Form 990 for tax year 2024

Totals

Total revenue

$3,502,148

Total expenses

$2,104,533

Contributions and grants received

$2,836,028

Grants paid

$109,961

Program service revenue

$0

Investment income

$648,593

Other revenue

$17,527

Total assets, end of year

$30,213,047

Total liabilities, end of year

$12,115

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$30,200,932

Program services expenses (Part IX)

$1,759,602

Management and general expenses

$135,065

Fundraising expenses

$209,866

Program service expenses (Part III)

$1,759,602

Program services were 83.6% 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.

Mission and programs · 2024

• ART IN THE WILD & OTHER ANNUAL EVENTS IN OCTOBER, ART IN THE WILD CELEBRATES NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE WEEK, THE BIRTHDAY OF THE REFUGE'S NAMESAKE, JAY NORWOOD "DING" DARLING, AS WELL AS THE PERSONAL APPEARANCE BY THE WINNER OF THE FEDERAL DUCK STAMP CONTEST. THIS EVENT MERGES ART, NATURE, AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH; ATTRACTING FAMILIES, ARTISTS, AND CONSERVATION SUPPORTERS. ALL COMMUNITY ART EVENTS THAT ARE HOSTED AT THE ROOST, THE VISITOR & EDUCATION CETNER, AND OUTREACH VENUES, ARE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, THANKS TO THE FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF ART- IN-EDUCATION INITIATIVES AND ONGOING CONSERVATION WORK. GO WILD FOR DING GO WILD FOR "DING," THE SOCIETY'S FLAGSHIP ANNUAL FUNDRAISING GALA, IS A POWERFUL TESTAMENT TO THE GENEROSITY, VISION, AND SHARED COMMITMENT OF OUR COMMUNITY. HELD EACH FEBRUARY AT THE SANIBEL COMMUNITY HOUSE, THIS SPIRITED EVENING BRINGS TOGETHER DONORS, CONSERVATIONISTS, BUSINESS LEADERS, AND NATURE LOVERS FOR A CELEBRATION OF PURPOSE, PARTNERSHIP, AND PHILANTHROPY. FROM HIGH-PROFILE AUCTIONS TO IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES THAT BENEFIT THE REFUGE, THE EVENT OFFERS A DYNAMIC BLEND OF EDUCATION, ENGAGEMENT, AND GIVING. GUESTS ALSO ENJOY A LIVELY DINNER RECEPTION, TAILORED SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES, AND DIRECT "BID TO GIVE" APPEALS THAT AMPLIFY IMPACT. THE 2025 GALA, THEMED "DREAM OF A WHITE PELICAN," RAISED AN UNPRECEDENTED 300,000 - RECORD-BREAKING ACHIEVEMENT MADE POSSIBLE BY THE UNWAVERING SUPPORT OF MAJOR SPONSORS, LOCAL BUSINESSES, AND INDIVIDUAL DONORS. THESE FUNDS WERE DEDICATED TO ADVANCING EDUCATION, CONSERVATION, AND RESEARCH AT THE REFUGE, AND THEY REFLECT A DEEP, COLLECTIVE INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE. MORE THAN A FUNDRAISER, GO WILD FOR DING IS A RALLYING POINT - A MOMENT WHERE GENEROSITY MEETS MISSION, AND WHERE UNRESTRICTED FUNDS EMPOWER DDWS TO RESPOND SWIFTLY AND STRATEGICALLY TO EMERGING NEEDS. WE ARE PROFOUNDLY GRATEFUL TO EVERY SUPPORTER WHO MAKES THIS LEGACY POSSIBLE. DISTINGUISHED LECTURE SERIES EACH WINTER SUPPORT FROM OUR DONORS ALLOWS DDWS TO OFFER A SERIES OF LECTURES WHICH BLEND EDUCATION WITH CULTURAL ENRICHMENT ON TOPICS FROM WILDLIFE BIOLOGY TO LOCAL HISTORY AND NATIONAL CONSERVATION ISSUES. AS AN ADDITIONAL OUTREACH TO THE COMMUNITY, WE ARE FREQUENTLY ABLE TO OFFER THESE LECTURES TO SENIOR COMMUNITIES WITH WHOM WE PARTNER. RECENT LINE-UPS HAVE FEATURED CELEBRATED PHOTOGRAPHERS, ENVIRONMENTAL AUTHORS, SCIENTISTS, AND INSPIRATIONAL FIGURES IN WILDLIFE ADVOCACY. TARPON TOURNAMENT ANOTHER SIGNATURE FUNDRAISING EVENT, THE "DING" DARLING & DOC FORD'S TARPON TOURNAMENT, IS DEEPLY ROOTED IN BOTH THE REGION'S ANGLING HERITAGE AND ITS CONSERVATION MISSION. LAUNCHED TO HONOR THE FIRST RECORDED TARPON CATCH AT THE REFUGE AND TO ENGAGE A BROADER SPORTING PUBLIC IN CONSERVATION AWARENESS, THE TOURNAMENT'S FORMAT IS STRICTLY