BBB Wise Giving Report for
Children, Incorporated

BBB Wise Giving Report issued May 2008
BBB Wise Giving Report expires May 2010


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: Children, Incorporated
Address: 4205 Dover Road
  Richmond, VA 23221-3267
Phone: (800) 538-5381
(804) 359-4562
Web Address: www.children-inc.org
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BBB Wise Giving Alliance Comments

Year, State Incorporated: 1964, Virginia
Affiliates: None

Stated Purpose: "to assist children of all races and creeds, administering to their physical, emotional, and educational needs."

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Evaluation Conclusions

               

Children, Incorporated (CI) meets the 20Standards for Charity Accountability.
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Programs

               

Through its child sponsorship program, CI assists impoverished children with their basic needs for food, clothing, medical attention, small personal necessities, school supplies, and other educational materials. According to CI, it has more than 300 current projects affiliated with orphanages, schools, and welfare centers in 24 countries that, combined, are assisting over 16,000 children. CI also helps pay for the repair of buildings and equipment in the establishments serving its children, supplementary funds for teacher salaries and needs such as new desks, sanitary supplies, beds, sleeping bags, and computers.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2007, CI's program expenses were:

  
Child care program 5,738,777
Total Program Expenses: $5,738,777
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Child Sponsorship

               

According to CI, a child enrolls at a CI project (an orphanage, school, or welfare center receiving funds from CI) and a sponsor for that child is then sought.  Sponsors pledge $28 per month to projects helping children with food, clothes, health care, and school needs.  The projects, located in 24 countries (including the United States), are managed by project coordinators.  These coordinators enroll children in the project, maintain case histories to send to sponsors, monitor all monies received and disbursed, and administer the program.

CI's project coordinators collect, verify, and maintain information on sponsored children using Project Information Forms.  These forms help describe to the sponsor the project where the child is located and the community in which the child resides.  Projects are requested to review these forms annually and to submit any updated information to CI headquarters.

Additionally, CI projects maintain Child Information Forms, which are filled out by someone familiar with circumstances and personality of the child.  These forms contain statistical information about the child such as:  full name, date of birth, photograph, grade in school, assessment of child's health, personal characteristics, personal history, and names of siblings enrolled with CI.  According to CI, new pictures and progress reports are requested every two years.

CI reports that monthly subsidies collected are used to provide material goods and services for sponsored children and their families and are not pooled for community development projects.  However, CI reports that when disasters occur, extra funds are requested to help with the repairs and reconstruction of CI affiliated projects and/or homes of the children and their families.

In addition to the monthly sponsorship donation, CI states that gifts for birthdays and/or holidays are voluntary and that the full amount of the funds are considered to be Designated Funds.  Designated Funds are sent to the project for the particular child with specific purpose designated by the sponsor.  However, CI does request that any gifts be sent two months in advance in order to ensure a timely distribution.


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Governance

               

Chief Executive : Marian G. Cummins, President and CEO
Compensation*:
 $98,252

Highest Paid Executive: Peter N. Pastore, Chief Operating Officer
Compensation*: $122,288

Chair of the Board: William R. Gardner, Jr.
Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation: Chartered Life Underwriter and Chartered Financial Consultant

Board Size: 13

Paid Staff Size: 32

*July 1, 2006 - June 30, 2007 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, special events, print advertisements, television, radio, grant proposals, Internet appeals, planned giving, and cause-related marketing
Fund raising costs were 12% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $6,960,015, are donations received as a result of fund raising activities.)
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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 CI's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2007.

Source of Funds  
Sponsorship contributions 4,289,620
Other conbtributions 1,756,774
Bequests 578,981
Commodity gifts 334,640
Investment income 332,797
Other income 61,245
Total Income $7,354,057


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Uses of Funds as a % of Total Expenses

Programs: 82%  Fund Raising: 12%  Administrative: 6% 

Total income   $7,354,057
  Program expenses $5,738,777
  Fund raising expenses 858,262
  Administrative expenses 406,391
 
Total expenses   $7,003,430
Income in Excess of Expenses   350,627
Beginning net assets   5,270,472
Ending net assets   5,621,099
Total liabilities   795,083
Total assets   $6,416,182

Note: According to CI's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2007, the organization received $334,640 in donated services including clothing ($130,510), toys ($73,621), miscellaneous ($56,889), gift cards ($40,157), and food ($33,464).

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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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