Special Operations Association Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
471679461
IRS 990 coverage
2025–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2024
Location
Avon Park, FL, USA
Phone
5857394785
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Military, Veterans' Organizations

Reported finances

Revenue
$169,525
Expenses
$105,858
Assets
$132,627
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOHN PADGETT (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • DOUG GODSHALL (PRESIDENT)
  • BRENT LINDEMAN (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • JOHN PADGETT (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)
  • KENNETH BOWRA (TRUSTEE)
  • MARK MITCHELL (TRUSTEE)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

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

Overview

Mission

The Special Operations Association Foundation supports Special Operations veterans and active-duty members, along with their families and survivors. The goals are to support the educational awards program, provide emotional support to family members through the Auxiliary Committee, address critical needs of special operators and their family during financial hardship, and support outreach and educational opportunities through the Agent Orange Legacy project.

What it reported doing in 2025

- $50,000 donation to the special operations association, a 501 ( c ) 19 organizati0n (EIN 74-2619854) in support of the scholarship awards program. This donation is to help the dependents of current and former special operators and their families who have given so much in the defense of our country. The donation is designed to aid those who choose to attend a trade or vocational program instead of a traditional college pathway, with awards determined by the special operations association scholarship committee. Though not restricted, the money will augment the scholarship awards program that was begun in 1983 and has since awarded $453,000 to over 141 deserved young scholars.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 99% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 91% of its reported program spending out as 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 some filed totals do not add up.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 68
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 70
  • Sustainability: 71
  • Growth: NotEnoughData

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 62.4%; rating input score 62
  • Program expense ratio: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 90%; rating input score 90; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 99%; rating input score 99; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • 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: 37.6%; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.25; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: Limited
  • Asset growth: Limited

Details

  • Where the money goes: 62.4% of revenue deployed · 100% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 2 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $106K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 25 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes grants
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 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: 4 of 6 not reported.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 47/100.