The Gamewell Volunteer Fire Department

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
560686188
IRS 990 coverage
2020–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Lenoir, NC, USA
Phone
8287582581
Rating
90
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$741,304
Expenses
$727,063
Assets
$1,254,792
Liabilities
$233

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

Leadership & pay

15 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • RUSTY DELLINGER (PRESIDENT)
  • MIKE KENT (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • TRACY HAWKINS (DIRECTOR)
  • DAVID CRAIG (DIRECTOR)
  • DANNY CRAIG (DIRECTOR)

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 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Gamewell fire department provides public safety services for the gamewell community of caldwell county nc. Gfd protects life and property from the adverse effects emergencies through fire suppression, emergency response, rescue, fire prevention, and public education.

What it reported doing in 2024

Gamewell fire department provides public safety services and community fire prevention outreach for the gamewell community of caldwell county, nc. The department responded to 1,281 calls during the fiscal year july 1, 2024, to june 30, 2025

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 95% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
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

STRONG - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 95
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 88
  • Sustainability: 57
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 95.5%; rating input score 95
  • Program expense ratio: 99.9%; rating input score 100
  • Fundraising efficiency: $52.62 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • 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: 1.9%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.73; rating input score 60; 60th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 11.7% per year; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -10.9% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 95.5% of revenue deployed · 99.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 15 of 15 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $726K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 15 people listed
  • Consistency: 24 of 24 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2020 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 42/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.