find friendship and support at Bluestem Communities as well as the utmost respect and privacy. Mission Bluestem Communities’ mission is to have a positive impact on quality of life by promoting lifelong wellness, purpose, c.
What it reported doing in 2024
Bluestem communities' mission is to have a positive impact on quality of life by promoting lifelong wellness, purpose, choice, genuine connection, and personalized care with christian compassion.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Other-operating. 100% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 78
- Transparency & Controls: 94
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 26
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 87.9%; rating input score 88
- Program expense ratio: 88.5%; rating input score 88
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Fail
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 0.7%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.04; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.49; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 5.5%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 14% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 16% per year; rating input score 100; 88th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site
- Where the money goes: 87.9% of revenue deployed · 88.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $24.7M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $314K · 20 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $1.9M reported
- Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes executive pay and related organizations
- Filing history: 11 filing years from 2013 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 7 filed related-organization links
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 36/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 30/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 47/100.