Is it real?
Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2025. IRS ruling in Oct 1996.
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.
Something off? Claim to add context
Who runs it and what they're paid
7 people listed on the 990; $102K paid to officers and key staff.
James Wartian’s $62K as Managing Director & Board Secretary is at the 22nd percentile of top reported officer pay among 1636 $1–10M religion 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 · 4 named individuals · Part VII
| Name | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | FY2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Gibson | — | — | — | — | $63,900 | $114,000 |
| James Wartian | $62,073 | $80,095 | $58,203 | $27,298 | $67,465 | $69,063 |
| David Shepherd | $39,889 | $50,676 | $29,326 | $28,785 | $39,913 | $42,696 |
| Jeanni Shepherd | $37,314 | $37,314 | $42,728 | $45,977 | $37,614 | $38,421 |
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.
See Ministry Essentials INC executive salaries →Questions the 990 asks
The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.
- Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2Yes
- Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes
Programs and updates
Supports international Christian leaders and families with spiritual care and community.
Questions for Ministry Essentials INC
Your first name shows with your question. Ministry Essentials INC answers here, for everyone.
Mei is a non-profit mission agency that establishes and cultivates spiritual community among christian leaers and their families serving internationally. Within this context of community mei aims to provide soul care, spiritual nourishment, and developmental resources to address both urgent and long-term needs of christian leaders and…
Funders
Who pays for it.
From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.
Grants
By the numbers
The FY2022 990, line by line.
Download 990
| Line | Start FY22 | End FY22 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and savingsLn 1–2 | $682K | $684K |
| Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c | $132K | $143K |
| Total assetsLn 16 | $817K | $836K |
| LiabilitiesLn 26 | $4K | $6K |
| Net assetsLn 32 | $813K | $829K |
| Line | Total | Programs | Management | Fundraising |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5 | $141K | $86K | $49K | $7K |
| Other salaries and wagesLn 7 | $808K | $747K | $20K | $40K |
| Payroll taxesLn 10 | $30K | $26K | $2K | $2K |
| Legal feesLn 11b | $6K | $6K | ||
| Accounting feesLn 11c | $34K | $34K | ||
| Other fees for servicesLn 11g | $4K | $2K | $1K | |
| Office expensesLn 13 | $13K | $9K | $3K | $227 |
| Information technologyLn 14 | $5K | $2K | $2K | $579 |
| OccupancyLn 16 | $158K | $157K | $44 | $434 |
| TravelLn 17 | $188K | $159K | $2K | $28K |
| Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19 | $74K | $37K | $36K | $262 |
| Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22 | $14K | $14K | ||
| InsuranceLn 23 | $10K | $10K | ||
| Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24 | $98K | $62K | $6K | $29K |
| All other expensesLn 24e | $26K | $17K | $8K | $628 |
| Total functional expensesLn 25 | $1.6M | $1.3M | $181K | $108K |
Filing history
| Year | Money in | Money out | In minus out | Net assets | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 LatestFiled with the IRS Jul 8, 2026 | $1.9M | $2.0M | −$136K | $746K | 990 PDF |
| FY2024Filed with the IRS Sep 11, 2025 | $1.8M | $1.9M | −$19K | $882K | 990 PDF |
| FY2023Filed with the IRS Sep 26, 2024 | $1.8M | $1.7M | $71K | $900K | 990 PDF |
| FY2022 ViewingFiled with the IRS Aug 21, 2023 | $1.6M | $1.6M | $17K | $829K | 990 PDF |
| FY2021Filed with the IRS Nov 17, 2022 | $1.5M | $1.5M | $67K | $813K | 990 PDF |
| FY2020Filed with the IRS Nov 15, 2021 | $1.4M | $1.2M | $152K | $746K | 990 PDF |
Schedules filed Part IV
See the full FY2022 990 (6 parts)
Part I · Summary $1,625,845 revenue, 12 lines filed
Part VI · Governance 4 of 6 board members independent, 2 to look at
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $1,625,845 across 5 lines filed
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $1,609,181 across 15 lines filed
Part X · Balance sheet $835,835 assets, 12 lines filed
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $829,477 net assets at year end
Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2022 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File
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