Make-A-Wish Foundation of the MID-South

“The board of directors, by resolution adopted by a majority of the directors then serving, may designate and appoint one or more committees comprised of directors, each of which shall consist of one or more directors. Such committees, to the extent provided in said resolution, shall have and exercise the authority of the board of directors in the management of the corporation, except no such committee may exercise the authority of the board of directors in reference to the following matters: (i) filling vacancies on, or increasing or decreasing the members of, the board of directors or any committee of the board of directors; (ii) adoption, amendment or repeal of these bylaws or the articles of incorporation; or (iii) any matters prohibited by law.”

“The foundation worked closely with an independent accounting firm to prepare the return. The draft return that was prepared by the accounting firm was reviewed by the foundation's president & ceo, vice president of finance & operations and the treasurer. The return was then presented to the finance committee and executive committee of the board, composed of finanical professionals, for review and approval. A complete copy of the final return was provided to all voting board members prior to filing with the internal revenue service.”

“The foundation maintains a conflict of interest and ethics statement as provided by the make-a-wish foundation of america for each officer, employee, board member, and volunteer. Such statements must be signed upon date of hire, election, or commencement of volunteer service, and at least annually thereafter. The signed statements are then submitted to and reviewed by the volunteer manager if they are from volunteers, and the president/ceo if from staff and board members. Review of the statements is monitored by the president/ceo. The procedures for addressing any conflict of interest of which the president/ceo becomes aware includes, but are not limited to, the following (1) determining the nature of the conflict via verbal or written communication with the interested person (2) fully disclosing conflicting interests to the board (3) the conflicted person recuses himself-herself from deliberations and decisions regarding the transaction, and (4) taking appropriate actions warranted by the conflict as recommended by the board up to and including termination of service.”

“The president/ceo's compensation was determined by the board of directors, consisting of independent persons. It was reviewed against national benchmarking salary studies, surveys completed by the make-a-wish foundation of america, and local surveys conducted by state organizations and by national benchmarking organizations. The board's discussion and decisions were contemporaneously documented, including the terms of the transaction and the date approved. The members present for the deliberations and who voted, and the description of the comparability data obtained and how it was obtained. On an annual basis, the human resources committee continues to monitor and review compensation levels for all employees, including the ceo. In the event an adjustment - above a merit increase - to the ceo compensation, such will be brought to the executive committee and board of directors for approval. This process was last completed during fiscal 2025. Form 990, part vi, section b, line 15b: the foundation does not have other officers who are compensated and has no employees who met the definition of key employees.”

“The organization's governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements are made available upon request.”

“We grant one personal, heartfelt wish for every child in our territory between the ages of 2 1/2 and 18 years old who has a critical illness medical condition, as determined by the child's own physician. In 2024, we granted 285 wishes for children within our territory - arkansas, north mississippi, and west tennessee. These wishes impacted over 1,000 people directly in our primary program - the wish child, their family, the wish granting volunteers, and the wish sponsors who participated in the unveiling of the wish. Total wishes granted for the fiscal year were $3,232,975. Of this amount, $1,247,632 was contributed by various vendors who provided in-kind contributions.”