Fresh Air Fund EIN 13-1656653

Fresh Air Fund

EIN  13-1656653 Public charity (501(c)(3)) New York, NY Founded 1877
Form 990 (PDF) Compare with another nonprofit →
Verified accurate 8/10/26 · see original filing: IRS
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Size
$10–100M
What they do
Provides free summer experiences for underserved New York City children.
Leadership
Lisa Gitelson · Chief Executive Officer · $336K
Money in and out
$21.2M revenue, $23.6M expenses
Bottom line
76% program efficiency

Provides free summer experiences for underserved New York City children. For fiscal year 2024 it reported $21.2M in revenue, $23.6M in expenses, and $143.7M in net assets.Pt I

Where the money goes · FY2024
Total revenue
$21.2M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$23.6M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$143.7M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$2.4M
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.76 Management & general $0.09 Fundraising $0.16
Program efficiency
76%
of spending reaches programs▲ +3% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
56.2mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▼ -1% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
-11%
revenue over expenses, this year▲ +78% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2024 · Form 990
Revenue
$21.2M
FY2024▲ +41%
Expenses
$23.6M
FY2024▲ +4%
Total assets
$145.0M
FY2024▲ +5%
Total liabilities
$1.3M
FY2024▲ +10%
Total revenue
$21.2M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$23.6M
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$143.7M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$2.4M
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$145.0M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B76%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 331
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 431
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $16.6M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

The fresh air fund's camping programs take place year-round on the fund's sharpe reservation and during the summer at harriman state park. In the summer, 3,500 new york city children learn and grow through immersive outdoor experiences.

$10.6Mprogram expense
02

The fresh air fund's sharpe reservation in fishkill, ny, has over 2,000 acres of beautiful land with lakes, ponds, streams and hiking trails through the woods. During the school year, over 10,000 people from community and school groups in the tristate region participate in our environmental educational programs.

$3.4Mprogram expense
03

Approximately 2,000 fresh air children visit rual, suburban and small-town communities along the east coast and southern canada, called friendly towns, during the summer. During the one or two week visits with volunteer host families, children and their hosts form bonds of friendship by sharing personal, day-to-day experiences.

$2.6Mprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CFresh Air Fund
EINHdr · item D13-1656653
Principal addressHdr · item CNew York, NY
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.freshair.org
Year of formationHdr · item L1877
State of legal domicileHdr · item MNY
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFRecreation & Sports (N20)
Ruling yearIRS BMFApr 1933

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a31
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b31
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13Yes
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14Yes
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Chief Executive Officer
$335,905Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Financial Officer
$257,374Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Development and Community
$250,399Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Operating Officer
$245,384Pt VII · Sec A
Chief Program Officer (outgoing)
$242,162Pt VII · Sec A
General Counsel
$192,148Pt VII · Sec A
Director of IT (outgoing)
$180,708Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Lisa Gitelson’s $336K as Chief Executive Officer is at the 56th percentile of top reported officer pay among 290 $10–100M recreation & sports 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 · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Lisa Gitelson$335,905$335,993$231,326
Fatima Shama$297,266$332,289
Alpha Conteh$257,374$260,236$253,739$71,349
Jean Jeremie$258,262
Elizabeth Portland$250,399$251,551$245,408$233,308$226,468
Michael Clarke$245,384$244,129$222,221$164,129
Deborah Asirifi$242,162$233,620
Helen P O'Reilly$180,075$236,539$212,815

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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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants$17.4M · 82%
Investment income$2.6M · 12%
Program service revenue$1.4M · 7%
Contributions & grants82%$17.4M
Investment income12%$2.6M
Program service revenue7%$1.4M
— government grantsLn 1e$2.1M
Total revenueLn 12$21.2M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.76 Management & general $0.09 Fundraising $0.16
Program services76%$17.9M
Management & general9%$2.0M
Fundraising16%$3.7M
Total functional expensesLn 25$23.6M

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$3.7M
Total assetsLn 16$145.0M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$1.3M
Total net assetsLn 32$143.7M
Months of cash on handcomputed1.9

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2024 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $106.2M · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $23.6M · Less non-cash grants $967K · Cash operating expenses/yr $22.7M
56.2 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $17.9M · Total expenses $23.6M
76%
Management & General
Management & general $2.0M · Total expenses $23.6M
9%
Fundraising
Fundraising $3.7M · Total expenses $23.6M
16%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $3.7M · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $13.8M
$0.26 to raise $1 (3-yr avg)
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $17.4M · Total revenue $21.2M
82%
Government reliance
Government grants $2.1M · Total revenue $21.2M
10%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $1.4M · Total revenue $21.2M
7%
Investment reliance
Investment income $2.6M · Total revenue $21.2M
+12%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $1.4M · Total expenses $23.6M
6%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $21.2M · Prior year $15.0M
+41%
Revenue CAGR
FY2019 $13.0M · FY2024 $21.2M
+10%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $143.7M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $21.2M · Expenses $23.6M
-11%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $145.0M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $143.7M · Total assets $145.0M
99%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) $102.5M · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $145.0M
71%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Lisa Gitelson · Reported title CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER · Highest reported compensation $336K · Total expenses $23.6M
1%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $10.4M · Total expenses $23.6M
44%
Fundraising vendors
Fundraiser cost ratio
Paid to fundraisers $607K · Gross raised $7.4M
8%
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 76%
Overhead ratio 9%
Fundraising cost ratio 21%
Revenue growth 41%
Investment management fee ratio 0%
Legal fee ratio 1%
Fundraising fee ratio 3%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
See all 13 funders →
Grants paid · 8 grants · $1.5M · 2022–2024
Unitemized GrantFY2024$384,382
Unitemized GrantFY2024$30,823
Unitemized GrantFY2023$393,040
Unitemized GrantFY2023$51,598
Unitemized GrantFY2023$10,500
Unitemized GrantFY2022$343,274
Unitemized GrantFY2022$225,619
Unitemized GrantFY2022$29,569

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2024 (Latest)$21.2M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$15.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$15.6M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$17.5M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$13.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2024IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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