Vets Helping Heroes Inc
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 261300231
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Boca Raton, FL, USA
- Phone
- 5619278387
- Rating
- 83
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Military, Veterans' Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $546,501
- Expenses
- $571,570
- Assets
- $728,741
- Liabilities
- $22,805
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
9 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Lisa Fendrich (Executive Director)
- Lt Col Melvin Pollack (President Director)
Highest reported compensation
- Lisa Fendrich (Executive Director): $91,253 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To provide financial support for dog training by certified professionals for veterans who have served honorably and active duty military personnel injured during service in the United States armed forces.
What it reported doing in 2024
Guide dogs trained to find and follow a clear path, maneuver around obstacles and stop at curbs. Service dogs specifically trained to help people who have disabilities other than visual impairment. Some of the tasks the service dogs provide are assistance with balance and stability; retreiving dropped items to prevent falls or carrying items in a backpack. The assistance dogs also offer emotional support for service men and women who deal with combat stress, home front issues and sleep disorders. Training of the dogs is provided free of charge to the veterans. All providers funded by Vets Helping Heroes undergo rigorous evaluation and are approved by the Board of Directors. Vets Helping Heroes adheres to a strict code of conduct.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 98% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 72% of its reported program spending out as grants.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. The filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars and program spending has declined or grown slowly.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 95
- Transparency & Controls: 66
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 36
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 98.8%; rating input score 99
- Program expense ratio: 94.4%; rating input score 94
- Fundraising efficiency: $58.06 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 3.9%; rating input score 4; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- 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: 8 of 8 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: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -4.6%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.27; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.03; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 16%; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -1.9% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 2% per year; rating input score 100; 25th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 16.3% per year; rating input score 100; 75th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 98.8% of revenue deployed · 94.4% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $540K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $91K · 9 people listed
- Consistency: 25 of 26 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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 — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 4/100.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 25/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 51/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 21/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 58/100.