Sons of Norway - Fosselyngen Lodge #82

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
237525799
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2011, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Milwaukee, WI, USA
Phone
2625029197
Rating
66
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$32,153
Expenses
$53,038
Assets
$696,584
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

17 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • SUSAN BERG ROEDEL (PRESIDENT)
  • ARLETTE JOHNSON (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • GRETCHEN BJORK (TREASURER): $1,000 total reported compensation
  • SUSAN BERG ROEDEL (PRESIDENT): $500 total reported compensation
  • ARLETTE JOHNSON (VICE PRESIDENT): $500 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The mission of Sons of Norway is to promote, quality insurance and financial products to our members, promote and preserve the heritage and culture of Norway, and celebrate our relationship with other Nordic countries.

What it reported doing in 2025

To provide quality insurance and financial products to our members, promote and preserve the heritage and culture of Norway, and celebrate our relationship with other Nordic countries. Sons of Norway-Fosselyngen Lodge membership is open to anyone 18 years and over with an interest in their Norwegian heritage.

Operating model

Revenue model
Investment-supported. 94% of the money available for current operations came from recurring investment income.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 40% for direct work, and 60% for grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 64
  • Accountability: 39
  • Sustainability: 41
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 90%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 88.9%; rating input score 89; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 24.5%; rating input score 24; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 58.8%; rating input score 59; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 11
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -65%; rating input score 22; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 13.13; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.5%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 20.5% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -3.9% per year; rating input score 0; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 6.7% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 10 of 17 board members independent · 1 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $48K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $1K · 17 people listed
  • Consistency: 17 of 18 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes grants
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 filed related-organization links
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 7 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 24/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 59/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 22/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 13/100.