The following pie charts summarize estimated expenses and donations for 2023. Links to our IRS Form 990, the IRS form for non-profit financial disclosures, can be found below. Please note that these estimates for our 2023 data will change slightly with the filing of our IRS Form 990 in late 2024.
Expenses
Brain Support Network Program expenses (brain donations, web site, educational and support events) constitute the bulk of Brain Support Network’s (BSN’s) expenses at 85.1% of total in 2023. Part-time staff (working from home) who help families with brain donation arrangements is our single largest program expense.
Program expenses are lower than you would expect because much of our work is accomplished by volunteers. Hundreds of volunteer hours are given each month to BSN by dozens of part-time volunteers. Volunteers handle important tasks, such as coordinating Support Group discussions, sharing thought-provoking blog posts, assessing disorder-specific resources for our Top Resources sheets, and keeping up with research. All members of our Board of Directors are unpaid for their work in that capacity.
| Expenses | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Program Expenses | 27% | 82% | 89% | 89% | 92% | 72% | 78% | 82% | 89% | 81% | 91% | 85% |
| Management Expenses | 72% | 13% | 8% | 8% | 7% | 24% | 20% | 17% | 10% | 17% | 8% | 13% |
| Fundraising Expenses | 2% | 5% | 3% | 3% | 1% | 4% | 2% | 1% | 1% | 2% | 1% | 2% |
^Preliminary as Form 990 for this year not yet filed
Our events are planned and staffed by volunteers. Thanks to the generosity of our medical community collaborators, we rarely compensate (or pay the transportation costs of) persons to speak at our events.
BSN could not execute its mission without the commitment of our staff and volunteers. They allow much work to be done at very low cost. At the same time, BSN could not exist without the generosity of our donors without whom the infrastructure and scale of the organization could not be maintained.
Management expenses, at 12.9% of total expenses, consist of accounting fees, insurance premiums, payroll taxes, office supplies, postage, and a post office box. These expenses make possible the work of several part-time employees and dozens of volunteers.
Fundraising expenses amount to 2% of our expenses, where major items are credit card processing fees and printing memorial flyers to honor brain donors. These memorial flyers are used by families who have donated a loved one’s brain as a way to educate friends and family as to the journey they’ve been on and to raise awareness about brain donation. We are especially grateful to these families for helping raise funds to make possible brain donation arrangements for the next family. Brain Support Network does not use any outside (“Professional”) fundraising organizations.
Donors and Donations
In 2023, our average donation was $341 and our median donation was $100.
Individual Donors and Donations
Special Gifts and Bequests
Brain Support Network occasionally receives donations from individuals that are directed to research for a particular disorder as well as bequests to help further our three missions. These are one-time gifts to Brain Support Network.
| Special Gifts and Bequests | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Gifts and Bequests | $6K | $9K | $13K | $30K | $21K | $36K | $13K | $403K | $122K | $188K | $175K | $117K |
| Number of Special Gifts and Bequests | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 3 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 16 | 7 |
^Preliminary as Form 990 for this year not yet filed
Other Individual Donations
In 2023 Brain Support Network received 58.9% of its funding from individual donors excluding special gifts and bequests and institutional (government and corporate) donations. We saw a 7.9% decrease in the number of individual donations in 2023.
| Other Individual Donations | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other Individual Donations Total | $6K | $50K | $85K | $102K | $109K | $138K | $144K | $147K | $229K | $173K | $177K | $208K |
| Number of Other Individual Donations | 32 | 361 | 472 | 500 | 744 | 774 | 877 | 1,100 | 1,343 | 1,521 | 1,151 | 1.060 |
| Average Other Individual Donation | $187 | $139 | $139 | $204 | $147 | $178 | $164 | $134 | $171 | $114 | $154 | $196 |
^Preliminary as Form 990 for this year not yet filed
Corporate/Governmental Donors and Donations
In 2023 Brain Support Network received 7.9% of its funding from institutional donors. Institutional donors include companies, government entities, and major non-profit academic centers where Brain Support Network assisted with brain donation arrangements during the pandemic. None of the donors in this category were a government entity in 2023.
| Institutional Donors and Donations | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2021 | 2023^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Institutional Donations Total | $0 | $2k | $3k | $6k | $7k | $18k | $16k | $14k | $13k | $76k | $42k | $28k |
| Number of Institutional Donations | 0 | 1 | 6 | 25 | 20 | 28 | 56 | 53 | 48 | 67 | 56 | 65 |
| Average Institutional Donation | $0 | $2k | $500 | $240 | $350 | $643 | $286 | $264 | $271 | $1,136 | $750 | $431 |
^Preliminary as Form 990 for this year not yet filed
From All Sources
Median and average donation sizes from all sources reflect the predominance of individual donations.
| Donations from All Sources | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median Donations | $80 | $75 | $100 | $100 | $50 | $100 | $75 | $50 | $50 | $70 | $80 | $100 |
| Average Donations | $1,714 | $169 | $212 | $264 | $179 | $237 | $185 | $483 | $261 | $281 | $301 | $341 |
^Preliminary as Form 990 for this year not yet filed
Highest Paid Directors and Employees
In addition to summaries of donations and expenses, the IRS requires disclosure of the highest paid members of the Board of Directors and the highest paid employees. One member of BSN’s Board of Directors — Robin Riddle, CEO — is also an employee, and is paid strictly for her work as an employee. Robin Riddle is one of three full-time employees of Brain Support Network.
| Annual Gross Salary of the Highest-Paid | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board of Directors | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0* | $0* | $0* | $0* | $0* | $0* | $0* | $0* |
| Employees | None | $2,503 | $17,683 | $19,532 | $16,695 | $16,665 | $22,478 | $44,231 | $68,462 | $83,462 | $91,750 | $105,000 |
* Robin Riddle receives no compensation for her Board duties but does receive compensation for her work as an employee. The late Steven Russell received no compensation for his Board duties but did receive compensation as an employee.
^Preliminary as Form 990 for this year not yet filed
IRS Form 990s
2023
Brain Support Network will submit its IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2023 in December 2024, and publish it at that time.
2022
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2022
2021
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2021
2020
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2020.
2019
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2019.
2018
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2018.
2017
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2017.
2016
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2016.
2015
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2015.
2014
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2014.
2013
Brain Support Network IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2013.
2012
In our first year of operations as a non-profit, we did not meet the thresholds required for a full tax return. Instead, we submitted the required “postcard”: Brain Support Network IRS Form 990N (postcard) for calendar year 2012.