McDowell Lfac EIN 83-2141213 Form 990 (PDF) Claim this org

McDowell Lfac FY2023 filing

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Strengthens the local food system, improving community health and livelihoods through a connected network. For fiscal year 2023 it reported $1.3M in revenue, $821K in expenses, and $1.8M in net assets.Pt I

Founded
2018
Type
Public charity (501(c)(3)) · Food & Agriculture
Location
Marion, NC
Website
www.mcdowelllfac.org
Filings
5 on file (2020–2023)
Revenue
$1.3MFY2023
Expenses
$821K
Net assets
$1.8M
People
9
Filings
5
Updates
0
More identity details & actions ⌄
EIN  83-2141213 Public charity (501(c)(3)) Marion, NC Founded 2018
Form 990 (PDF)
You’re viewing the FY2023 filing — not the latest on file. See the latest (FY2024) →
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Figures match the IRS filing checked 8/31/26 · see original: IRS
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Size
$1–10M
What they do
Strengthens the local food system, improving community health and livelihoods through a connected network.
Leadership
Heather Edwards · Executive Director · $79K
Money in and out
$1.3M revenue, $821K expenses
Bottom line
73% program efficiency
Where the money goes · FY2023
Total revenue
$1.3M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$821K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$1.8M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $477K
Where spending went · Part IX cols B–D
Program services $0.73 Management & general $0.27
Program efficiency
73%
of spending reaches programs
Operating runway
11.0mo
months of highly liquid reserves at operating expense rate
Surplus margin
+37%
revenue over expenses, this year

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2023 · Form 990
Revenue
$1.3M
FY2023▲ +24%
Expenses
$821K
FY2023▲ +48%
Total assets
$1.8M
FY2023▲ +37%
Total liabilities
$11K
FY2023▲ +260%
Total revenue
$1.3M
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$821K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$1.8M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expensesPt I · Ln 19$477K
Total assetsPt X · Ln 16$1.8M
Program-expense ratioPt IX · col B73%
Voting members of governing bodyPt I · Ln 38
Independent voting membersPt I · Ln 48
Mission & Programs · Part III

Where the work happens

3 program services account for $596K of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2022.
01

Foothills Food Hub

The foothills food hub (FFH) is the largest program of the mcdowell lfac. Construction was complete in november of 2022. The foothills food hub is located at 263 barnes RD in marion and consists of three components: (1) a teaching kitchen that will eventually host culinary classes in partnership with our local community college, healthy…

$236Kprogram expense
02

Healthy Opportunities Pilot (hop) Program

The hop program is a true pilot in that only 3 regions in NC participate and the 18 western NC counties and qualla boundary are one of them. The mcdowell lfac / foothills food hub, in partnership with impact health and medicaid, provides fresh and shelf stable food to those who qualify for various medicaid programs.

$223Kprogram expense
03

Lfac Community Engagement

The lfac is a 501(c)(3) organization with a mission to strengthen the local food system in mcdowell county. Its goal is to improve the health and livelihoods of all community members through building a food network of producers, businesses, agencies, and not-for -profit organizations.

$136Kprogram expense

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Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CMcDowell Lfac
EINHdr · item D83-2141213
Principal addressHdr · item CMarion, NC
WebsiteHdr · item Jwww.mcdowelllfac.org
Year of formationHdr · item L2018
State of legal domicileHdr · item MNC
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFFood & Agriculture (K99)
Ruling yearIRS BMFDec 2018

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1a8
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1b8
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 15aYes
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2No

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation · most recent filed roster (FY2022); the FY2023 filing did not itemize Part VII
Executive Director
$79,200Pt VII · Sec A
Treasurer
$2,821Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Leslie Burleson’s $89K as Exec. Dir. is at the 41st percentile of top reported officer pay among 819 $1–10M food & agriculture 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

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Leslie Burleson$88,812
Heather Edwards$72,601$79,200
Emily Roberts$65,687$55,182$42,160
Nikii Pittman$3,477$2,821$1,949$1,949$487

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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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Contributions & grants$961K · 74%
Program service revenue$336K · 26%
Contributions & grants74%$961K
Program service revenue26%$336K
Other revenue$200
— government grantsLn 1e$123K
Total revenueLn 12$1.3M

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Program services $0.73 Management & general $0.27
Program services73%$599K
Management & general27%$222K
Total functional expensesLn 25$821K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$754K
Total assetsLn 16$1.8M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$11K
Total net assetsLn 32$1.8M
Months of cash on handcomputed11.0

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2023 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Operating runway
Highly liquid reserves $754K · Operating expenses/yr $821K
11.0 months
Where the money goes
Program services
Program services $599K · Total expenses $821K
73%
Management & General
Management & general $222K · Total expenses $821K
27%
Fundraising
Fundraising $0 · Total expenses $821K
0%
Cost to raise $1
Fundraising expense (3-yr avg) $0 · Solicited contributions (3-yr avg) $827K
Solicited contributions below reporting floor
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants $961K · Total revenue $1.3M
74%
Government reliance
Government grants $123K · Total revenue $1.3M
9%
Earned-income share
Program service revenue $336K · Total revenue $1.3M
26%
Investment reliance
Investment income $0 · Total revenue $1.3M
0%
Program self-sufficiency
Program service revenue $336K · Total expenses $821K
41%
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $1.3M · Prior year $1.0M
+24%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $1.8M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $1.3M · Expenses $821K
+37%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $1.8M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $1.8M · Total assets $1.8M
99%
Marketable Investment Share
Publicly traded securities (Pt X, ln 11) — · Other securities (Pt X, ln 12) — · Total assets (Pt X, ln 16) $1.8M
Excludes program-related investments (Pt X, ln 13)
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Heather Edwards · Reported title EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $79K · Total expenses $821K
10%
Personnel share
Salaries, benefits & payroll (Pt IX 5-10) $354K · Total expenses $821K
43%
Peer comparison

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

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Program ratio 73%
Overhead ratio 27%
Fundraising cost ratio 0%
Revenue growth 24%
Accounting fee ratio 2%

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 · received and paid
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 1 funder$15K
Grants paid · 2 grants · $14K · 2019–2024
Nc Farmers of the FoothillsFY2024$7,512

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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
FY2024$2.7M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$1.3M revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$1.0M revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$741K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$656K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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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
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