Bittersweet Foundation EIN 46-1502118 Form 990 (PDF) Claim this org

Bittersweet Foundation

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Publishes media and hosts events to educate on hope and social issues. For fiscal year 2025 it reported $165K in revenue, $185K in expenses, and $62K in net assets.Pt I

Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Arts & Culture
Location
Washington, DC
Website
bittersweetmonthly.com
Filings
6 on file (2020–2025)
Revenue
$165KFY2025
Expenses
$185K
Net assets
$62K
People
5
Filings
6
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  46-1502118 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Washington, DC
Form 990 (PDF)
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Size
$100K–1M
What they do
Publishes media and hosts events to educate on hope and social issues.
Leadership
Katherine Schmidgall · President
Money in and out
$165K revenue, $185K expenses
Bottom line
89% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2025
Total revenue
$165K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$185K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$62K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): −$20K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.89 Management & general $0.11
Program efficiency
89%
of spending reaches programs-0.2% vs prior filing year
Operating runway
3.7mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate▼ -43% vs prior filing year
Surplus margin
-12%
revenue over expenses, this year▼ -150% vs prior filing year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2025 · Form 990
Revenue
$165K
FY2025▼ -19%
Expenses
$185K
FY2025▲ +21%
Total assets
$63K
FY2025▼ -24%
Total liabilities
$2K
FY2025▲ +25%
Total revenue
$165K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$185K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$62K
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19−$20K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$63K
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B89%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 35
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 45

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CBittersweet Foundation
EINHdr · item D46-1502118
Principal addressHdr · item CWashington, DC
WebsiteHdr · item Jbittersweetmonthly.com
Year of formationHdr · item Lpending
State of legal domicileHdr · item MDC
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFArts & Culture (A33)
Ruling yearIRS BMFJul 2013

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a5
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b5
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12aYes
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

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
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Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

1 program service account for $166K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2025.
01

Bittersweet assembles and coordinates volunteer writers, photographers, and filmmakers to produce long-form feature stories documenting inspiring work caring for the vulnerable, the poor, and the marginalized globally.

$166Kprogram expense

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants101%$167K
Investment income$58
Total revenueLn 12$165K

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.89 Management & general $0.11
Program services89%$166K
Management & general11%$20K
Total functional expensesLn 25$185K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$57K
Total assetsLn 16$63K
Total liabilitiesLn 26$2K
Total net assetsLn 32$62K
Months of cash on handcomputed3.7

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2025 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $57K · Operating expenses/yr $185K
3.7 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $166K · Total expenses $185K
89%
Management & General
Management & general $20K · Total expenses $185K
11%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $185K
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (2-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (2-yr avg) $186K
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $167K · Total revenue $165K
101%
Government reliance
Government grants — · Total revenue $165K
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $0 · Total revenue $165K
0%
Investment reliance
Investment income $58 · Total revenue $165K
+0.04%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $0 · Total expenses $185K
0%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $165K · Prior year $204K
-19%
Revenue CAGR
FY2020 $91K · FY2025 $165K
+13%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $62K · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $165K · Expenses $185K
-12%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $63K
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $62K · Total assets $63K
98%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $63K
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Katherine Schmidgall · Reported title PRESIDENT · Highest reported compensation $0 · Total expenses $185K
0%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) — · Total expenses $185K
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 89%
Overhead ratio 11%
Fundraising cost ratio 0%
Revenue growth -19%
Legal fee ratio 0.4%
Accounting fee ratio 4%

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 · funders on record
Grants received · FY2022
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$166K

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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
FY2025 (Latest)$165K revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2024$204K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$50K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$176K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$56K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$91K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2025IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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