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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Spark Kindness Inc

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 465037162
MA · NTEE O50
FY ending 2024-09-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Christine Fortune Guthery, Executive Director / CEO ($75,891) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 18 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 67th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

How comparable organizations were selected

18 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 18 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$11,535 total compensation of comparable organizations → $152,637 $75,891
$19,04110th
$38,05725th
$65,568Median
$77,12275th
$126,18990th
$75,891This org · 67th
p10$19,041
p25$38,057
p50$65,568
p75$77,122
p90$126,189
$75,891

Comparable organizations

Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to MA cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateTotal revenueTotal compSource
Yes We CareMA $376,752$12,770 990
Compass Path IncMA $359,759$76,844 990
Our Bright Future IncMA $405,474$67,085 990
Art Resource Collaborative For KidsMA $408,006$35,750 990
Dreamcatcher Initiative IncMA $332,636$84,316 990
Milton Soccer IncMA $422,973$21,728 990
South Shore Childrens Chorus CorpMA $428,308$74,191 990
Love Your Magic IncMA $428,781$152,298 990
Camp Anderson Foundation IncMA $438,845$73,064 990
Girls On The Run Worcester County IncMA $448,248$50,724 990
Sudbury Youth Basketball IncMA $278,735$11,535 990
Berkshire Summer Music IncMA $268,484$52,000 990
Suenos BasketballMA $486,439$64,050 990
Roots Teen Center IncMA $262,352$32,370 990
Ivy Child InternationalMA $498,296$77,215 990
Girls On The Run - Western Ma CouncilMA $515,166$44,979 990
Building AudacityMA $526,467$115,000 990
Culture Reframed IncMA $526,967$152,637 990

Methodology

Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to MA cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.

Sample, role match & sensitivity

Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:

BasisSubject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default67th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)67th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted72nd
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted67th

If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.

Rebuttable presumption of reasonableness · 26 CFR 53.4958-6

Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:

Draft board minutes — executive compensation

  1. The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Christine Fortune Guthery) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
  2. Prior to its determination, the authorized body obtained and relied upon appropriate comparability data, namely the PeerBasis Compensation Comparability Determination dated June 9, 2026, comparing compensation against 18 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (O50) + MA + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $75,891 is reasonable (approximately the 67th percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].

Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 9, 2026.