Deer Run Retreat Center
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 621725478
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2012–2025
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025
- Location
- Thompson's Station, TN, US
- Phone
- (615) 794-2918
- Rating
- 76
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Christianity
- Affiliation
- Christianity
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $5,678,316
- Expenses
- $4,003,073
- Assets
- $10,666,761
- Liabilities
- $477,205
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
10 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- DAVID GIBSON (PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- DAVID GIBSON (PRESIDENT): $121,000 total reported compensation
- APRIL KUYKENDALL (COO): $102,012 total reported compensation
- JOSHUA ROGERS (DIRECTOR OF FINANCE): $71,382 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Deer Run’s mission is to provide excellent camps and retreats that inspire a transformational relationship with Jesus Christ and strengthen relationships with family and friends. We exist to help kids and families grow through deeper faith, stronger relationships, and greater adventure. Deer Run is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nondenominational Christian ministry. The dynamics of the family — children, parents, marriages — are under tremendous pressure. Countless harmful and negative voices nag at us each day. Even those who have a strong support system and relationship with Christ face obstacles in their life and faith. Deer Run Camps & Retreats fosters positive experiences and Christ-centered relationships so that kids, youth, and adults can pull away from the pressures of their daily lives. Visitors to the Valley will discover refreshment, renewal, and a bigger picture of life through...
What it reported doing in 2025
Deer run camp provides both day and overnight camps. The camps for k-12th grade kids are focused on deeper faith, stronger relationships, & greater adventures. This opportunity is avaliable to all families regardless of their socio-economic circumstances through our camper scholarship fund. In the last 14 years this program has grown from 48 campers to over 3,000 campers. Family camps and retreats are activities specifically designed to strengthen families. Outdoor education activities are designed to help students grow in their understanding, appreciation, and respect of the world we live in and how to be good stewards of our natural resources.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 65% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 56
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 88
- Sustainability: 70
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 50%; rating input score 50
- Program expense ratio: 72.1%; rating input score 72
- Fundraising efficiency: $9.96 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 35; 35th 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: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 87.5%; rating input score 88; 20th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 29.5%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.66; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 7.4%; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 5.1% per year; rating input score 100; 36th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 7.4% per year; rating input score 100; 46th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 50% of revenue deployed · 72.1% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 7 of 8 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.9M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $121K · 10 people listed
- Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 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.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 50/100.
- Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 35/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Whistleblower policy not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 43/100.