Lake Forest Garden Club

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
366071433
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2023
Location
Lake Forest, IL, USA
Phone
8472345000
Rating
62
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Garden Club, Horticultural Program

Reported finances

Revenue
$365,951
Expenses
$39,946
Assets
$726,477
Liabilities
$1,192

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

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARNI WILSON (PRESIDENT)
  • AVERY KELLER (SECOND VICE PRESIDENT)
  • KATIE DONOVAN (1ST VICE-PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • MARNI WILSON (PRESIDENT)
  • AVERY KELLER (SECOND VICE PRESIDENT)
  • KATIE DONOVAN (1ST VICE-PRESIDENT)

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

To advance gardening, promote horticulatural knowledge and stimulate the community's interest in conservation and civic beautification.

What it reported doing in 2024

The club has many purposes, one of which is to promote knowledge, skill and love of gardening among its members and others. Another purpose of the club is to develop and disseminate scientific and other information about horticulture, and to promote public interest, education, knowledge, skill, and enjoyment in the fields of gardening, horticulture, civic and rural planning, planting and beautification. The club also specializes in the conservation of natural resources, and the protection of native plants and birds. Additionally, the club seeks to engage in education, scientific, artistic and conservation programs along the foregoing lines, and in supporting nature study programs in schools, both public and private, as well as to cooperate with other organizations and individuals in any or the entire foregoing fields

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 84% 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

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 27
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 89
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 9.7%; rating input score 10
  • Program expense ratio: 63.2%; rating input score 63
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • 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: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 89.1%; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 18.19; rating input score 94; 94th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -11.7% per year; rating input score 0; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.3% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 9.7% of revenue deployed · 63.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 21 of 21 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $25K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 21 people listed
  • Consistency: 21 of 21 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 6 filing years from 2014 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 10/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 55/100.