White Pony Express
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 465220565
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2014–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Concord, CA, USA
- Phone
- 9253220604
- Rating
- 86
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Human Service Organizations
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $12,812,286
- Expenses
- $11,957,168
- Assets
- $7,517,418
- Liabilities
- $1,994,121
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
12 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Robert Carpenter (President)
- Mike Colvin (President)
Highest reported compensation
- Eve Birge (Executive Dir.): $182,474 total reported compensation
- Merry Dempsey (COO): $133,920 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Access to good food for all. The white pony express mission is to eliminate hunger and poverty by delivering the abundance all around us to those in need with love. Wpes food rescue program recovers an average of 11,600 pounds of high-quality, largely perishable, surplus fresh food every day from local grocers, retailers, farmers markets, restaurants, and wholesalers. It is sorted and delivered by teams of volunteers and staff in refrigerated vehicles the same day to over a hundred organizations that serve the hungry. The clothing and care program distributes essential items to targeted populations through special initiatives and community events.
What it reported doing in 2024
Clothing and Care: Received and distributed in kind donations valued at $261,464. Expenses: $273,039.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 92% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 80% of its reported program spending out as grants.
- Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown and expenses are high relative to revenue.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 89
- Transparency & Controls: 83
- Accountability: 93
- Sustainability: 48
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 89.1%; rating input score 89
- Program expense ratio: 95.2%; rating input score 95
- Fundraising efficiency: $35.31 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 87.5%; rating input score 88; 20th 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: NotApplicable
- 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: 6.7%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.63; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.27; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 2.6%; rating input score 71; 71st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 14.7% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 15.2% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 25.5% per year; rating input score 100; 94th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 89.1% of revenue deployed · 95.2% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 7 of 8 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $11.4M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $182K · 12 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 35 of 35 current checks pass
- Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 121 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 114 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 21/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 50/100.