Form 990 for tax year 2024
Filed by BLUE SKY SUSTAINABLE LIVING CENTER.
Totals
- Total revenue
- $534,299
- Total expenses
- $615,382
- Contributions and grants received
- $403,840
- Grants paid
- $0
- Program service revenue
- $121,896
- Investment income
- $0
- Other revenue
- $8,563
- Total assets, end of year
- $1,023,520
- Total liabilities, end of year
- $10,218
- Net assets or fund balances, end of year
- $1,013,302
- Program services expenses (Part IX)
- $596,392
- Management and general expenses
- $13,672
- Fundraising expenses
- $5,318
- Program service expenses (Part III)
- $596,392
Program services were 96.9% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.
Line items
Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.
Revenue
Part VIII, the statement of revenue.
-
1e · Government grants (contributions)
$234,233
-
1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants
$169,607
-
1g · Noncash contributions included above
$34,927
-
2a · Program service revenue: Facility Rents
total $71,090 · related or exempt $71,090
-
2b · Program service revenue: Program Service Fees
total $50,806 · related or exempt $50,806
-
3 · Investment income
total $0
-
4 · Income from investment of tax-exempt bond proceeds
total $0
-
5 · Royalties
total $0
-
6d · Net rental income or loss
total $0
-
7d · Net gain or loss
total $0
-
8c · Net income from fundraising events
total $0
-
9c · Net income from gaming
total $0
-
10a · Gross sales of inventory
$6,650
-
10b · Cost of goods sold
$3,378
-
10c · Net income from sales of inventory
total $3,272 · related or exempt $3,272
-
11a · Other revenue: Event Tickets
-
11b · Other revenue: Misc Income
total $5,291 · related or exempt $5,291
-
11e · Other revenue, total
$5,291
Functional expenses
Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.
-
1 · Grants to domestic organizations and governments
total $0
-
2 · Grants to domestic individuals
total $0
-
3 · Grants to foreign organizations and individuals
total $0
-
4 · Benefits paid to or for members
total $0
-
5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees
total $63,679 · program services $63,679
-
6 · Compensation of disqualified persons
total $0
-
7 · Other salaries and wages
total $239,923 · program services $234,557 · management and general $2,433 · fundraising $2,933
-
8 · Pension plan contributions
total $0
-
9 · Other employee benefits
total $13,992 · program services $13,992
-
10 · Payroll taxes
total $0
-
11a · Fees: management
total $0
-
11b · Fees: legal
total $10,356 · program services $6,678 · management and general $3,678
-
11c · Fees: accounting
total $0
-
11d · Fees: lobbying
total $0
-
11e · Fees: professional fundraising services
total $0
-
11f · Fees: investment management
total $0
-
11g · Fees: other
total $134 · program services $134
-
12 · Advertising and promotion
total $0
-
13 · Office expenses
total $0
-
14 · Information technology
total $0
-
15 · Royalties
total $0
-
16 · Occupancy
total $0
-
17 · Travel
total $22,010 · program services $22,010
-
18 · Travel or entertainment for public officials
total $0
-
19 · Conferences, conventions and meetings
total $0
-
20 · Interest
total $0
-
21 · Payments to affiliates
total $0
-
22 · Depreciation, depletion and amortization
total $25,202 · program services $16,381 · management and general $7,561 · fundraising $1,260
-
23 · Insurance
total $11,151 · program services $11,151
-
24a · Other expenses: CONTRACT SERVICES
total $118,006 · program services $116,881 · fundraising $1,125
-
24b · Other expenses: Utilities
total $25,845 · program services $25,845
-
24c · Other expenses: MAINTENANCE & REPAIR
total $25,292 · program services $25,292
-
24d · Other expenses: RENT
total $19,978 · program services $19,978
-
24e · All other expenses
total $39,814 · program services $39,814
Balance sheet
Part X, book values.
-
1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing
beginning of year $85,281 · end of year $26,768
-
2 · Savings and temporary cash investments
end of year $0
-
3 · Pledges and grants receivable
beginning of year $38,538 · end of year $1,273
-
4 · Accounts receivable
beginning of year $19,671 · end of year $59,638
-
5 · Loans and receivables from officers and key people
end of year $0
-
6 · Loans and receivables from disqualified persons
end of year $0
-
7 · Other notes and loans receivable
end of year $0
-
8 · Inventories for sale or use
beginning of year $24,029 · end of year $20,652
-
9 · Prepaid expenses and deferred charges
beginning of year $2,923 · end of year $2,923
-
10a · Land, buildings and equipment: cost or other basis
$1,154,622
-
10b · Land, buildings and equipment: accumulated depreciation
$242,356
-
10c · Land, buildings and equipment, net
beginning of year $937,468 · end of year $912,266
-
11 · Investments: publicly traded securities
end of year $0
-
12 · Investments: other securities
end of year $0
-
13 · Investments: program-related
end of year $0
-
14 · Intangible assets
end of year $0
-
15 · Other assets
end of year $0
-
17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses
beginning of year $13,525 · end of year $10,217
-
25 · Other liabilities
end of year $1
-
27 · Net assets without donor restrictions
beginning of year $1,094,385 · end of year $1,013,302
Mission and programs · 2024
Mission
BLUE SKY CENTER IS A RURAL, PLACE-BASED NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION WITH THE MISSION TO STRENGTHEN OUR RURAL COMMUNITIES WITHIN THE CUYAMA VALLEY BY SUPPORTING ENTREPRENEURS AND BUILDING OUR REGIONAL CREATIVE & ECONOMIC RESOURCES.
