Okontoe Fellowship

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
237486404
IRS 990 coverage
2025–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2024
Location
Grand Marais, MN, USA
Phone
2183882285
Rating
52
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Christianity
Affiliation
Christianity

Reported finances

Revenue
$225,261
Expenses
$92,065
Assets
$307,050
Liabilities
$4,713

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Benjamin Selin (Executive Director)
  • Robert Boddy (President)
  • Brian Rupe (Vice President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Benjamin Selin (Executive Director): $27,605 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Discipleship Ministry, Christian Retreat Center, and Family Campground.

What it reported doing in 2025

Okontoe Fellowship, Inc. is designed to function as a camping ministry to families and church groups by providing a place of retreat and prayer in the wilderness of northeastern Minnesota. Okontoe is located near Grand Marais, Minnesota and approximately 600 people participate in the ministry each year. Its primary purpose is to minister the gospel of Jesus Christ to youth, young adults and families in Minnesota, the surrounding states, and Canada. Towards this end, Okontoe provides a quiet and peaceful setting, Bible teaching, worship services, retreat opportunities, prayer ministry, encouragement and training. We offer these to campers who come here, and to those in our internship program. We endeavor to share a life-style of giving, caring for one another, sharing in Bible studies and regular worship in a family-friendly setting. Our hope is that through these things people's hearts will be restored, transformed, and equipped for the journey before them in life.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 81% 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.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and revenue comfortably covers expenses. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 29
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 31
  • Sustainability: 70
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 21.1%; rating input score 21
  • Program expense ratio: 51.6%; rating input score 52
  • 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: 0%; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 59.1%; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.34; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.02; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 30%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: 12.4% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 19.7% per year; rating input score 100; 82nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 21.1% of revenue deployed · 51.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 10 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $47K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $28K · 11 people listed
  • Consistency: 43 of 43 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 5 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 — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 21/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 52/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 11/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 36/100.