BBB Wise Giving Report for
World Vision

BBB Wise Giving Report issued February 2011
BBB Wise Giving Report expires February 2013


This BBB Accredited charity meets all 20 Standards for Charity Accountability and is a Seal Holder. Find out more...


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Charity Contact Information

Name: World Vision
Address: 34834 Weyerhaeuser Way South
  Federal Way, WA 98063-9716
Phone: 253-815-1000
Web Address: www.worldvision.org
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BBB Wise Giving Alliance Comments

Year, State Incorporated: 1950, California
Affiliates: World Vision Foundation, World Vision Properties LLC, World Vision Real Properties LLC, Tower Business Park LLC
Stated Purpose: "to work with children, families, and their communities worldwide to help them reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice."

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Evaluation Conclusions

               

World Vision (WV) meets the 20 Standards for Charity Accountability.
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Programs

               

WV is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision serves all people, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender. WV claims to provide assistance to more than 100 million people in nearly 100 countries around the world, including the U.S. It works in 4,500 communities to find lasting ways to improve the lives of poor children and families. WV responds to natural disasters and long-term humanitarian emergencies by providing emergency assistance to children and families affected by natural disasters and civil conflicts. The organization tracks potential crises and prepositions emergency supplies for rapid and effective responses and remains after the crisis to help people rebuild communities. WV partners with individuals and communities to empower them with health care, education, and economic opportunities. It works to build a world where all children are protected and cared for, and no longer forced to survive on their own or spend their childhood as soldiers, laborers, or victims. WV pursues justice for the poor and advocates with leaders of governmental and international institutions to address the causes of poverty and alleviate the suffering of children. Some ($1,183,000 or 14%) of WV's public awareness and education program activities are carried out in conjunction with fund raising appeals. Some ($800,000 or 16%) of WV's sponsorship program activities are carried out in conjunction with fund raising appeals.

For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2009, WV's program expenses were:

  
World Vision International 796,225,000
Other international relief and development 137,255,000
Domestic programs 114,784,000
Public awareness and education 7,638,000
Gifts to other ministries 7,423,000
Sponsorship programs 3,117,000
Total Program Expenses: $1,066,442,000
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Child Sponsorship

               

According to World Vision, the children accepted as part of its sponsorship program are selected by community leaders. World Vision staff verifies that the children on these lists are genuinely in need with good potential for benefiting from sponsorship-subsidized programs.  
 
Information kept by World Vision on sponsored children includes: name; gender; date of birth; general health; parents or relative having primary care responsibilities for the child; occupation of parents or head of household; number of siblings; kind of house child lives in; current grade (if in school); favorite subject; typical foods part of the child's diet regime; and sports, hobbies and other interests expressed by the child. This information is updated by the organization once every 24 months at a minimum.


Projects paid for through funds from sponsors benefit the child directly, his or her family, and the community as a whole. Some of the direct benefits a child may receive include vaccinations, schoolbooks, and payment of school fees. Examples of benefits at the family level are micro enterprise loans and agricultural training. Benefits conferred to the community may take the form of payment of teacher's salaries or drilling of wells for clean water.  
 
The HopeChild sponsorship program allows individuals to sponsor a child specifically located in a community impacted by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Benefits of this program include healthcare, care for sick or dying parents, and HIV/AIDS prevention and counseling.
 
World Vision asks sponsors to commit to contributing $35 per month for children and $35 per month for a HopeChild—World Vision also has sponsors for families, but new sponsorship opportunities for families are not available. World Vision also solicits sponsors for additional gifts at other times, such as before the child's birthday or in conjunction with holidays. Individual sponsors, through their own initiative, may request to send special gifts to help benefit the child/family. The full amount from these gifts is conveyed to the child/family in accordance with the wishes of the sponsor.  
 
Annual progress reports accompanied by a new picture of the child are sent to all sponsors. These include information recounting the main news items of interest that have taken place in the child's community over the year. Project reports also often contain a letter from the project manager describing goals that have been accomplished or problems that have been encountered. Room is also provided for the child to write a brief note or draw a picture.  
 
World Vision also encourages and facilitates exchanges of other correspondence that sponsors may wish to pursue. If the child speaks a language other than English, any translation needed of letters from sponsors is performed by project staff. Ideally, the child will be the one to correspond with the sponsor. However, if the child is too young or cannot write, a relative or a World Vision staff member will help compose the letter. When this is the case, the letter is signed by the adult writing for the child.  
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Governance

               

Chief Executive : Richard Stearns, President
Compensation*:
 $433,260

Chair of the Board: Joanna Mockler
Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation: Pastoral staff member of Grace Chapel in Lexington, Massachusetts

Board Size: 19

Paid Staff Size: 1221

*October 1, 2008 - September 30, 2009 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.
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Fund Raising

               

Method(s) Used:

Direct mail, telemarketing, special events, print advertisements, television, radio, grant proposals, Internet appeals, planned giving, cause-related marketing
Fund raising costs were 8% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $1,213,012,000, are donations received as a result of fund raising activities.)
WV incurred joint costs of $8,871,000 for informational materials and activities that included fund raising materials. Of those costs $5,823,000 was allocated to fund raising expenses, $1,890,000 was allocated to program expenses, and $1,158,000 was allocated to administrative expenses.
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Tax Status

               

This organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. It is eligible to receive contributions deductible as charitable donations for federal income tax purposes.
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Financial

               

The following information is based on WV's audited financial statements - consolidated for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2009.

Source of Funds  
Contributions, primarily private cash 455,760,000
Gifts-in-kind 413,314,000
Public cash and food commodity grants 343,938,000
Other income, net 10,797,000
Total Income $1,223,809,000


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Uses of Funds as a % of Total Expenses

Programs: 88%  Fund Raising: 8%  Administrative: 4% 

Total income   $1,223,809,000
  Program expenses $1,066,442,000
  Fund raising expenses 91,015,000
  Administrative expenses 48,935,000
 
Total expenses   $1,206,392,000
Income in Excess of Expenses   17,417,000
Beginning net assets   126,338,000
Other Changes in Net Assets (12,801,000)
Ending net assets   130,954,000
Total liabilities   166,839,000
Total assets   $297,793,000

Note: According to WV's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2009, in-kind contributions included $180,920,973 in medical and pharmaceuticals, $88,789,388 in clothing and shoes, $75,457,836 in books, $18,243,986 in building supplies, $13,519,250 in office/school supplies, $10,857,791 in cleaning supplies, $10,471,736 in miscellaneous items, $8,959,671 in personal care items, and $6,093,602 in toys.

Note: According to WV's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2009, other changes in net assets included pension actuarial loss and the effect of adoption of measurement date provision on pension plan.

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Complaints

               

Number of complaints processed by the BBB in last 36 months: 2

Program Service Complaint

The organization addressed the complaint issues brought to its attention:                                                                                                     2

The organization did not address the complaint issues brought to its attention:                                                                                                0

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An organization may change its practices at any time without notice. A copy of this report has been shared with the organization prior to publication. It is not intended to recommend or deprecate, and is furnished solely to assist you in exercising your own judgment. If the report is about a charity and states the charity meets or does not meet the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability, it reflects the results of an evaluation of information and materials provided voluntarily by the charity. The name Better Business Bureau is a registered service mark of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc.

This report is not to be used for fund raising or promotional purposes.

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