Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Aug 1986.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File
Where the money goes
82 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
19 people listed on the 990; $460K paid to officers and key staff.
Lynn Bushinger’s $205K as COO/CFO/Treasurer (former) is at the 34th percentile of top reported officer pay among 572 $10–100M 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 · 6 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lynn Bushinger | $205,443 | $151,943 | $132,138 | $119,830 |
| Matt Varilek | $134,549 | $202,326 | $198,200 | $199,701 |
| Don Hickman | $145,945 | $141,339 | $129,297 | $124,963 |
| Jeff Wig | — | — | — | $117,427 |
| Brian Voerding | $109,471 | $108,526 | — | — |
| Michele Miller | $102,859 | — | — | — |
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
Empowers Central Minnesota communities by providing grants, managing partner funds, and offering training to foster regional philanthropy and economic growth.
Questions for Initiative Foundation
Your first name shows with your question. Initiative Foundation answers here, for everyone.
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Generositypartner Fund Performance
The community philanthropy team assisted the foundation's 128 partner funds in facilitating 432 grants for a total of $1.7 million in grant awards across the region. COVID-19 continued to affect partner fund grantmaking by hindering community outreach and reducing the number of grant rounds offered, yet 454 applications were received by…
Economyloans
The foundation approved 29 small business loans totaling $2,823,750 in 2021 (including 11 microloans totaling $308,000 to diverse entrepreneurs), funding $1,861,750 during the year with the balance carried over to 2022 due to seasonal construction or ownership transition issues.
Communitychild Care Solutions
Foundation staff continue to support improved access to quality, affordable, economically sustainable child care through a variety of strategies and partnerships. Our highest profile initiative involves our relationship with three regional community colleges.
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 | $5.1M | $13.0M |
| InvestmentsLn 11–13 | $76.5M | $84.1M |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $1.7M | $1.6M |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $95.6M | $108.3M |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $7.3M | $8.3M |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $88.3M | $100.1M |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1 | $5.2M | $5.2M | ||
| Grants to domestic individualsLn 2 | $258K | $258K | ||
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $387K | $143K | $184K | $60K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $1.6M | $868K | $516K | $208K |
| Pension plan contributionsLn 8 | $89K | $45K | $31K | $12K |
| Other employee benefitsLn 9 | $362K | $185K | $128K | $49K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $140K | $72K | $50K | $19K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $10K | $8K | $2K | |
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $40K | $40K | ||
| Investment management feesLn 11f | $108K | $108K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $473K | $451K | $3K | $19K |
| Advertising and promotionLn 12 | $30K | $21K | $8K | $931 |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $65K | $28K | $17K | $21K |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $188K | $112K | $61K | $15K |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $85K | $51K | $27K | $8K |
| TravelLn 17 | $13K | $6K | $7K | $269 |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $5K | $2K | $1K | $2K |
| InterestLn 20 | $31K | $31K | ||
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $56K | $27K | $22K | $6K |
| InsuranceLn 23 | $16K | $8K | $7K | $2K |
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $327K | $223K | $82K | $21K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | −$44K | −$44K | −$674 | |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $9.4M | $7.7M | $1.3M | $443K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2024 Latest | $15.2M | $15.7M | −$498K | $105.9M | 990 PDF |
| FY2023 | $10.0M | $9.4M | $670K | $100.6M | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 | $18.8M | $16.3M | $2.6M | $91.4M | 990 PDF |
| FY2021 Viewing | $30.8M | $9.4M | $21.4M | $100.1M | 990 PDF |
| FY2020 | $21.8M | $15.3M | $6.4M | $88.3M | 990 PDF |
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Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2021 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $30,841,983 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 15 of 15 board members independent, no flags
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $30,841,983 across 13 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $9,396,701 across 22 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $108,344,856 assets, 18 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $100,084,647 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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