Project Recover Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
450512575
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2012
Location
Bend, OR, USA
Phone
7608463192
Rating
64
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Film, Video

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$4,165,879
Expenses
$2,471,341
Assets
$2,801,840
Liabilities
$96,462

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

Leadership & pay

5 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DEREK ABBEY (CEO)
  • T DAN FRIEDKIN (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • DEREK ABBEY (CEO): $291,314 total reported compensation
  • ADRIAN DE LA ROSA (COO): $90,417 total reported compensation
  • DAN O'BRIEN (Secretary): $14,583 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

MISSION - Project Recover is a collaborative effort to enlist 21st-century science and technology in a quest to find and repatriate Americans missing in action since World War II, in order to provide recognition and closure for families and the Nation.VISION - Project Recovers vision is: (i) to repatriate every American service member who has not come home through research, searches, recoveries and other methodologies; (ii) to provide information and closure to the families of service members; (iii) to provide a platform to educate the public on the importance of service to ones country; and (iv) to provide unique educational opportunities in the areas of science, technology, history, leadership, public service and diplomacy to a committed student audience, in conjunction with Project Recovers mission, in order to provide a real-world application to students and further educate the public.

What it reported doing in 2024

EDUCATION/OUTREACH - Project Recover provides a platform for educating the public about critical historical events, the lost service members who shaped our nation, and the importance of public service.THE ORGANIZATION MAINTAINS A WEBSITE TO INFORM THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE United States' COMMITTMENT to accounting for EVERY service member MISSING IN ACTION AND to explain THE PROCESS, IMPACT, AND VALUe of these efforts for AMERICAN FAMILIES. IN 2024 - PROJECT RECOVER STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS continued to engage communities across the coutry. Representatives provided presentationsd to schools, civic groups, veterans organizations, and community partners, sharing THE HISTORY AND SCIENCE behind LOCATing MIAs AND supporting family connection. PROJECT RECOVER DELIVERED PUBLIC BRIEFINGS FOLLOWING FIELD OPERATIONS, PARTICIPATED IN MEMORIAL EVENTS FOR RETURNED SERVICE MEMBERS, AND SUPPORTED MEDIA AND DIGITAL OUTREACH TO EXPAND ACCESS TO EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 63% 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

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most filed governance safeguards are in place. 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: 55
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 65
  • Sustainability: 65
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 45.7%; rating input score 46
  • Program expense ratio: 75.9%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.32 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 35; 35th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • 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: 40%; rating input score 40; 7th 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: 40.7%; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.13; rating input score 41; 41st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 75; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 16%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 14.4% per year; rating input score 100; 76th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 18% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16.3% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 45.7% of revenue deployed · 75.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 2 of 5 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $1.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $291K · 5 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed
  • Consistency: 30 of 30 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2013 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 46/100.
  • Moderate — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 40/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 35/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 41/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 17/100.