Community Forklift
Lifting up communities since 2005
Community Forklift
EIN: 52-1975012
as of September 2023
as of September 18, 2023
Mission
Community Forklift lifts up local communities by making repairs affordable, reducing waste, promoting reuse, creating green jobs, and assisting neighbors in need.
Ruling year
1997
Executive Director
Mr. Trey Davis
Main address
4671 Tanglewood Drive
Edmonston, MD 20781 USA
EIN
52-1975012
Environment
Urban development
Employment
Community improvement
Population served
Adults
Low-income people
NTEE code
Community, Neighborhood Development, Improvement (S20)
Employment Procurement Assistance and Job Training (J20)
Alliance/Advocacy Organizations (C01)
IRS subsection
501(c)(3) Public Charity
IRS filing requirement
This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.
Tax forms
Communication
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The problem that Community Forklift is attempting to address is the fact that more than 600 million tons of construction waste goes into landfills in the U.S. annually. This construction debris represents 30 to 40 percent of the entire waste stream. As new homes are built and existing structures are updated, renovated, or demolished, usable cabinets, bathroom fixtures, appliances, lighting, furniture, and other materials are trashed to make way for the new. For homeowners, builders, suppliers, and retailers, sending these materials to the landfill is often the fastest and easiest way to get rid of it. Unfortunately, that also means throwing away the raw materials and energy that went into producing and transporting those items. Community Forklift seeks to divert these materials away from the landfill and to good use. Each item that can be diverted from the waste stream and reused reduces the need to use additional materials and energy to create something new.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Community Forklift Reuse Center
Community Forklift is the DC-area’s nonprofit reuse center for home improvement supplies. We collect donations of new and gently used building materials and home essentials and make them available to the community at low cost. We also distribute free materials to nonprofits and neighbors in need, create good green jobs, and educate the public about reuse.
Since 2005, Community Forklift has:
- Recovered an estimated $45 million of building materials in the DC metro region, keeping tons of materials from going to landfills or being burned in incinerators.
- Provided over $830,000 in free materials to neighbors in need and local nonprofits since 2011.
- Partnered with hundreds of community groups, including housing nonprofits, schools, gardens, theatres, faith-based groups, and volunteers.
Community Giving Programs
Since 2011, we have donated materials to low-income families and to community projects that serve the greater good, directly impacting over 600,000 individuals throughout the DC region.
Home Essentials Program: We provide home repair supplies and household essentials free of cost to families and individuals who qualify for need-based assistance. The program has provided thousands of air conditioners, appliances, doors, windows, and other necessary home improvement items for those in need. Since 2011, we have distributed over $480,000 worth of materials to over 5,500 individuals.
Community Building Blocks: We give grants of building materials to community organizations for projects that serve the greater community. We provide a huge variety of materials to many nonprofits, schools, and community-based organizations. Since 2011, we have granted materials to over 800 community projects.
Where we work
External reviews
Photos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of donation pickups from community members, local businesses, and property owners.
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of jobs created and maintained
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Community Forklift is a nonprofit that diverts construction materials, appliances, fixtures, tools, and furniture from local landfills and makes these items available for sale at below market prices - conserving resources, creating jobs, making home repairs affordable, and supporting underserved communities in the process. We serve over 72,000 customers each year, including do-it-yourselfers, contractors, repair people, and artists.
Our goals include:
- increasing the amount of materials that we divert away from local landfills and convert to community resources
- further developing workforce training programs in deconstruction and the skilled trades (providing a much needed pipeline of skilled workers for local businesses)
- creating more jobs
- supporting local governments in fulfilling Zero Waste initiatives (programs with goals to significantly reduce or nearly eliminate the need for disposal of solid waste into landfills, much of which is construction waste) and,
- expanding our services as an incubator for small businesses run by local craftspeople and artists, and exploring new offerings such as tool lending and community workshop/convening space
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The organization is largely self-funded through the sale of donated materials. Moving more materials through the warehouse serves the dual goals of diverting more material from landfills and providing revenue to support the creation of more jobs. Our strategies to obtain more materials and process them more efficiently include:
- investing in an electronic point of sale system to streamline pricing, track inventory, and provide more accurate data that will better-inform our business decisions
- promoting our donation pickup and deconstruction services more widely to realtors, contractors, homeowners, and others who can donate materials
- investing in an additional truck and staff to facilitate more deconstruction and donation pick ups
- investing in upgraded shelving systems and warehouse equipment to make more efficient use of our existing space and display materials to maximum advantage in the warehouse
- expanding store hours and offering more materials for sale online to reach more customers
- engaging with new and existing partners in local government and in the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors and
further developing our individual giving programs.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Financials
Financial documents
Download audited financialsRevenue vs. expenses: breakdown
Liquidity in 2021 info
2.34
Months of cash in 2021 info
6.8
Fringe rate in 2021 info
19%
Funding sources info
Assets & liabilities info
Financial data
Community Forklift
Balance sheetFiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31
The balance sheet gives a snapshot of the financial health of an organization at a particular point in time. An organization's total assets should generally exceed its total liabilities, or it cannot survive long, but the types of assets and liabilities must also be considered. For instance, an organization's current assets (cash, receivables, securities, etc.) should be sufficient to cover its current liabilities (payables, deferred revenue, current year loan, and note payments). Otherwise, the organization may face solvency problems. On the other hand, an organization whose cash and equivalents greatly exceed its current liabilities might not be putting its money to best use.
Fiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31
This snapshot of Community Forklift’s financial trends applies Nonprofit Finance Fund® analysis to data hosted by GuideStar. While it highlights the data that matter most, remember that context is key – numbers only tell part of any story.
Created in partnership with
Business model indicators
| Profitability info | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted surplus (deficit) before depreciation | $149,665 | -$2,445 | $247,985 | $451,118 | $528,538 |
| As % of expenses | 8.0% | -0.1% | 11.9% | 23.0% | 19.4% |
| Unrestricted surplus (deficit) after depreciation | $138,008 | -$15,690 | $238,073 | $441,574 | $498,099 |
| As % of expenses | 7.4% | -0.8% | 11.4% | 22.4% | 18.1% |
| Revenue composition info | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenue (unrestricted & restricted) | $2,013,968 | $2,055,932 | $2,323,563 | $2,410,788 | $3,254,710 |
| Total revenue, % change over prior year | 7.9% | 2.1% | 13.0% | 3.8% | 35.0% |
| Program services revenue | 88.6% | 89.3% | 82.7% | 81.8% | 76.3% |
| Membership dues | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Investment income | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Government grants | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 6.2% | 14.8% |
| All other grants and contributions | 9.8% | 9.5% | 16.5% | 11.7% | 7.8% |
| Other revenue | 1.6% | 1.2% | 0.8% | 0.3% | 1.1% |
| Expense composition info | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total expenses before depreciation | $1,864,303 | $2,058,377 | $2,075,578 | $1,960,318 | $2,726,172 |
| Total expenses, % change over prior year | 0.6% | 10.4% | 0.8% | -5.6% | 39.1% |
| Personnel | 69.0% | 69.2% | 69.2% | 67.4% | 67.2% |
| Professional fees | 4.1% | 3.8% | 4.6% | 6.0% | 5.7% |
| Occupancy | 9.0% | 8.5% | 8.2% | 8.5% | 5.9% |
| Interest | 1.0% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.2% | 0.7% |
| Pass-through | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| All other expenses | 16.7% | 17.8% | 17.2% | 17.8% | 20.6% |
| Full cost components (estimated) info | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total expenses (after depreciation) | $1,875,960 | $2,071,622 | $2,085,490 | $1,969,862 | $2,756,611 |
| One month of savings | $155,359 | $171,531 | $172,965 | $163,360 | $227,181 |
| Debt principal payment | $64,512 | $54,509 | $81,818 | $0 | $0 |
| Fixed asset additions | $0 | $27,729 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total full costs (estimated) | $2,095,831 | $2,325,391 | $2,340,273 | $2,133,222 | $2,983,792 |
Capital structure indicators
| Liquidity info | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Months of cash | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 8.0 | 6.8 |
| Months of cash and investments | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 8.0 | 6.8 |
| Months of estimated liquid unrestricted net assets | -0.8 | -0.9 | 0.5 | 3.2 | 4.6 |
| Balance sheet composition info | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash | $143,014 | $48,310 | $94,881 | $1,302,627 | $1,552,478 |
| Investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Receivables | $5,206 | $35,762 | $83,975 | $14,960 | $80,575 |
| Gross land, buildings, equipment (LBE) | $296,372 | $324,101 | $330,249 | $335,549 | $291,179 |
| Accumulated depreciation (as a % of LBE) | 76.5% | 74.0% | 75.6% | 77.3% | 80.9% |
| Liabilities (as a % of assets) | 123.7% | 137.6% | 43.5% | 57.5% | 37.9% |
| Unrestricted net assets | -$58,882 | -$74,572 | $163,501 | $605,075 | $1,103,174 |
| Temporarily restricted net assets | $0 | $0 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Permanently restricted net assets | $0 | $0 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Total restricted net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total net assets | -$58,882 | -$74,572 | $163,501 | $605,075 | $1,103,174 |
Key data checks
| Key data checks info | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Material data errors | No | No | No | No | No |
Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Documents
Executive Director
Mr. Trey Davis
Trey Davis began his tenure as Executive Director at Community Forklift in February 2023. Davis has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the land use and nonprofit industries, having most recently served as the Vice President of Membership and Marketing for the Urban Land Institute.
A longtime Community Forklift customer, Davis began his career as an urban planner in James City County, VA. His volunteer board service includes leading the successful restoration and operation of a historic steam locomotive for the Virginia Museum of Transportation. Davis earned an MBA from Georgetown and a BA from Duke University and has taught courses on sustainable development.
Number of employees
Source: IRS Form 990
Community Forklift
Officers, directors, trustees, and key employeesSOURCE: IRS Form 990
Compensation data
There are no highest paid employees recorded for this organization.
Community Forklift
Board of directorsas of 08/02/2023
Board of directors data
Ms. Jane Solomon
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 08/02/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
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- Letter of Determination
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- Contractor and/or Paid Preparer data for 2021, 2020, 2019
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