First Look for Charity Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 260092209
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2020
- Location
- Oakbrook Terrace, IL, USA
- Phone
- 6304952282
- Rating
- 76
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Community Foundations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $2,175,489
- Expenses
- $2,175,489
- Assets
- $25,981
- Liabilities
- $25,981
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
14 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JENNIFER MORAND (PRESIDENT)
Highest reported compensation
- JENNIFER MORAND (PRESIDENT): $287,540 total reported compensation
- CHRISTOPHER KONECKI (EXECUTIVE VP): $237,842 total reported compensation
- JOHN C PHELAN III (DIRECTOR): $62,000 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
The first look for charity foundation is organized to operate exclusively for charitable, cultural, and educational purposes. The organization sponsors, maintains, manages and controls the first look for charity event held prior to the annual chicago auto show. The funds raised by the event are distributed to various charitable organizations in the chicago area.
What it reported doing in 2024
The first look for charity is a black-tie fundraising event held the evening before the chicago auto show opens to the public. The event raised over $2.6 million during the year ended june 30, 2025. And the proceeds were distributed to charities in the chicagoland area.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 100% 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.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 89
- Transparency & Controls: 71
- Accountability: 82
- Sustainability: 26
- Growth: 20
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
- Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
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: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 99.8%; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 56
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Fail
- Document-retention policy: Fail
- CEO compensation review process: Fail
- 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%; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.01; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 1; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0.7%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -3.2% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -0.8% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 4.3% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 5 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.2M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $288K · 14 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 18 of 18 current checks pass
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 18 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 20 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.
- High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 4 of 9 not reported.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 33/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 5/100.