Herndon-Reston FISH Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
237417414
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Herndon, VA, USA
Phone
5712672977
Rating
91
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Family Services

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$798,632
Expenses
$840,588
Assets
$611,092
Liabilities
$52,031

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Elliot Wicks (President)
  • Janet Hyman (Vice President)
  • David Mandel (Vice President)
  • Mary Saunders (Executive Director until April 2025)
  • Carolyn Amacher (Executive Director beg. April 2025)

Highest reported compensation

  • Mary Saunders (Executive Director until April 2025): $73,093 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To provide short-term emergency financial assistance to low income and otherwise distressed persons primarily through payments for rent, utilities, medical prescriptions and devices, and other critical needs.

What it reported doing in 2024

HRFISH Assistance programs distributed over $324k of assistance payments helping about 2,125 people in all demographics but in predominately very low-income levels in Herndon and Reston, Virginia. HRFISH responded to financial assistance requests for rent, utilities, prescriptions, grocery gift cards and other critical needs in order to stop destabilizing events. To address community needs effectively, HRFISH accepts referrals from social workers in Fairfax County agencies, local schools, hospitals, and other nonprofit organizations.HRFISH also distributed $175k of Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Bridge 2 funds from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), helping 84 individuals with rental assistance. The ERA program was developed to aid residents in financial distress resulting from the COVID pandemic. HRFISH has served as a safety net partner organization for distribution of federal direct assistance programs since 2020.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 66% of its reported program spending out as grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 91
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 31
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 94.5%; rating input score 94
  • Program expense ratio: 89.6%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $56.59 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 80; 80th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 76th 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: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -5.3%; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.73; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.09; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.7%; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 11.1% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 9.6% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.1% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 94.5% of revenue deployed · 89.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $753K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $73K · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 33 of 33 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2011 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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 — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 24/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 33/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 41/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 45/100.