Calgary Flames Foundation is a 1-star charity. It has a below average results reporting grade and its overhead costs are outside Ci's reasonable range for overhead spending. The charity has $14.0m in reserve funds which can cover its annual program costs for a little over three years. Its most recent financial statement was redacted and is not available on its website.

Founded in 1983, Calgary Flames Foundation (CFF) is the fundraising arm of the Calgary Flames hockey club. It raises money to support sport initiatives and charities in Southern Alberta. Its programs focus on Health and Wellness, Grassroots Sports, and Education. It also funds the CSEC Inclusion Program with the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC).

Health and Wellness – 57% of program spending

Calgary Flames Foundation promotes health and wellness for children. The charity funds the Flames YMCA Grade 6 program, which provides activities for Grade 6 children. CFF reports that the program has had over 25,000 members during the eight years it has been running. In F2022, 3,904 Grade 6 children participated in the program. The charity also partners with the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation to support the Rotary/Flames House, a youth hospice. In F2022, children spent 1,568 nights at the House. The charity states that 74 children accessed respite care in F2022, and 95 families participated in outpatient programming. Calgary Flames Foundation partners with Kids Cancer Care to fund the Peer Program and Camp Kindle. Both provide support to children with cancer and their families. The charity reports that 75 young people benefited from the Peer program. 583 children and parents attended Kids Cancer Care’s year-round camp programs.

Grassroots Sports – 35% of program spending

Calgary Flames Foundation encourages access to grassroots sports. In F2022, it introduced its new Jr. Flames Program, which had over 150 participants. This program helps children continue to build hockey skills. The charity’s Evenstrength program assists children who want to play hockey, but whose families cannot afford it. In F2022, it spent $300,955 to help 433 kids (an average of $695 per child). Calgary Flames Foundation also has a Community House League, with over 1,050 players in F2022. CFF supports HEROS and SuperHEROS programs. The HEROS program hosts at-risk kids and had 80 kids in F2022. The SuperHEROS program helped 70 children that are mentally and physically impaired.

CSEC Inclusion Program – 5% of program spending

In F2022, Calgary Flames Foundation and CSEC began the CSEC Inclusion Program. The charity will invest $2m in sport inclusion, diversity and equality. This involves building outdoor rinks, supporting BIPOC people in sport and providing access to sport to the disabled. In F2022, the charity provided 40 roller sleds to hockey clinics in Calgary.

Education – 3% of program spending

The Calgary Flames Foundation partners with Reading…Give It A Shot! to help children learn to read. In F2022, the program distributed 1,228 books. The Flames@School program helps provide physical education in schools. In F2022, 458 schools were registered and over 120,000 students benefited from the program.

Calgary Flames Foundation’s financial statement for F2022 is redacted and is not available on its website.

Calgary Flames Foundation received $839k in donations and special events fundraising revenue in F2022. In F2022, CFF received $6.6m in 50/50 raffles (net of expenses). The last two years of raffle revenues ($7.6m in F2021) are a significant increase compared to previous years. Since Ci started reporting on CFF in F2014, net lottery revenue did not exceed $3.0m until F2021. Administrative costs are 4% of revenue (excluding investment income). Fundraising costs are 71% of donations and special events. This means that for every dollar donated to CFF, 26 cents go to the cause. This is way outside Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending.

Calgary Flames Foundation has $14.0m in funding reserves in F2022 ($10.8m in F2021, and $8.2m in F2020). In F2022, $4.0m are in GICs with the remaining balance in cash. CFF's reserve funds can cover program costs for 3 years and 2 months.

Calgary Flames Foundation has committed to donating $2.8m to other charities from F2023 to F2025. This is 20% of its current funding reserves. The yearly breakdown is $1.2m in F2023, $843k in F2024 and $750k in F2025. Recipients include Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation, Kidsport (for the Evenstrength program), Kids Cancer Care Foundation and YMCA.

Grants, as reported in Ci’s analysis, include disbursements and program costs. The charity’s financials do not disclose the two items separately.

Calgary Flames Foundation’s T3010 CRA filings for F2022, F2021, and F2020 report no paid staff. However, financial statements show personnel costs of $204k in F2022, $138k in F2021, and $166k in F2020. These were reimbursements paid for staff at Calgary Flames Limited Partnership (CFLP). Calgary Flames Foundation receives free office space, equipment, and support services from CFLP. CFF paid CFLP $522k for fundraising events and 50/50 support and $204k for staff reimbursement in F2022.

Charity Intelligence has sent this profile update to Calgary Flames Foundation. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Updated on May 29th 2023, by Victoria Allder.

Tel: 404-777-2177