Crossword Cafe FY2023 filing

Chillicothe, IL · Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Since 2001 · Human Services

✓ Tax-deductible Latest data FY2023
Revenue
$1.3M
▲ +19% vs prior year
Spent
$1.2M
To programs
41%
Net assets
$568K
You’re viewing the FY2023 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2025) →

Form 990 for the fiscal year ending December 2023 (IRS tax year 2023).

Figures match the IRS filing checked 9/22/26 · see original: IRS

Status and standing

Tax-deductible?
Yes
Per the IRS master file.
Can I give now?
No revocation on IRS record
Not on the IRS revocation list.
Filing up to date?
Yes — filed FY2025
Foundation funders?
Not on file
Spent on programs?
41% to programs
Form 990 Part IX, latest filing.
Size and trend
$1–10M
↑ +19% vs prior year
Legal name (IRS)Hdr · item CCrossword Cafe
EINHdr · item D30-0088438
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
Ruling yearIRS BMFOct 2002
Year of formationHdr · item L2001
Latest filingForm 990FY2025 · Form 990
Principal addressHdr · item CChillicothe, IL
NTEE classificationIRS BMFHuman Services (P99)
WebsiteHdr · item Jcrosswordcafe.net

Where the money goes

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.41 Management & general $0.59
Program services41%$499K
Management & general59%$710K
Total functional expensesLn 25$1.2M

Financial health

Revenue & expenses by yearFY2020–FY2025
Revenue
$1.3M
FY2023▲ +19%
Expenses
$1.2M
FY2023▲ +18%
Program efficiency
41%
of spending reaches programs
Surplus margin
+7%
revenue over expenses, this year
Donor-funded
101%
of revenue is gifts & grants

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2023 · Form 990
Total assets
$641K
FY2023▲ +13%
Total liabilities
$73K
FY2023▼ -17%
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$90K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$641K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B41%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 37
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 46

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$243K
Total assetsLn 16$641K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$73K
Total net assetsLn 32$568K
Months of cash on handcomputed2.4

Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants101%$1.3M
Investment income$366
Total revenueLn 12$1.3M

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2023 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $243K · Operating expenses (Pt IX) $1.2M · Less non-cash grants $1.3M · Cash operating expenses/yr $-75K
Highly liquid reserves (cash & marketable securities on Pt X) ÷ monthly operating expenses (Pt IX total, less non-cash grants & depreciation when reported).
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $499K · Total expenses $1.2M
41%
Management & General
Management & general $710K · Total expenses $1.2M
59%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $1.2M
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $1.1M
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $1.3M · Total revenue $1.3M
101%
Government reliance
Government grants $0 · Total revenue $1.3M
0%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $0 · Total revenue $1.3M
0%
Investment reliance
Investment income $366 · Total revenue $1.3M
+0.03%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $0 · Total expenses $1.2M
0%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $1.3M · Prior year $1.1M
+19%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $568K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $1.3M · Expenses $1.2M
+7%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $641K
—
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $568K · Total assets $641K
89%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $641K
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual John Heffron · Reported title Director · Highest reported compensation $29K · Total expenses $1.2M
2%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $359K · Total expenses $1.2M
30%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 41%——
Overhead ratio 59%——
Fundraising cost ratio 0%——
Revenue growth 19%——
Investment management fee ratio 0%——
Legal fee ratio 0%——
Accounting fee ratio 0%——
Fundraising fee ratio 0%——

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.

Leadership and pay

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Director
$28,505Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$28,505Pt VII · Sec A
Trustee
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Chris Heffron’s $1K as Secretary is at the 0th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3868 $1–10M human services 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 · 3 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
John Heffron—$33,980$28,505$27,910$27,850$27,570
Carl Baker-Christophel———$9,600$9,200$5,400
Chris Heffron$1,100—————

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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Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a7
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b6
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aNo
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13No
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14No
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15aNo
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2Yes

Mission and programs

Offers teens a safe space for games, music, tutoring, and lessons, sharing God's love.

Provided by the organization

This section is blank until Crossword Cafe claims this page.

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Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

2 program services account for $999K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2023.
01

Provide a safe place for teens to hang out, play games and music, obtain free tutoring, free music lessons, and learn about the love of God for them through Christ Jesus.

$499Kprogram expense
02

Provide a safe place for teens to hang out, play games and music, obtain free tutoring, free music lessons, and learn about the love of God for them through Christ Jesus.

$499Kprogram expense

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Funders

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · this organization's grantmaking
Grants paid · 14 grants · $1.2M · 2020–2025

Filing history

YearRevenueExpensesChangeFiling
FY2025 Latest $1.6M$1.5M+13% 990 PDF
FY2024 $1.4M$1.3M+6% 990 PDF
FY2023 Viewing $1.3M$1.2M+19% 990 PDF
FY2022 $1.1M$1.0M+32% 990 PDF
FY2021 $825K$768K+29% 990 PDF
FY2020 $637K$595K 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash

Not shown yet: ratings, outcomes, and peer benchmarks. A Form 990 doesn’t report them.

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2023IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
Names, privacy, and removal requests More

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