EIN 54-1915490

Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

IRS 501(c) type
501(c)(3)
Num. employees
18
Year formed
1998
Most recent tax filings
2024-03-01
Description
RBFF increases recreational angling and boating participation through informed outreach strategies, consumer engagement, industry partnerships located in Alexandria, VA.
Total revenues
$13,785,521
2024
Total expenses
$13,774,772
2024
Total assets
$2,027,714
2024
Num. employees
18
2024

Program areas at Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

Consumer engagementthe objective of rbff's consumer engagement programs is to increase participation in Recreational Boating and Fishing by recruiting new audiences through a national marketing and communications campaign designed to increase awareness of Fishing, Boating, and natural resource conservation; dispel negative stereotypes; and encourage consideration, trial, and ultimately, participation.see schedule oconsumer engagement (cont'd) take me Fishing is the brand that carries rbff's messages and the appeal of Boating and Fishing to general market consumers. The backbone of the brand is the takemefishing.org website, which features greater optimization for all screen sizes and formats, more prominent state information, how-to videos, and an updated resource center for stakeholders. The website's new look includes more content targeting women, such as blogs and a dedicated campaign page, resulting in 32 million visits and significant increases in referrals to state license and registration pages. Across the take me Fishing website and in ads, psas, tv, video, social media, and events, the take me Fishing brand reaches and motivates millions of people to enjoy Boating and Fishing. Take me Fishing alliances help rbff and select third parties leverage each other's brand appeal and reach a greater number of consumers than they could on their own. The ongoing alliance with walt disney world resort includes guided Fishing excursions and media buys on disney channels, enhancing brand exposure and engagement. New initiatives like camp take me Fishing attracted 300 guests, and geolocator ads on disney's hulu channel outperformed benchmarks. Other take me Fishing partners include the u.s. Fish and wildlife service (usfws), u.s. forest service, national park service, bureau of land management, noaa and Fishing league worldwide (flw). These alliances annually produce more than 1,500 consumer-event uploads to takemefishing.org.in fy24, rbff launched the find your best self on the water campaign, targeting women by highlighting the benefits of Fishing. This campaign invited women to feel happier, healthier, and fully welcome as they participated in Fishing, potentially bringing their families along and multiplying participation gains. Research indicated that a 10% increase in women's participation in Fishing could add an additional $1 billion to the industry. In 2023, the 1.7 million more women who participated in Fishing contributed $1.63 billion to the Fishing industry. Find your best self on the water connected with millions of women through integrated messaging across popular platforms, achieving significant engagement with 2.89 billion impressions, 84.9 million paid social media impressions, and 35 million content views on tiktok. Influencer posts and rbff's paid social media presence resulted in a 384% increase in conversations and a 15.9% increase in the female audience.the campaign's success was further highlighted by top awards, including the american advertising federation's top 2024 best of show award and being a finalist for mediapost media planning & buying awards.
Stakeholder engagementthis was the first year rbff implemented its strategic plan to consolidate stakeholder strengths, ideas, and enthusiasm to achieve common objectives. This approach led to new efficiencies and created opportunities for state, industry, and federal agency partners to collaborate on increasing participation and retention in Fishing and Boating. Whether targeting multicultural markets, active women, or lapsed boaters, rbff stakeholders discovered innovative ways to recruit, retain, and reactivate participants.see schedule ostakeholder engagement (cont'd) rbff's multicultural outreach included the first catch centers, which bring Fishing to urban communities. This year, 29 mobile first catch centers were deployed to 24 states, with the first saltwater trailer in south carolina. Additionally, the george h.w. Bush vamos a pescar education fund grants continued to bridge the gap between hispanic families and outdoor activities, supported by contributions from bass pro shops and matched by state agencies.the 2024 special report on Fishing, produced with the outdoor Foundation, revealed key participation figures, serving as a baseline for evaluating rbff's consumer campaigns and collaborations. The fy24 state marketing workshop in atlanta gathered nearly 200 attendees from 48 states and the district of columbia, supported by more sponsors than ever. The workshop featured an expo for states to showcase their marketing programs and best practices. Rbff introduced new digital tools and strategies, including artificial intelligence, social media engagement, and influencer collaboration, to help states reach diverse audiences. Insights from the workshop were shared through a video series, making the content accessible to r3 marketing professionals who couldn't attend in person. Additionally, rbff hosted webinars on the find your best self campaign, fishbrain (one of the world's largest online Fishing communities), and embeddable digital resources for stakeholders' websites.

Grants made by Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

GranteeGrant descriptionAmount
Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife AgenciesR3 Program Development Grants- See Part Iv$50,000
Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries FoundationMobile First Catch Center Grants - See Part Iv$0

Who funds Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

Grants from foundations and other nonprofits
GrantmakerDescriptionAmount
Cabelas Outdoor FundOutdoor Activities$50,000
American Sportfishing Association (ASA)To Support Conservation, Habitat Restoration and Improved Access for Recreational Anglers.$35,000
AmazonSmile FoundationGeneral Support$27

Personnel at Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

NameTitleCompensation
Dave ChandaPresident and CEO$226,226
David ChandaPresident and Chief Executive Officer$274,946
Frank PetersonFormer President and Chief Executive Officer$349,452
Stephanie West VatalaroSenior Vice President, Strategy and Operations$218,123
James HemenwaySenior Vice President - Finance and Administration$246,100
...and 27 more key personnel

Financials for Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

RevenuesFYE 03/2024
Total grants, contributions, etc.$13,753,473
Program services$0
Investment income and dividends$25,837
Tax-exempt bond proceeds$0
Royalty revenue$6,211
Net rental income$0
Net gain from sale of non-inventory assets$0
Net income from fundraising events$0
Net income from gaming activities$0
Net income from sales of inventory$0
Miscellaneous revenues$0
Total revenues$13,785,521

Form 990s for Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation

Fiscal year endingDate received by IRSFormPDF link
2024-032024-08-13990View PDF
2023-032023-08-30990View PDF
2022-032022-08-25990View PDF
2021-032021-11-24990View PDF
2020-032020-10-14990View PDF
...and 10 more Form 990s
Data update history
September 22, 2024
Used new vendors
Identified 2 new vendors, including , and
September 21, 2024
Received grants
Identified 1 new grant, including a grant for $35,000 from American Sportfishing Association (ASA)
April 24, 2024
Updated personnel
Identified 4 new personnel
November 14, 2023
Posted financials
Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2023
November 9, 2023
Updated personnel
Identified 6 new personnel
Nonprofit Types
Grantmaking organizationsSports organizationsSocial advocacy organizationsCharities
Issues
EducationHuman servicesPublic safety
Characteristics
State / local levelReceives government fundingTax deductible donationsAccepts online donations
General information
Address
500 Montgomery St 300
Alexandria, VA 22314
Metro area
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
County
Alexandria city, VA
Website URL
takemefishing.org 
Phone
(703) 519-0013
Facebook page
TakeMeFishing 
Twitter profile
@take_me_fishing 
IRS details
EIN
54-1915490
Fiscal year end
March
Taxreturn type
Form 990
Year formed
1998
Eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions (Pub 78)
Yes
Categorization
NTEE code, primary
N12: Recreation and Sports Fund Raising and Fund Distribution
NAICS code, primary
813312: Environment, Conservation, and Wildlife Organizations
Parent/child status
Independent
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