Rick Hansen Foundation

300-3820 Cessna Drive
Richmond, BC V7B 0A2
CEO: Doramy Ehling
Board Chair: Tamara Vrooman

Charitable Reg. #:10765 9427 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 5/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

A

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

n/r

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

68%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 68 cents are available for programs.



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OVERVIEW

About Rick Hansen Foundation:

Rick Hansen Foundation is a 5-star charity. It has a strong results reporting grade, reasonable overhead spending, and is financially transparent. 

In 1985, Rick Hansen started the Man in Motion World Tour to raise awareness about and money for spinal cord injury research. As a Paralympic athlete, Rick wheeled 40,000 kilometres over two years and raised $26 million. In 1988, after the tour, the Rick Hansen Foundation (RHF) was created. The charity works to make a world without barriers for people with disabilities. The charity reports that 1 in 5 Canadians have one or more disabilities. In addition, 1 in 3 Canadians aged 55 or older believe they will experience mobility, vision, or hearing challenges within the next decade. 

A Charity Intelligence 2023 Top 100 Rated Charity

Rich Hansen Foundation has four programs: Accessibility, Awareness, Research, and Education & Outreach.  

In F2022, the Accessibility program received 35% of program spending ($2.8m). This program uses the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certification (RHFAC) rating system. RHFAC determines the accessibility of commercial, institutional, and multi-family residential buildings. In F2022, RHF rated 299 sites, an increase over the 104 sites rated in F2021. The charity also runs an Accessible Spaces 101 course online which has 48 students in F2022. 

In F2022, 26% of program spending ($2.1m) went to the Awareness program. This program educates people about the importance of accessibility and the issues facing those with disabilities. The program also advocates for government regulations that promote equality. Overall, the RHF website had 199,135 visits in F2022. The charity hosted a free panel in December 2021 titled The Power of Inclusive Language. The panel had 768 attendees. RHF also conducted two public opinion polls with Angus Reid Institute. These polls found that 92% of people agreed that taxpayer-funded projects should be held to the highest accessibility standards. 

The Research program made up 23% of program spending ($1.8m) in F2022. This program works to find a cure for paralysis and improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. RHF grants to International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD) along with the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH) and the University of British Columbia (UBC) Hospital Foundation. In F2022, the charity provided 12 seed grants and 18 trainee travel awards. It also hosted a virtual Trainee Symposium which had 115 attendees.  

The last 15% of program spending ($1.2m) went towards the Education and Outreach program in F2022. This program offers lessons and resources to children in schools to teach them about disability, accessibility and inclusion. In F2022, RHF decided to host fewer presentations to focus on reaching more children. The charity hosted 170 presentations and reached 59,303 students. In F2021, the charity hosted almost three times as many presentations but only reached 29,886 students.

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Results and Impact

In F2022, 27 of the 299 sites that underwent RHFAC received a Gold Certification. In Ontario, 250 buildings were rated. Of the people involved in the process, 100% said that their understanding of accessibility increased after. Surrey, a city in BC, adopted RHFAC into policy, committing that all new government buildings will follow the RHFAC Gold standard. 

British Columbia passed Bill C6, the Accessible British Columbia Act, in June 2021. This bill requires government organizations to have accessibility committees to help create legislation that better supports people with disabilities. 

In F2022, RHF’s funded research led to two discoveries in spinal cord injury treatment. First, researchers found that using three drugs (glibenclamide, tamoxifen, and inosine) together helped improve functional forelimb tests for people with spinal cord injuries. Researchers also found that spinal dislocations mostly damage the central grey matter of the spinal cord. These discoveries can lead to future research and treatment.  

RHF surveyed participants in its school programs. It found that 95% of respondents believed the resources were helpful. Additionally, 100% of educators were likely to recommend the resources to fellow educators. 

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Rick Hansen Foundation’s results and impact. This charity is not yet rated on impact (n/r).

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Finances

Rick Hansen Foundation had donations of $3.3m in F2022. The charity received $4.1m in government funding, representing 48% of total revenues. Administrative costs are 15% of revenues (less investment income) and fundraising costs are 17% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 32%. For every dollar donated, 68 cents go to the cause. This is within Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. 

RHF has $14.7m in reserve funds, of which $134k is donor endowed. Excluding donor-endowed funds, the charity could cover 185% or one year and ten months of annual program costs with current reserves.  

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Rick Hansen Foundation for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.  

Updated on July 18, 2023 by Clive Stevens.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending March
202220212020
Administrative costs as % of revenues 14.7%10.4%24.0%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 16.8%10.4%29.0%
Total overhead spending 31.5%20.8%53.0%
Program cost coverage (%) 185.1%190.9%159.9%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s
202220212020
Donations 3,3245,6081,991
Government funding 4,0953,8022,526
Investment income 5991,963720
Other income 458575579
Total revenues 8,47611,9485,817
Program costs 6,2255,4046,031
Grants 1,6523,1272,839
Administrative costs 1,1601,0381,223
Fundraising costs 558584578
Total spending 9,59610,15310,670
Cash flow from operations (1,119)1,795(4,854)
Capital spending 733687
Funding reserves 14,70616,40714,307

Note: To report on a cash basis, Ci adjusted for deferred donations from non-government sources. This affected revenues by ($125k) in F2022, $2.2m in F2021, and ($515k) in F2020. Ci also adjusted for deferred donations from government sources. This affected revenues by ($2.8m) in F2022, ($2.0m) in F2021, and ($3.7m) in F2020. Ci added back unrealized gain on investments which was included below the line in the audited financial statements. This affected revenues by $259k in F2022, $948k in F2021, and ($518k) in F2020. Ci adjusted for endowment contributions which affected revenues by $nil in F2022, $nil in F2021, and $5k in F2020. Ci removed amortization from program, administrative and fundraising costs on a pro-rated basis.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 60

Avg. compensation: $80,207

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
1
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
1
$200k - $250k
1
$160k - $200k
1
$120k - $160k
6
$80k - $120k
0
$40k - $80k
0
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2022

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Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

No comments have been added by the charity.

Charity Contact

Website: www.rickhansen.com
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 1-800-213-2131

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Charitable Registration Number: 80340 7956 RR0001