CATCH-AND-RELEASE, WITH ALL ENTRY FEES RETURNED AS ANGLER PRIZES. THE 2025 TOURNAMENT SET A PARTICIPATION RECORD WITH 61 REGISTERED TEAMS AND MORE THAN 266,000 RAISED FROM SPONSORSHIPS AND DONATIONS, MAKING A CUMULATIVE IMPACT OF OVER 1.57 MILLION FOR RESEARCH, HABITAT PRESERVATION, AND EDUCATION PROJECTS OVER ITS 13-YEAR HISTORY. THE IMPORTANCE OF SPONSOR NETWORKS (BOTH CASH AND IN-KIND) CANNOT BE OVERSTATED - WITHOUT THESE PARTNERSHIPS, THE EVENT'S IMPACT WOULD BE FAR SMALLER. ADVANCING EDUCATION AND STEWARDSHIP EDUCATION IS EMBEDDED IN THE DNA OF DDWS. SINCE ITS FOUNDING TO MEET OVERWHELMING VISITOR DEMAND, THE SOCIETY HAS PRIORITIZED INTERPRETIVE PROGRAMMING FOR YOUTHS AND ADULTS, INVESTING HEAVILY IN BOTH ON-SITE AND MOBILE OUTREACH CAPABILITIES. TODAY, ITS EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING ENCOMPASSES: CURRICULUM-BASED FIELD TRIPS FOR AREA SCHOOLS THAT FOSTER ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY AND CONSERVATION PROGRAMMING, OFTEN IN PARTNERSHIP WITH LEE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT. YOUNG SCIENTIST INTERNSHIPS AND HANDS-ON JOB TRAINING. COMMUNITY LECTURES, ARTIST RESIDENCIES, AND NATURE-BASED ARTS ENRICHMENT. IN 2024, OVER 12,000 CONSERVATION LESSONS WERE TAUGHT TO STUDENTS AND FAMILIES, EITHER THROUGH WOW, IN-REFUGE PROGRAMS, OR SCHOOL FIELD TRIPS. THE WILDLIFE -FOCUSED CURRICULUM IS DIRECTLY ALIGNED WITH STATE LEARNING STANDARDS, AND CLASSROOM VISITS FREQUENTLY INCLUDE ECOSYSTEM DEMONSTRATIONS. WOW (WILDLIFE ON WHEELS) WOW REPRESENTS A PARADIGM SHIFT IN MAKING ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION UNIVERSALLY ACCESSIBLE. THROUGH THIS MOBILE PLATFORM AND THE ADDITION OF A DEDICATED URBAN OUTREACH COORDINATOR, THE SOCIETY HAS FORGED PARTNERSHIPS WITH LIBRARIES, COMMUNITY CENTERS, AND OTHER NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES. FOR EXAMPLE, WEEKLY WILDLIFE FRIDAYS AT THE IMMOKALEE LIBRARY HAVE BROUGHT THE REFUGE EXPERIENCE TO CHILDREN UNABLE TO VISIT SANIBEL, FOSTERING INTEREST AND STEWARDSHIP AMONG DIVERSE AUDIENCES. POCKET REFUGE EACH YEAR SINCE 2005, THE JN "DING" DARLING NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE "DING" DARLING WILDLIFE SOCIETY-FRIENDS OF THE REFUGE (DDWS), HAS AWARDED CONSERVATION GRANTS TO LOCAL TEACHERS FOR SCIENCE PROJECTS RELATED TO STUDYING THE ENVIRONMENT. EACH YEAR THE "DING" DARLING WILDLIFE SOCIETY OFFERS GRANTS TO NEW SCHOOLS, AS WELL AS GRANTS FOR UPKEEP OF EXISTING POCKET REFUGES. DISCOVERING "DING THANKS TO THE ROTARY OF SANIBEL-CAPTIVA AND SANIBEL-CAPTIVA KIWANIS AND OTHER COMMUNITY ALLIES, THE "DISCOVERING DING" PROGRAM, WHICH CONNECTS THE JN "DING" DARLING NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE WITH SANIBEL SCHOOL, WAS BACK IN ACTION WITH AROUND 156 LESSONS OFFERED TO STUDENTS VISITING THE REFUGE EACH MONTH FOR HANDS-ON, SCIENCE-BASED LEARNING. STUDENTS CREATE "DISCOVERING DING" JOURNALS TO COLLECT DATA, LEARN VOCABULARY, USE BIOLOGICAL TOOLS, AND EXPLORE THEIR CREATIVITY THROUGH ART, HONORING THE LEGACY OF JAY NORWOOD DING" DARLING.

  Expenses $1,759,602 · Grants $109,961

As filed on the 2024 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

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. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

• NWRA-NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

  $50,000

  CONSERVE WILDLIFE

• BAILEY-MATTHEWS NATIONAL SHELL

  $15,000

  DONATION

• MISC ORGANIZATIONS

  $6,500

• EVERGLADES COALITION

  $5,500

  EVENT SPONSORSHIP

Provenance

Return type

form_990

Tax year

2024

Filed

2 June 2026

IRS schema version

2024v5.0

Source object

202621629349300507

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