Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Jun 2011.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
88 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
12 people listed on the 990; $2.5M paid to officers and key staff.
Douglas a May’s $390K as Chief Operating Officer is at the 71st percentile of top reported officer pay among 249 $10–100M diseases & disorders 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
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saro Jahani | — | — | $601,459 | $994,392 | $928,406 | $165,561 |
| Bonnie Henderson | $336,141 | $824,761 | $250,000 | — | — | — |
| Jacob Mohan Thazhathu | — | — | — | — | — | $417,746 |
| Daniel J Thorpe | $349,425 | $316,560 | $417,697 | $164,035 | — | — |
| Douglas a May | $390,485 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Aileen Chang | $360,587 | $346,506 | $290,445 | $326,884 | $319,252 | — |
| Jon Pollack | $231,500 | $235,844 | $237,187 | $292,810 | $315,755 | $218,615 |
| Van Lansingh | $293,750 | $293,750 | $274,740 | — | — | — |
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
Train surgeons worldwide using simulations to improve cataract surgery access.
Questions for Help Me See INC
Your first name shows with your question. Help Me See INC answers here, for everyone.
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Simulator Operations
Helpmesee has deployed eye surgery training simulator (s) selected to eye surgery training institutions worldwide. The intended use of the helpmesee eye surgery training simulator(s) is for training ophthalmic surgeons and medical students as well as other eye-health related professionals, internationally and locally.
Public Awareness
Advocating for cataract as essential surgery under universal health coverage and in public health policy - public support development: the organization received financial support from various sources in 2021, such as local and international corporations, foundations, governments, and non-government ORGANIZATIONS.THROUGHOUT 2021…
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2021 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY21 | End FY21 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $13.0M | $9.2M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $0 | $5K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $7.7M | $9.0M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $21.0M | $19.2M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $1.4M | $1.1M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $19.6M | $18.1M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3 | $1.0M | $1.0M | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $1.7M | $1.4M | $203K | $155K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $2.7M | $2.1M | $311K | $238K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $424K | $336K | $51K | $38K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $201K | $159K | $24K | $18K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $84K | $30K | $54K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $47K | $39K | $3K | $4K |
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $2.0M | $1.9M | $58K | $37K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $1K | $1K | $45 | |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $628K | $563K | $46K | $19K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $549K | $454K | $27K | $69K |
| TravelLn 17 | $222K | $216K | $2K | $4K |
| InterestLn 20 | $489 | $489 | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $1.9M | $1.9M | $10K | $12K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $38K | $31K | $3K | $4K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $414K | $406K | $3K | $4K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $47K | $30K | $2K | $16K |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $12.0M | $10.6M | $796K | $618K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 Latest | $19.7M | $17.1M | $2.6M | $22.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2024 | $18.8M | $17.1M | $1.7M | $20.0M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $18.0M | $17.1M | $918K | $18.3M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $15.0M | $15.8M | −$761K | $17.5M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 Viewing | $10.6M | $12.0M | −$1.4M | $18.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $12.6M | $13.0M | −$375K | $19.6M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $10,645,752 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 2 of 3 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $10,645,752 across 7 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $12,019,177 across 17 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $19,214,476 assets, 17 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $18,076,649 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2021 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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