Bread of Life Missions

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
562630579
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2013
Location
Hanahan, SC, USA
Phone
8435321996
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$918,821
Expenses
$796,370
Assets
$524,012
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

3 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Ernest Smith (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Melissa Alm (Treasurer): $61,971 total reported compensation
  • Ernest Smith (President): $18,844 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Bread of Life Missions supports our sister organization in Kenya to build churches, schools, and clinics, run them all, and support the missionaries who are doing the work.

What it reported doing in 2025

The expenses of Bread of Life Missions in addition to those listed on Part III, question 4, including running a project to support Kenyan widows ($16,079), funds to send an American intern to serve in the Kenyan mission field ($4,457), funds for discipleship of women and children ($359), funds for expanding existing churches ($53,050), funds for work in the clinic ($4,250), funds for teams of American volunteers to serve with the Kenyan missionaries in the field ($48,393), funds for a scholarship fund for our sponsored students going to college ($3,700), general ministry funds for Kenya ($78,008), and funds to run new mission locations in Kenya, South Sudan, and Tanzania ($66,710).

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 97% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 74
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 44
  • Sustainability: 53
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 72.1%; rating input score 72
  • Program expense ratio: 83%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $25.09 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Claims monitoring procedures: Fail
    • Requires narrative reports: Fail
    • Conducts field audits: Fail
    • May suspend future funding: Fail
    • Requires financial reports: Fail
    • Conducts site visits: Fail
    • Requires grant agreements: Fail
    • May require repayment: Fail
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 66.7%; rating input score 67; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 11
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 13.3%; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.66; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 10.1%; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 13.6% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 17.4% per year; rating input score 100; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16.9% per year; rating input score 100; 73rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 72.1% of revenue deployed · 83% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 3 board members independent · 1 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $661K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $62K · 3 people listed
  • Consistency: 42 of 42 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and foreign activity
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2020 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 7 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight: 8 of 8 not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 31/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 37/100.