High Fives Nonprofit Foundation

What it reported doing in 2024

Empowement fund: the empowerment fund provides financial support and equipment to life-changing injury survivors in the form of board-approved grants for adaptive sports equipment, home/vehicle modifications, the high fives healing network, medical equipment, and emergency care/injury expenses. Life-changing injuries include spinal cord injuries (sci), traumatic brain injuries (tbi), amputations, or other mobility-limiting injuries. Since 2009, the foundation has disbursed nearly 11 million in empowerment funding to over 1,000 traumatic injury survivors in 47 states and territories plus canada. In these 16 years, we've provided 384 adaptive bikes, 157 full sets of skiing equipment, and 54 surf/kiteboards to high fives athletes across north america, enabling survivors to rediscover their identity through sport. Military to the mountain: military to the mountains (m2m) is an adaptive winter sports camp of high fives foundation that introduces 30+ veterans and first responders annually to the healing effects of skiing and snowboarding at renowned resorts in the western u.s. The program initiates with nine weeks of intensive training at the adaptive training foundation in Texas or through city of reno parks and recreation department followed by a week of adaptive winter sports at palisades tahoe in California or solitude mountain resort in Utah. M2m tells the stories of u.s. Veterans and first responders who choose to embrace goal setting and athleticism as a way to enjoy life and all of its challenges. This program, which is 100% free for participants (including travel, lodging, meals, lift tickets, lessons/coaching, adaptive sporting equipment rentals, safety gear, winter sports apparel, and more), demonstrates our deep sense of appreciation for the men and women who serve our country and who have sustained life- changing injuries. 250 veterans and first responders have participated since this program was established in 2015. Adaptive camps: high fives foundation hosts 50-60 adaptive sports camps each year in which we take small groups of adaptive athletes all over the country, from ski resorts in Vermont to mountain bike trails of Nevada to beaches on maui, to hone their skills in five main pillars of sport: fly fishing, motor-fed sports, mountain biking, skiing/snowboarding, and surfing. Since establishment, we've hosted 236 adaptive sports camps with over 750 individuals experiencing a new sport for the first time and 1,650 total participants. Donated services: high fives received donated services totaling 23,780. 250 was for services related to adaptive camps and 23,530 was for legal services related to management and general administration. Neither the income nor the expenses were included in the amounts reported as revenue, expenses, or grants on the tax return.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 82.1%; rating input score 82
• Program expense ratio: 93.4%; rating input score 93
• Fundraising efficiency: $32.13 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 24th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Missing
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Claims monitoring procedures: Fail
  • Requires narrative reports: Fail
  • Conducts field audits: Fail
  • May suspend future funding: Fail
  • Requires financial reports: Fail
  • Conducts site visits: Fail
  • Requires grant agreements: Fail
  • May require repayment: Fail
• Grant itemization coverage: 99.1%; rating input score 99; 37th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 24th 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: 16.4%; rating input score 73; 73rd percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.66; rating input score 24; 24th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 4.2%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 19.8% per year; rating input score 100; 85th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 17.7% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 18.4% per year; rating input score 100; 81st percentile among comparable filings