Stop Soldier Suicide, a 501(c)(3) veteran-serving nonprofit based in Raleigh, North Carolina, aims to reduce suicide among service members and veterans through data-driven outreach and suicide-specific intervention services. CharityWatch’s independent analysis of the organization’s fiscal year ended March 31, 2025 financial reporting reveals a mixed picture: strong governance and transparency practices on one hand, and relatively modest financial efficiency on the other. A related-party transaction not reported in the charity’s IRS tax filing raises additional concerns for donors seeking clear and complete disclosure. Below, CharityWatch breaks down its findings to help donors make informed giving decisions.
CharityWatch assigned Stop Soldier Suicide a C rating on our “A+” to “F” rating scale based on our analysis its fiscal year 2025 audited financial statements and IRS tax Form 990. The charity spent only 62% of its cash budget on program services that year, with the remaining 38% allocated to overhead, including fundraising and management expenses. CharityWatch generally expects top-rated charities spend at least 75% of their budgets on programs and to limit overhead to 25% of total cash spending. Stop Soldier Suicide’s program percentage therefore falls below the threshold commonly associated with highly efficient organizations.
CharityWatch determined that Stop Soldier Suicide spent $42 to raise each $100 of cash contributions in fiscal 2025, a midpoint level that signals fundraising efficiency in need of improvement. CharityWatch calculated that Stop Soldier Suicide incurred approximately $14 million in total expenses and received about $9.8 million in total cash contributions that same fiscal year.
Stop Soldier Suicide currently meets CharityWatch’s benchmarks for governance and transparency. The charity posts current audited financial statements and a complete copy of its most recent IRS Form 990 on its website.
The organization demonstrates adherence to governance policies that promote accountability. It reports fully monitoring compliance with a written Conflict of Interest Policy, requiring annual disclosures from officers, directors, and key employees, and maintaining written Whistleblower and Document Retention Policies. Stop Soldier Suicide provided a copy of its IRS Form 990 to all board members prior to filing, reported having its financial statements audited by an independent accountant, and documented minutes of its board and board committee meetings.
CharityWatch’s governance standards also include expectations for board independence and structure. Stop Soldier Suicide reports at least five voting members on its board of directors, and confirms that the majority of those members are independent.
Stop Soldier Suicide’s compensation levels for its top 3 executives were as follows in calendar year 2024.
The charity also reports providing bonus and incentive compensation to three additional executives during 2024, according to IRS Schedule J of its tax Form 990:
CharityWatch analysts identified a related-party transaction disclosed in Stop Soldier Suicide’s audited financial statements that was not reported in its IRS tax Form 990 (Schedule L) where such transactions are typically disclosed with the interested person named.
According to Note 8 of its fiscal 2025 audit, Stop Soldier Suicide held a contract for marketing and promotion services with a company owned by one of its board members. The charity paid $580,620 to this related entity during the fiscal year and reported $22,125 payable to the company at year-end. Despite this, Stop Soldier Suicide did not file a Schedule L with its fiscal 2025 Form 990. CharityWatch flags this discrepancy as a transparency concern, given that the IRS generally requires such reporting.
Stop Soldier Suicide demonstrates solid governance practices and meets CharityWatch’s transparency benchmarks, providing the documentation and policies donors should expect from a responsible nonprofit. However, its C rating, driven by a 62% program percentage and $42 cost to raise $100, indicates financial efficiency metrics in need of improvement. The unreported related-party transaction in the IRS Form 990 raises further concerns about completeness in public financial disclosures. Donors considering supporting Stop Soldier Suicide should weigh its mission and governance strengths against these moderate financial metrics and transparency issues when deciding how to allocate their charitable giving.
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| Charity | |
|---|---|
| Stop Soldier Suicide |
