Disable all preview features

Health : Patient and Family Support

Make-A-Wish America

Share the power of a wish

three stars

86.51

4742 N. 24th Street Suite 400
Phoenix, AZ 85016
tel: (800) 722-9474   Web Site
EIN: 86-0481941

Board Leadership
John F. Crowley
Chairman

CEO
David Williams
President & CEO

 
 
  Score
(out of 100)		 Rating
Overall Score & Rating 86.51 three stars
  Financial 81.16 three stars
  Accountability & Transparency 97.00 four stars
This rating was published 10/01/2016 and includes data from FY2015, the most recent 990 received at that time.
Why isn't this based on more recent data?

Learn more about how we calculate the overall score and rating.

Financial

three stars

81.16

Accountability & Transparency

four stars

97.00

This rating was published 10/01/2016 and includes data from FY2015, the most recent 990 received at that time.
Why isn't this based on more recent data?
Overall Rating Chart
  Program Expenses
(Percent of the charity's total expenses spent on the programs
and services it delivers)		 73.9%
  Administrative Expenses 10.7%
  Fundraising Expenses 15.2%
  Fundraising Efficiency $0.17
  Working Capital Ratio (years) 0.41
  Program Expenses Growth 9.3%
  Liabilities to Assets 19.6%
All data for Financial Performance Metrics calculations was provided by Make-A-Wish America on recent 990s filed with the IRS.
Joint Cost Allocation Adjustment applied. Learn more.
All data for Financial Performance Metrics calculations was provided by Make-A-Wish America on recent 990s filed with the IRS.
Information Provided on the Form 990  
  Independent Voting Board Members
  No Material diversion of assets
  Audited financials prepared by independent accountant
  Does Not Provide Loan(s) to or Receive Loan(s) From related parties
  Documents Board Meeting Minutes
  Provided copy of Form 990 to organization's governing body in advance of filing
  Conflict of Interest Policy
  Whistleblower Policy
  Records Retention and Destruction Policy
  CEO listed with salary
  Process for determining CEO compensation
  Board Listed / Board Members Not Compensated
Is the following information easily accessible on the charity's website?  
  Donor Privacy Policy
  Board Members Listed
  Audited Financials
  Form 990
  Key staff listed

Highly Rated

Charity Name & State Overall Score Overall Rating
Make-A-Wish America (AZ) 86.51 three stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Suffolk County, NY (NY) 90.66 four stars
Make-A-Wish International (AZ) 92.08 four stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of North Texas (TX) 86.71 three stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Texas Gulf Coast and Louisiana (TX) 95.37 four stars

Compare These Charities (Highly Rated)

Make-A-Wish America helps to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. Based in Phoenix, the organization is one of the nation's leading children's charities, serving children in every community in the United States, Puerto Rico and Guam. With the help of generous donors and more than 25,000 volunteers, Make-A-Wish grants a wish every 38 minutes, on average. It has granted more than 225,000 wishes since its inception in 1980. Visit Make-A-Wish at www.wish.org and discover how you can share the power of a wish®.

REVENUE  
Contributions  
   Contributions, Gifts & Grants $70,369,626
   Federated Campaigns $0
   Membership Dues $0
   Fundraising Events $0
   Related Organizations $0
   Government Grants $0
Total Contributions $70,369,626
   Program Service Revenue $7,657,962
Total Primary Revenue $78,027,588
   Other Revenue $3,152,992
TOTAL REVENUE $81,180,580
   
EXPENSES (Adjusted)  
   Program Expenses $61,858,476
   Administrative Expenses $8,747,351
   Fundraising Expenses $13,174,088
TOTAL FUNCTIONAL EXPENSES $83,779,915
   
Payments to Affiliates $0
Excess (or Deficit) for the year $-2,599,335
   
Net Assets $40,412,607

Program names and associated costs are listed for the top programs as reported on the charity's most recently filed Form 990. The top programs displayed will include the largest three programs, or those programs covering at least 60% of the charity's total expenses, whichever comes first.

