UNITED WAY OF BUFFALO AND ERIE COUNTY Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

UNITED WAY OF BUFFALO AND ERIE COUNTY

EIN 16-0743969 · Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Foundations (T700)

What they do

OUR MISSION: WE BRING PEOPLE, ORGANIZATIONS and RESOURCES TOGETHER to CREATE SYSTEMIC COMMUNITY CHANGE. OUR VISION: WE ENVISION AN EQUITABLE, THRIVING and UNITED COMMUNITY ACHIEVED THROUGH COLLABORATIVE LEADERSHIP. WE MEET OUR COMMITMENTS and DELIVER HIGH-QUALITY, HIGH-VALUE RESULTS. WE FOSTER A CULTURE of RESPONSIVENESS and FLEXIBILITY CONDUCIVE to INNOVATION IN EVERY AREA of THE BUSINESS. WE ACTIVELY INCLUDE and ENGAGE ALL MEMBERS of THE COMMUNITY SO THAT OUR WORK CAN BE INFORMED and ENRICHED BY DIVERSE EXPERIENCES and PERSPECTIVES. WE ENSURE THAT OUR POLICIES, PRACTICES, and DISTRIBUTION of RESOURCES PRIORITIZE HISTORICALLY MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES SO THAT ALL MEMBERS of OUR COMMUNITY THRIVE. WE ARE TRANSPARENT, HONEST, DEPENDABLE and TRUSTWORTHY IN EVERY INTERACTION and AS STEWARDS of RESOURCES. WE ENSURE THAT ALL of OUR WORK is for THE GOOD of OTHERS, BOTH WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION and IN THE COMMUNITY.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $80.00 was reported for mission work. Use the spending picture below and ask what results that work produced.

Plain answer: A tax form cannot prove that a charity is doing good. It can show how the charity says it spent its money—and point out questions you should ask.

Basic facts we verified

IRS warning checkNo IRS revocation warning appears in this data.

Money report from 2024The charity has a recent tax report to read.

They explain their jobThe charity tells us what it is trying to do.

They name their leaders29 people are listed in the latest report.

You can reach themThey list contact information, so you can ask questions.

Money made simple

85.16%of revenue went to mission work80.0% of expenses · Program services

10.56%of revenue went to fundraising9.9% of expenses

$106.42spent for every $100 of revenueSpending was higher than revenue this year.

10.70%of revenue went to management and office costs10.1% of expenses

$2.40in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

94.6%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

Ask these three easy questions

Who did you help? Ask for a recent story or report that shows real results.
What will my money do? Ask exactly what your gift will pay for.
Is this really the charity? Give only through its official website or confirmed phone number.

Worth asking: Expenses exceeded revenue by $709,022 this year. Ask whether that was planned or caused by a one-time event.

Pay context: The highest compensation shown in this filing is $196,340 for TRINA BURRUSS (PRESIDENT & CEO). Compare pay with organizations of similar size and complexity.

Bottom line: Do not decide from a name, mission statement, or tax status alone. Look at where the money went, then ask what changed, who was helped, and what your gift will do. YouCanGiveBack does not endorse or grade organizations.

Money

Financial picture

Tax year 2024

A plain-language look at the latest Form 990 figures available. These numbers help you ask better questions; they do not, by themselves, rate whether a charity is good or bad.

$100revenue

How each $100 of revenue was used

The large number compares each expense with revenue. The smaller number shows its share of total expenses.

Total reported revenue$11,040,799

Mission workProgram services$9,402,50185.16% of revenue80.0% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$1,181,66710.70% of revenue10.1% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$1,165,65310.56% of revenue9.9% of expenses

Total expenses$11,749,821106.42% of revenue

Expenses were greater than revenue, so the colored ring fills the available $100 and the total above 100% is shown below.

Has the pattern changed?

Colored bars = expense mix: how each year’s expenses were divided. Total expenses vs. revenue shows whether the charity spent less or more than it received. The current filing is first.

YearExpense mixDetails

2024CurrentExpense mix: 80.0% mission · 10.1% management · 9.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 106.42% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 79.6% mission · 10.3% management · 10.1% fundraisingTotal expenses: 120.17% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 80.9% mission · 9.4% management · 9.7% fundraisingTotal expenses: 101.46% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 81.7% mission · 9.2% management · 9.1% fundraisingTotal expenses: 99.30% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 84.6% mission · 7.5% management · 7.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 111.17% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 84.0% mission · 6.8% management · 9.1% fundraisingTotal expenses: 104.40% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 84.7% mission · 6.4% management · 8.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 100.73% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 87.7% mission · 2.5% management · 9.8% fundraisingTotal expenses: 81.25% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$11,040,799

Expenses$11,749,821

Annual shortfall $709,022 Expenses were higher than revenue for this filing year.

Reported spending amounts

Mission work means the Form 990 category called program services. These are reported accounting categories—not an independent measurement of results.

Mission work (program services)$9,402,501 · 80.0% of expenses

Management and office costs$1,181,667 · 10.1% of expenses

Fundraising$1,165,653 · 9.9% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$11,040,799

Expenses$11,749,821

Assets$28,185,265

Income$11,040,799

Contributions$10,444,207

Mission work (program services)$9,402,501

Fundraising$1,165,653

Grants given$93,136,555

Average grant$91,310

Management and general$1,181,667

Stocks and bonds$1,701,686

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2024

Names, titles, time, and compensation below are reported by the organization on its Form 990.

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

TRINA BURRUSSPRESIDENT & CEO · 40 hrs/week $196,340Base $184,204 · Other $12,136

THOMAS WRINNCHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER · 40 hrs/week $104,954Base $104,250 · Other $704

Compensation alone does not tell whether pay is reasonable. Consider the charity’s size, work, location, and results.

See everyone listed on the board or leadership roster (29)

TRINA BURRUSSPRESIDENT & CEO

THOMAS WRINNCHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

KATHLEEN RIZZO YOUNGDIRECTOR

TRICIA BARRETTDIRECTOR

THOMASINA STENHOUSESECRETARY

STEPHEN TURKOVICHDIRECTOR

RICHARD HAMISTERDIRECTOR

RAMONA REYNOLDSDIRECTOR

PAUL COLEMANDIRECTOR

PATTY KAMINSKIDIRECTOR

OSWALDO MESTREDIRECTOR

NICKOLE GARRISONTREASURER

NICK SCHAFERDIRECTOR

KEVIN HOGANDIRECTOR

KENDRA BRIMDIRECTOR

ALEXANDER BURGOSDIRECTOR

JUSTIN REIDDIRECTOR

JONATHAN STAPLESDIRECTOR

JEANNIE PARENTDIRECTOR

JAMIE FERULLODIRECTOR

HUGH RUSSCHAIR

DARREN ROBBINSDIRECTOR

CASSIE IRISHVICE CHAIR

CAITLIN ZULEWSKIDIRECTOR

BRODERICK CASONDIRECTOR

BRIAN PATTERSONDIRECTOR

ANNE ONEILLDIRECTOR

ANNE MUSYNKEDIRECTOR

ANNA STOLZENBURGDIRECTOR

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1960
Location: 742 DELAWARE AVE, BUFFALO, NY 14209-2202
County: Erie
In care of: THOMAS WRINN
Primary officer: THOMAS WRINN, CFO

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Phone(716) 887-2626

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: April 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: LUMSDEN & MCCORMICK LLP
NTEE classification: Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Foundations (T700)
Grant-giving organization: Yes