Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater PA and West Virginia Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
251464177
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Phone
4124719474
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Standard

Reported finances

Revenue
$10,492,562
Expenses
$9,762,717
Assets
$16,385,685
Liabilities
$2,306,713

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

Leadership & pay

23 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Judith A Stone (President & CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • Judith A Stone (President & CEO): $410,767 total reported compensation
  • Ann K Hohn (Chief Operating Officer): $262,951 total reported compensation
  • Lisa A Macioce CPA (Chief Financial Officer): $172,699 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Together, we create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

What it reported doing in 2024

In fiscal year 2025, Make-A-Wish removed a mortorium on all international travel and cruise wishes which typically account for about 40 wishes a year. The chapter was able to grant 489 wishes in the fiscal year ending August 31, 2025. Wishes included 47 gift wishes,49 shopping sprees, 226 trips to a Disney resort, 10 play sets or playhouses,41 celebrity wishes, 46 trips to Hawaii,66 trips to a variety of locations. Unique wishes include Lilys wish to visit Williamsburg, VA, Morgans wish for an African Grey Parrot, Jordans wish to meet Jelly Roll, Mayas wish for a wheelchair-accessible backyard makeover, Francis wish to camp at Yosemite and Paisleys wish for a new piano and braille piano music books. Make-A-Wish Greater Pennsylvania and West Virginia has met or exceeded all benchmarks of excellence set forth by its national organization, Make-A-Wish America. These include liquidity, wish growth, wish turnaround, cost per dollar raised and public support growth. The chapter has placed at the top of chapter performance for the last 20+ years. in its category (Large Chapters). Because of its management excellence, the chapter has been given five additional territories to manage by Make-A-Wish America, the first in 2000. The chapter is now helping to plan and finance wishes at other chapters with large wish pipelines to help reduce the wait time for wish chidren and their families.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 95% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 69
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 97
  • Sustainability: 55
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 71.7%; rating input score 72
  • Program expense ratio: 75.6%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.32 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 30; 30th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 95.2%; rating input score 95; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 7%; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.68; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.14; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.7%; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.7% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 1.2% per year; rating input score 100; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10.9% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 71.7% of revenue deployed · 75.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 21 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $7.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $411K · 23 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 30/100.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 55/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 26/100.