Program Name Amount Spent % of Program Expenses
Wish Granting $64,256,539 100.0%

Ratings History

Form 990 FYE Date Published Overall Score Overall Rating
CN 2.1
2015-08 10/01/2016 86.51 three stars
2014-08 06/01/2016 88.65 three stars
 
CN 2.0
2014-08 10/01/2015 87.03 three stars
2013-08 11/01/2014 81.31 three stars
2012-08 09/01/2013 83.21 three stars
2011-08 08/01/2012 88.36 three stars
2010-08 12/23/2011 91.41 four stars
2010-08 09/20/2011 90.66 four stars
 
CN 1.0
2009-08 10/01/2010 90.07 four stars
2008-08 10/01/2009 84.87 three stars
2007-08 10/01/2008 84.86 three stars
2006-08 07/01/2007 87.51 three stars
2005-08 10/01/2006 84.93 three stars
2004-08 05/01/2005 75.15 two stars
2003-08 06/01/2004 73.14 two stars
2002-08 06/09/2003 82.05 three stars
2001-08 10/15/2002 85.17 three stars

The data displayed on this tab is provided by the IRS in the form of Publication 78 and the Business Master File (BMF).

EIN 86-0481941
Name in IRS Master File MAKE- A- WISH FOUNDATION OF AMERICA
NTEE Code [Not Provided by IRS]
NTEE Classification [Not Provided by IRS]
NTEE Type [Not Provided by IRS]
Classification Charitable Organization
Subsection 501(c)(3)  (View the list of codes)
Activities (259) Other mutual organization
Foundation Status Organization which receives a substantial part of its support from a governmental unit or the general public   170(b)(1)(A)(vi)
Deductibility Contributions are deductible
Affiliation Independent - the organization is an independent organization or an independent auxiliary (i.e., not affiliated with a National, Regional, or Geographic grouping of organizations).
Group Name [Not Applicable]
Ruling Date June, 1986
Filing Requirement 990 (all other) or 990EZ return
Fiscal Year End August
IRS Forms 990
(provided courtesy of Foundation Center)		 (Log In or Register Now to View Forms 990!)
  • August, 2015
  • August, 2014
  • August, 2013
  • August, 2012
  • August, 2011

The data displayed in this profile is provided by the IRS for free in the form of Publication 78 and the Business Master File (BMF).

We invite you to share your opinions, thoughts, experiences, and stories about this charity here to help inform the decisions of other donors.  
Need more help getting started? Check out our FAQs.
 
This tool is not for questions about Charity Navigator, such as how we derived this charity’s rating. We will happily answer those questions if you contact us directly. Likewise, if you have questions for this charity, then we encourage you to contact the charity directly (we include the charity’s contact information in the upper left-hand corner of this page) since few charities regularly monitor this commenting tool.

Compensation % of Expenses Paid to Title
$536,191 0.63% David A. Williams President, CEO

Make-A-Wish America helps to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. Based in Phoenix, the organization is one of the nation's leading children's charities, serving children in every community in the United States, Puerto Rico and Guam. With the help of generous donors and more than 25,000 volunteers, Make-A-Wish grants a wish every 38 minutes, on average. It has granted more than 225,000 wishes since its inception in 1980. Visit Make-A-Wish at www.wish.org and discover how you can share the power of a wish®.

Highly Rated

Charity Name & State Overall Score Overall Rating
Make-A-Wish America (AZ) 86.51 three stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of New Hampshire (NH) 93.27 four stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of New Jersey (NJ) 90.00 four stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Minnesota (MN) 85.56 three stars
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Hawaii (HI) 91.36 four stars

Compare These Charities (Highly Rated)

This charity has an official representative registered with Charity Navigator.

Charity Contact Info

Make-A-Wish America
4742 N. 24th Street
Suite 400
Phoenix, AZ 85016
tel: (800) 722-9474
fax: (602) 279-0855
EIN: 86-0481941

Visit Web Site

Board Leadership

John F. Crowley
Chairman

CEO

David Williams
President & CEO

please wait...

    • I want to donate to Make-A-Wish America

      $
      next

    • Frequency

      back
      next

    • Would you like us to email someone and CC you?

      This email identifies you as the donor but does not specify the amount of your gift.
      back
    A donation of to has been added to your Giving Basket!

    Basket Total:
    Check Out Now or Continue Researching
[ X ]

Did You Know We Are a Charity, Too?

If even a third of the 7 million people who visited our site last year had donated a dollar to Charity Navigator, we would comfortably meet our annual budget and be able to do what so many of you ask us to do every day--rate more charities!

With the support of users like you, we are currently investing in staff and technology. This will allow us to improve the search and organizational features of our site, making it easier to find the information that matters most to you. We will also continue to enhance our evaluation system and metrics.

So, whether you're a first time visitor or a long time user, we ask for your help in achieving our goal. Your gift of any size is most deeply appreciated! Thank You!

With the support of users like you, we are making it easier to find the info that matters most. Thank you!

Join Our Mailing List

Join over 400,000 other informed givers and get updates on charity ratings, new features, hot topics, and tips for donating.

As seen on
Help Center