A 2009 Wall Street Journal article echoed what we hear from our members and donors. The article stated visitors will “want to linger in this glorious place….” Since opening in 2006, over 335,000 visitors have experienced The Wild Center. If you haven’t yet visited, 2010 is the time to come. If you have, thank you and now is a great time to visit once again.

2009 was a time of continued organizational growth and development. The board and staff completed a strategic plan to focus our efforts and help chart our course for the next decade. We adopted our new mission statement – “Ignite an enduring passion for the Adirondacks where people and nature can thrive together and set an example for the world”.

Highlights of 2009 include:

• Community Day in May when Richard Louv visited and reinforced our very existence with his discussion on “No Child Left Inside”;
• a new exhibition entitled “Mother of Invention” which looked at how humans are tackling problems by decoding nature’s billion-year-old solutions through an emerging discipline called biomimicry;
• introduction of a new method of helping students observe nature with our Visual Thinking Strategies pilot project;
• 5,500 students in school groups visited in 2009; nearly 20,000 since opening;
• 142 generous people volunteered 10,542 hours;
• sponsorship of programs and projects that furthered our work in climate change education and sustainable building design such as the Youth Climate Summit; which was developed as an extension of our very successful national and regional Climate Conferences held in 2008;
• continued hosting of a grassroots coalition of organizations formed to help implement the Adirondack Climate and Energy Action Plan, a plan which focuses on the economic opportunity and environmental benefits provided by reducing energy consumption and increasing use of renewable fuel sources.

We are deeply grateful for the generosity of our donors who enable us to offer exceptional programming and expand our reach. Such support gives us the opportunity to impact the current and future generations of stewards of our wonderful and complex natural world. Thank you for your interest in and support of our mission.

Stephanie Ratcliffe
Executive Director 

Click below for Annual Report Financial Documents

Financial Review Letter from Board Treasurer and Director of Finance & Administration
Statement of Activities - 2009
Statement of Cash Flow and Financial Position - 2009
Audited Financial Statement - 2009  (4.13 KB PDF)
Copy of IRS Tax Return Form 990 for 2009 (12.4 MB PDF)

Letter from the Treasurer and Director of Finance & Administration 
2009 Financial Review

In the spirit of openness and transparency, the Board of The Wild Center has endorsed the creation of an online annual report. We offer you, our investors and future investors, a serious look under the hood into our daily operations and revenue streams with the information provided below. We recognize that there are quite a lot of facts and figures in this part of the website; that is the intention.

In 2009, The Wild Center received exceptional donor support and we paid very close attention to controlling our expenditures. These factors, when combined with the hard work of employees and volunteers, enabled us to offer exciting new and enhanced programs and invest in important facility upgrades. We are pleased to report that The Wild Center ended 2009 with a modest surplus of $17,000, despite a very difficult financial environment.

For 2009, total support and revenues were $2.7 million, compared to $3.4 million in the prior year. In 2008, The Wild Center hosted a National Climate Conference which contributed $425,000 to both revenues and expenses. After removing these non-recurring revenues from 2008 results, 2009 revenues were down 11% or approximately $320,000. Contributions from individuals and grants, representing more than half of our operating revenues, remained strong, totaling $1.4 million for the year, down only 7% or $106,000. Admissions receipts, the second largest contributor to revenues, were $694,000, a decline of 12% from 2008. Nearly 80,000 people visited the museum in 2009. This was 10% fewer visitors than in 2008. This decline is consistent with reduced tourism throughout the Adirondack region. The Wild Supply Company (our museum store), Café and Facility Rentals, with a gross profit of $276,000, were significant contributors to revenue but lower attendance negatively impacted results compared to 2008. We continue to look for ways to better serve our customers and maximize revenue opportunities from these complementary activities.

Expenses for 2009 totaled $2.7 million compared to $3.3 million in 2008. Once again, if the impact of the National Climate Conference is removed from 2008 results, expenses were effectively reduced by 8%, or $240,000, from the prior year level. Program expenses, which represent nearly 2/3 of total expenses, were $1.7 million. Support services expenses totaled $1.0 million. Both categories were lower than prior year levels, reflecting excellent expense control across the organization. As would be expected, salaries and benefits are our largest functional expense, representing 56% of our costs. Our employees, who consistently receive rave reviews from visitors, are our greatest asset. In 2009, The Wild Center had 33 employees and paid salaries and benefits of $1.5 million. We are also very fortunate to have 142 dedicated volunteers who contributed 10,542 hours, assisting with almost every facet of our operations from greeting our visitors to animal care. Utilizing the estimated dollar value of volunteer time for 2009 of $20.85 per hour, as calculated by the Corporation for National and Community Service, volunteers contributed the equivalent of $219,800 to the operation of The Wild Center.

We ended the year with a strong balance sheet with assets totaling $30.4 million and liabilities of $1.2 million. Current assets were $1.2 million compared to current liabilities of $366,000. During the year, we converted $1 million remaining from construction of the museum from a line of credit into a term loan. Operating cash flow continues to be positive with year end cash totaling $831,000 compared to $521,000 a year earlier.

Included with this financial review are summary operating, cash flow and balance sheet information. Below are links to an electronic version of our full 2009 audited financial statements and IRS Form 990, should you desire additional detail.

Thank you for your continued interest in The Wild Center.

Claire Leonardi, Treasurer                                   
Bob Kronenberger, Director of Finance & Administration 

Click below for Annual Report Financial Documents

Letter from Executive Director
Statement of Activities - 2009
Statement of Cash Flow and Financial Position - 2009
Audited Financial Statement - 2009  (4.13 KB PDF)
Copy of IRS Tax Return Form 990 for 2009 (12.4 MB PDF)