-
ALL OTHER PROGRAMS
Expenses $214,853 · Revenue $149,180
-
Creative Community Engagement:Our artwork is co-creation. Art that builds relationships, resonates in the community, and inspires action. We open difficult conversations that empower the 1,100 people of the Cuyama Valley with information and ways to express themselves. From our early research, we saw the power of using arts to identify and address Cuyama's rural and systemic issues. In 2024, we hosted Cuyama Song Camp and Cuyama Drama Club after-school programs with our local school district. We opened Paso O Paso, a vibrant community space where Cuyamans identified as artists and entrepreneurs. With an NEA grant, we published ideas from local students and local food producers in "A Post-Carrot Cuyama: A Food System Built on Community and distributed the "Unofficial Cuyama Valley Guide to Broadband Internet." The collective project "Bello Valle" had students celebrating Cuyama's bloom of colorful wildflowers. Our ninth annual Dia de los Muertos celebration raised funds for local students in collaboration with Amplify Arts Project and High Desert Print Company. To close the year, we came together in collaboration with Quail Springs to review artist applications for three upcoming Cuyama Water Justice Residencies, funded as part of a larger environmental justice grant from CalEPA.
Expenses $193,055 · Revenue $147,470
-
Economic Development through various programs including:Explore Cuyama - With our partners at the Cuyama Buckhorn, we are continuing to lay the groundwork to establish the Cuyama Valley as a treasured regional tourist destination through shared efforts and the visit Cuyama campaign. At our 267-acre property, we have expanded our capacity for the types of events and gatherings that we can host. Made in Cuyama - our moto that runs throughout the organization. Economic Development is the umbrella for our work, with three specific arenas: creative community engagement, food security, and community research. These are our strategies for supporting entrepreneurs and building our regional creative and economic resources, so that life for all Cuyama residents is resilient, thriving, and inclusive. At the Blue Sky Center Property, we continue to host local craftspeople in the "Blue Sky Shops." We provide space to work and one-on-one technical assistance for sustaining and growing their unique businesses. Cuyama Beverage Co - We support Cuyama Valley farmers and earn revenue for Blue Sky Center through sales of our dry session-style mead. Each bottle purchased contributes to regenerative economic development in the Cuyama Valley. L88 Airstrip - Now in its third year of operations, the newly resurfaced L88 Airstrip continues to expand its reputation as a regional destination for pilots, aviation enthusiasts, events, and photoshoots. Owned and managed by Blue Sky Center, the L88 Airstrip is stewarded by a dedicated team of volunteers who have been focused on the maintenance and expansion of service offerings. The airstrip has not only been used as a stop for pilots on their routes. Hot air balloons floated above the valley, gliders swooped through, supersonic drones tested their capabilities, R/C hobbyists showed off their remote-controlled model airplanes, and muscle cars flexed their wheels on our pavement! The future of our L88 Airstrip leads towards the horizon, full of possibilities. With planned upgrades and maintenance, it is only made possible by the support, time, and dedication of volunteers and donors.
Expenses $164,214 · Revenue $175,645
-
Community research and development:We often describe our work as "translating." Literally translating between English and Spanish for communication materials, yes, but also translating between the real lived experience of Cuyamans to the stakeholders and resource-providers beyond Cuyama. Through our engagement, we seek to collect honest, thorough, and nuanced stories of real life in Cuyama with the need and opportunities; through listening sessions, surveys, and conversations, we then work to translate that information into the charts, graphs, and spreadsheets that government officials and grantor's depend on to be assured of the quantified and validated need for their investment.
Expenses $12,676 · Revenue $38,203
-
Food and Agriculture:Blue Sky Center has made significant strides in advancing food security in the Cuyama Valley over the last decade. Throughout this time, our work has focused on overcoming the deep-rooted challenges of access to affordable, healthy food in a region defined by its rural isolation and agriculture abundance - that paradoxically lacks the infrastructure to serve its own community's food needs.
Expenses $11,594 · Revenue $25,504
As filed on the 2024 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.
Listed in Part VII
-
Samuel BassettSAMUEL BASSETT
Executive Dir.
- Total calculated
- $63,679
- From this org
- $63,679
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $0
- Hours/week
- 33
-
Carmen Sandoval-Aqimowon
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
- Total calculated
- $1,794
- From this org
- $0
- From related orgs
- $0
- Other
- $1,794
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Ciara Ristig
Member-at-Large
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Kelly Schmandt FergusonKELLY SCHMANDT FERGUSON
President
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Jesse SugarmannJESSE SUGARMANN
Secretary
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Katerina Barilov
Treasurer
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Eric Meyer
Member-at-Large
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
-
Savannah FoxSAVANNAH FOX
Secretary
- Total calculated
- $0
- Hours/week
- 1
Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those.
Grants on this return
No itemized grants to organizations on this return.
Provenance
- Return type
- form_990
- Tax year
- 2024
- Filed
- 25 June 2025
- IRS schema version
- 2024v5.1
- Source object
- 202511769349301606
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