HOPE in Lancaster Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
570752150
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Lancaster, SC, USA
Rating
91
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Emergency Assistance

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,184,345
Expenses
$1,280,609
Assets
$943,857
Liabilities
$20,610

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

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

People named in this filing

  • Verta Looper (Chair)
  • Susan Jordan (Treasurer)
  • Dr Crystal Maxwell (Director)

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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

HOPE in Lancaster's mission is to provide support and education that will promote food security and a path to economic mobility.

What it reported doing in 2024

Short-term AssistanceProvides short-term emergency assistance to those in crisis. The primary items provided to families in need are: rent and utility assistance, as well as referrals to partner agencies.Bounce Back ProgramProvides up to 6 months assistance to qualified clients, including financial assistance, financial mentoring, job seeking assistance, and nutritious food counseling and food from the pantry.Fresh & Healthy Food InitiativeProvides food from a selection process to our short-term assistance clients. Provides a staple food option to qualified Seniors. Provides Farmer's Market Voucher to clients in all programs opening up nutritious options for them with our local farmers.Fresh & Healthy Food Initiative: Teaching Kitchen Provides cooking and nutrition education that nurtures skills in food selection and preparation. Provides innovative, theory-based, cost-effective solutions to chronic food and nutrition problems impacting individuals and families. We have introduced a fee for the community classes and the partnership classes.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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

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: 92
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 35
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 96.9%; rating input score 97
  • Program expense ratio: 89.6%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: $41.94 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 75; 75th 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: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -8.1%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.74; rating input score 33; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4.5% per year; rating input score 100; 40th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.4% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 0.8% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 96.9% of revenue deployed · 89.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.1M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 14 people listed
  • Consistency: 26 of 26 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • 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 19/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 33/100.