Fiscal Responsibility
Curious how Journeys spends money. Here's a look into our yearly budget.
Many of our donors and supporters wish to know where their gifts go, and want to make sure Rite of Passage Journeys is prudent with their precious financial resources. We are grateful to our donors for their trust in support in our financial choices, and want to make sure that donors and the general public have access to as much information as possible.
"I know where every penny of my money goes at Journeys, and I feel proud to support it. At Journeys, my dollars stretch far in changing the lives of youth and families." Chris Dishman, Journeys' Treasurer and Principal, Denali Financial Consulting
Since operating without a budget (really!) four years ago, we have committed ourselves to developing best practices in financial tracking, management, and reporting. Our financial protocols have grown strong, and our Board of Directors reviews financial reports monthly to ensure that we're on track and using our resources wisely. To view our form 990, please visit this link. Rite of Passage Journeys is a registered Washington State Charity. For more information, see the Secretary Of State Website.
It is important to note that this information is up to date only through September 2008, and will be updated once the IRS receives and processes our most recent Form 990. In lieu of up-to-date information on the IRS form, here is how we earned income, and spent your resources, last fiscal year, 10/1/08-9/30/09:
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Why does so much go to management and general, and fundraising?
Many questions have been raised about overhead expenses at non-profits. Understandably, donors are donating to support PROGRAMS, not administration! However, it is important to know that overhead is an essential part of the operations of a mission-driven organization. If overhead expenses are minimized too much, it means that the organization is not being supported and will ultimately weaken. Frankly, this is what we at Journeys did for 39 years, and it meant we barely got by, and were unable to plan for the future. It meant that we didn't pay staff, making it unworkable for people to devote their life energy to the programs.
"Overhead" pays for us to be able to write this blurb that you're reading. It pays for our financial accounting, management, and reporting expenses. It pays for our rent, our phone lines, and all of the structures that support our amazing and inspiring work in the wilderness, in schools, and in communities. Our allocations are comparable with other similar-sized non-profits.
If you would like more information, please feel free to contact us--we love talking about this stuff!
