Candle Wishes Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
861123637
IRS 990-EZ coverage
2022–2025
Forms available
Form 990-EZ 2025
Location
Murfreesboro, TN, USA
Phone
6152756963
Rating
51
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Gift Distribution

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$108,511
Expenses
$95,645
Assets
$89,551
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

10 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Jenny Williams (President/Executive Director)
  • Lake Summar (Vice President)

People named in this filing

  • Jenny Williams (President/Executive Director)
  • Lake Summar (Vice President)
  • Reta King (Treasurer)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

The purpose of Candle Wishes Foundation is to provide disadvantaged children a happy and special birthday by providing birthday gifts, clothes, and special experiences.

What it reported doing in 2025

The Foundation performs various activities that help grant birthday wishes to disadvantaged children in Rutherford County, Tennessee. The activities include monthly birthday parties and distribution of clothing, toys and books for children. The Foundation served approximately 428 children with birthday gifts during 2025.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent spending detail to tell whether the nonprofit works directly or through others.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and liabilities are modest compared with assets. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 11
  • Transparency & Controls: 100
  • Sustainability: 61
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 10.5%; rating input score 10
  • Program expense ratio: 11.9%; rating input score 12

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 11.9%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.94; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -35.8% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 28.5% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -4.2% per year; rating input score 0; 17th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 10.5% of revenue deployed · 11.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: Filed governance answers
  • Accomplishments: 1 filed program accomplishment · $11K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 10 people listed
  • Consistency: 8 of 9 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2022 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 10/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 12/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Part III transfer expenses within program total did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 57/100.