Compassion First

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
205787774
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Beaverton, OR, USA
Phone
5032071320
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
International Relief
Affiliation
Christianity

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$3,416,819
Expenses
$2,906,011
Assets
$1,527,946
Liabilities
$14,037

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MICHAEL MERCER (PRESIDENT &)

Highest reported compensation

  • MICHAEL MERCER (PRESIDENT &): $190,473 total reported compensation
  • TRACI ESPESETH (VP OF US OP): $151,327 total reported compensation
  • VALERIE BELLAMY (DIR OF DONOR): $127,041 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Compassion first is a christian relief organization serving child sex- trafficking survivors through long-term residential and community-based aftercare, legal advocacy, peer-to-peer law enforcement training and case- managed intervention support.

What it reported doing in 2025

1) continued full-capacity operation of a full-function aftercare shelter in north sulawesi. Programming and wrap-around care includes residential and community-based care, catch-up education, college planning, trauma counseling, discipleship, life skills training, resilience programming, etc. 2) operation of transition home for graduates and residents of our north sulawesi shelter in advanced phases of care pursuing college or vocational aspirations. 3) continued community based care for survivors in east java. 4) continued operating a full-function aftercare aftercare shelter in west java providing the same programming and wrap-around residential care as our operation in north sulawesi. 5) continued transit monitoring operations in the north sulawesi ports to intercept traffickers before they are able to take a girl from her home island. 6) continued outreach and operational partnerships with local law enforcement specific to investigation and rescue of underage girls from sexual trafficking and forced prostitution inclusive of case-managed funding of intervention, case management of families, and case management/accompaniment of minors upon completion of intervention. 7) continued community development efforts specific to "cemetery " communities in east java. Project includes education sponsorship, drop-in centers for children, teens, and adults, entrepreneurship training, tutoring, performing arts programming, martial arts, family support, case management, and life-skills training. 8) continued partnerships with like-minded organizations (indonesia specific) inclusive of program training. 9) continued financial support and work exchange with safety compass, a local advocacy organization working in partnership with law enforcement in four Oregon counties.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 44
  • Accountability: 80
  • Sustainability: 47
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 71.9%; rating input score 72
  • Program expense ratio: 84.3%; rating input score 84
  • Fundraising efficiency: $13.56 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 90%; rating input score 90; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 14.9%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.53; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 16.1%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 10.4% per year; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 8.6% per year; rating input score 100; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.5% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 71.9% of revenue deployed · 84.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 10 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $190K · 12 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 46/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 17/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.