Houston's Charity for Children INC

Tax-deductible

Houston, TX501(c)(3)Since 1982Community DevelopmentEIN 76-0135741

The mission of the charity is to support causes related to children. This includes providing vehicles and other types of support to other organizations which provide direct support to children.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
92¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
Run by 1,500 volunteers and 18 employees.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · People: Part I, lines 5–6

Before you give

FY2024 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
3 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average surplus $122K a year · 3% of revenue · last 5 filings
Worth a look: a surplus in 3 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
92%
of spending
Looks good: 92% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$465K
to officers and key staff · 8% of spending
Top officer’s pay higher than 96% of similar orgs
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 8% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
5 mo
of spending, in cash
Looks good: 5.2 months of spending in cash; 3 or more.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
1
named funder · $30K
Fine: 1 funder names it on their filings; under 3.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$177K
6% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 6% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
25
of 25 voting members
Looks good: 25 of 25 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$6.9M
+26% vs prior year
Spent
$6.0M
To programs
92%
Net assets
$2.9M
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$6.9M
FY2024▲ +26%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$3.7M
FY2021$4.1M
FY2022$4.9M
FY2023$5.1M
FY2024$5.5M
FY2024$6.9M
Expenses
$6.0M
FY2024▲ +7%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$4.0M
FY2021$3.9M
FY2022$4.7M
FY2023$4.6M
FY2024$5.6M
FY2024$6.0M
Net assets
$2.9M
FY2024▲ +45%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$1.1M
FY2021$1.3M
FY2022$1.6M
FY2023$2.1M
FY2024$2.0M
FY2024$2.9M

From the FY2024 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

Give Claim

Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in May 1986.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

92 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 92% · $5.5M Management & general 8% · $450K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

Who runs it and what they're paid

26 people listed on the 990; $465K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
President & CEO
$465,000Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice-Chairman
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Assistant Treasurer
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice-President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice-President
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Secretary
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Laura S Ward’s $465K as President & CEO is at the 96th percentile of top reported officer pay among 2832 $1–10M 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 · 2 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Laura S Ward$465,000$413,898$386,970$352,073$350,000—
Laura Ward—————$351,913

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 Houston's Charity for Children INC executive salaries →

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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 2Yes
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Provides vehicles and support to organizations helping children.

Provided by the organization

This section is blank until Houston's Charity for Children INC claims this page.

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3 program services account for $5.1M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Chariots for Children

The charity contributes vans to families with children who have special needs or to other organizations that provide services to children.

$4.3Mprogram expense
02

Christmas Toy Distribution

The charity hosts an annual event to distribute toys to families based on children's wish list.

$564Kprogram expense
03

A Better Nights Sleep

This program is designed to provide needy children with beds and mattresses in order to provide a better nights sleep for them.

$243Kprogram expense

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Funders

Who pays for it.

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

Grants

Schedule I · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$30K
Grants paid · 1 grant · $1.9M · 2019–2019
Unitemized GrantFY2019$1,873,280

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$6.9M
Ln 12
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$9.5M
Investment incomeLn 3$39K
Money outPt IX
$6.0M
Ln 25
Programscol B$5.5M
Managementcol C$450K
Owns and owesPt X
$2.9M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$2.6M
Total assetsLn 16$3.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$177K
PeoplePt VI, VII
26
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a25
IndependentVI 1b25
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$9.5M
Noncash giftsLn 1g$2.6M
Fundraising eventsLn 1c$4.8M
Investment incomeLn 3$39K
Total revenueLn 12$6.9M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$2.0M
SavingsLn 2$567K
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$2.6M
Other assetsLn 15$153K
Total assetsLn 16$3.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$177K
Net assetsLn 32$2.9M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 518
VolunteersI 61,500
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY24End FY24
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$1.8M$2.6M
Total assetsLn 16$2.1M$3.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$74K$177K
Net assetsLn 32$2.0M$2.9M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$4.5M$4.5M
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$191K$167K$23K
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$669K$605K$64K
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$98K$18K$80K
Advertising and promotionLn 12$51K$14K$37K
Office expensesLn 13$111K$111K
TravelLn 17$3K$3K
InterestLn 20$22K$22K
InsuranceLn 23$7K$7K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$338K$247K$91K
All other expensesLn 24e$12K$12K
Total functional expensesLn 25$6.0M$5.5M$450K$0

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 $5.5M$5.6M−$111K$2.0M 990 PDF
FY2023 $5.1M$4.6M$521K$2.1M 990 PDF
FY2022 $4.9M$4.7M$274K$1.6M 990 PDF
FY2021 $4.1M$3.9M$256K$1.3M 990 PDF
FY2020 $3.7M$4.0M−$330K$1.1M 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
See the full FY2024 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $6,898,695 across 7 lines filed
VIII-1c Fundraising events$4,797,778
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$4,670,661
VIII-1g Noncash contributions (included above)$2,607,991
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$9,468,439
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $38,969$38,969
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising eventsExcluded from tax −$2,608,713−$2,608,713
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $0 · Unrelated business $0 · Excluded from tax −$2,569,744$6,898,695
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $5,983,541 across 11 lines filed
IX-2 Grants to domestic individualsPrograms $4,481,558$4,481,558
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $167,400 · Management $23,250$190,650
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $605,193 · Management $63,727$668,920
IX-11g Other fees for servicesPrograms $18,368 · Management $79,742$98,110
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $14,021 · Management $37,147$51,168
IX-13 Office expensesManagement $111,176$111,176
IX-17 TravelManagement $3,361$3,361
IX-20 InterestManagement $22,311$22,311
IX-23 InsuranceManagement $6,666$6,666
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $247,236 · Management $90,613$337,849
IX-24e All other expensesManagement $11,772$11,772
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $5,533,776 · Management $449,765 · Fundraising $0$5,983,541
Part X · Balance sheet $3,113,452 assets, 13 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $1,279,797$2,032,142
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $548,927$567,125
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $171,000$325,895
X-8 Inventories for sale or useStart of year $30,187$30,187
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $2,539$4,673
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $70,192$153,430
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $2,102,642$3,113,452
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $4,019$23,660
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $70,192$153,430
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $74,211$177,090
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $2,028,431$2,936,362
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $2,028,431$2,936,362
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $2,102,642$3,113,452
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $2,936,362 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$6,898,695
XI-2 Total expenses$5,983,541
XI-3 Revenue less expenses$915,154
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$2,028,431
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments−$7,223
XI-9 Other changes in net assets$0
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$2,936,362

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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