Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Aug 2003.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
83 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.
Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.
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Who runs it and what they're paid
16 people listed on the 990; $225K paid to officers and key staff.
Lesly Melendez’s $123K as Executive Director is at the 32nd percentile of top reported officer pay among 2832 $1–10M community development nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.
Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 4 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heather McMann | — | — | $138,407 | $129,658 | $121,337 | $121,337 |
| Lesly Melendez | $122,785 | $117,554 | $89,763 | — | — | — |
| Brad Buschur | — | — | — | $102,755 | — | — |
| William Buschur | $102,607 | — | — | — | — | — |
Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.
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Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Empowering communities to regenerate and manage their environment for lasting well-being.
Questions for Groundwork Lawrence INC
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GWL supports environmental improvements programs such as park projects, urban forestry program, & rail trail project management services.
Gwl
Youth Program and Education Services - Groundwork Lawrence aims to cultivate healthy habits at an early age with environmental education programming that promotes healthy eating, movement, and social awareness.
Gwl Community Engagement
Groundwork Lawrence has spent the last twenty years working with Lawrence residents to create more climate resilient neighborhoods through a person-centered approach, committed to the ideal that change should come from resident identified needs and priorities.
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2025 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY25 | End FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $2.3M | $2.0M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $173K | $119K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $3.9M | $3.6M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $678K | $591K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $3.2M | $3.0M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $138K | $55K | $41K | $41K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $1.7M | $1.5M | $149K | $85K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $33K | $21K | $6K | $6K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $159K | $114K | $30K | $16K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $174K | $142K | $20K | $12K |
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $175K | $126K | $31K | $18K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $629 | $629 | ||
| Information technologyLn 14 | $8K | $6K | $995 | $859 |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $46K | $36K | $4K | $5K |
| TravelLn 17 | $13K | $10K | $3K | |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $54K | $43K | $5K | $6K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $58K | $46K | $5K | $7K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $792K | $756K | $20K | $16K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $133K | $69K | $47K | $16K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $3.5M | $2.9M | $359K | $233K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest Viewing | $3.9M | $3.5M | $363K | $3.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $3.9M | $4.0M | −$160K | $3.2M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $4.4M | $4.0M | $474K | $3.5M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $4.0M | $3.4M | $603K | $3.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 | $5.1M | $3.9M | $1.1M | $2.5M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $3.1M | $2.9M | $261K | $1.4M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2025 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $3,886,051 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 13 of 13 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $3,886,051 across 9 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $3,522,749 across 14 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $3,586,253 assets, 15 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $2,995,712 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2025 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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