Lutheran Services for the Aging Inc

What it reported doing in 2024

Lutheran services for the aging, inc. (lsa) and its affiliated organizations are ministries of the North Carolina synod of the evangelical lutheran church in america. The lsa mission statement is, "empowered by christ, we walk together with all we serve." lsa operates nursing homes, retirement communities, assisted living residences, and adult day services in addition to providing home care, and information and referral services in North Carolina. Lsa provides a ministry of christian care to older adults and adults with disabilities regardless of faith, race, disability, or economic status. Lsa is made up of compassionate people with loving spirits and generous hearts. Residents, teammates, clients, participants, families, and volunteers all strive to be of service to god and the community. Many of the seniors served by lsa have been service oriented and philanthropically inclined throughout their lives and continue to seek opportunities for community service. For residents of the retirement communities those opportunities are abundant. Residents there log in hundreds of volunteer hours for local churches, habitat for humanity, the alzheimer's association, the state veterans hospital, fundraising for cancer research, literacy councils, local hospitals, food pantries, homeless shelters, the united way, and mentoring projects for local elementary schools. They have packed boxes for samaritan's purse, gathered coats for kids and collected canned goods for food pantries. They have sewn, knitted, crocheted, and quilted countless items for causes throughout the state and beyond. Residents of the lsa nursing homes and adult day services may be less visible but are equally committed to community service. Supported by teammates and volunteers, they have held blood drives, they have hosted breakfasts for fire, police, and emergency service personnel, collected school supplies for kids, and adopted needy families at christmas. They, too, have logged in hundreds of hours in projects for local schools and hospitals, the arc, the alzheimer's association, meals-on-wheels, the humane society, the american red cross, the united way, and more. Lsa also serves its communities by working collaboratively with colleges and universities throughout North Carolina including catawba and livingstone colleges; catawba valley, gaston, rowan-cabarrus, stanly, caldwell and forsyth community colleges; appalachian state, winston-salem state, lenoir-rhyne and duke universities; and the university of North Carolina and hood theological seminary. These collaborative efforts foster growth and cooperation, and ultimately improve the quality of life for the institutions and the communities. Lsa also encourages community members to seek volunteer, educational, and spiritual opportunities through its ministries. The ministries of lsa are active, busy places where multiple generations meet in a spirit of fun, fellowship and cooperation. Community education opportunities are always available on topics such as adult day care, alzheimer's disease, medicaid, medicare, healthcare directives and more.

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 7.4%; rating input score 7
• Program expense ratio: 8.1%; rating input score 8
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 19th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
  • Compensation committee: Missing
  • Independent consultant: Missing
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
  • Written employment contract: Missing
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 95.2%; rating input score 95; 25th percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Fail
  • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 60.2%; rating input score 95; 95th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 52.39; rating input score 99; 99th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 40.3%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: -24.3% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: -12% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 0.4% per year; rating input score 100; 19th percentile among comparable filings