Friends of the Rivers Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
050608001
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2010, Form 990-N 2015
Location
Fort Wayne, IN, USA
Phone
2604276425
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Urban, Community Economic Development

Reported finances

Revenue
$9,574
Expenses
$76,582
Assets
$675,499
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • LYNNE GILMORE (PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • LYNNE GILMORE (PRESIDENT)
  • DAVE GRANEY (VICE PRESIDE)
  • JOY LOHSE (SECRETARY)

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

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

Overview

Mission

Friends of the rivers: celebrating fort wayne's rivers as a source of recreation, community engagement and economic development. Friends of the rivers is dedicated to enhancing the community's appreciation, experience, and use of the rivers. The organization provides river cruises aboard a 54-foot canal boat modeled after an authentic 1840's canal boat beginning in 2017. The 1840's-style, flat bottom boat will allow individuals to experience the rivers and the potential they offer for development, recreation, and educational programming.

What it reported doing in 2025

River tours aboard our replica canal boat continues to educate our community, and particularly our youth. Friends of the rivers reached 4,461 individuals during our 2025 nineteen-week season. The season was shortened due to low river levels. We hosted 18 educational field trips, offering history appropriate educational materials and narration for 3rd - 5th grade students with two all-abilities field trip offerings on our fully accessible boat.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 98% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 86% 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.

The verdict

STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 93
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 20

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 90.2%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: 100%; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -699.9%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 8.82; rating input score 63; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.8% per year; rating input score 0; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -1% per year; rating input score 0; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $69K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 19 of 19 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes grants
  • Filing history: 9 filing years from 2017 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 5/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.