Cowichan Wooden Boat Society
Publicly funded institution · Cowichan Bay, British Columbia · BN 128596830RR0001 · Public Amenities · website
Source: T3010 return, FPE 2024-08-31. Split of total expenditures ($230,057) as filed with the CRA.
Cowichan Wooden Boat Society is a charitable organization based in Cowichan Bay, British Columbia, classified by the CRA under public amenities. It appears on the charity register the way hospitals, universities, and other publicly funded bodies do — to issue tax receipts — rather than as a donation-driven charity in the usual sense. In its fiscal year ending August 31, 2024, it reported $328K in revenue and $230K in expenditures.
Its funding that year was roughly 8% from donations, 50% from government. Government funding is the majority of its budget. In 2024, 1 other registered charity reported granting it a combined $1,258.
Compared with 686 public-amenity institutions of similar size, its share of spending on mission — charitable programs plus grants to other charities — ranked above 42% of peers. Its fundraising cost per donated dollar was lower than 80% of that peer group. Its reserves, measured in years of spending on hand, sat in the top decile of the group. Its highest-paid position fell in the $40,000–79,999 range. The charity reported 1 permanent full-time position.
Revenue has grown substantially over its filings on record here, from $185K in 2020 to $328K in 2024. Its filed list of directors and trustees shows 8 names.
In its own words
THE MUSEUM IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC YEAR ROUND and charges admission to non-members. The museum displays HISTORIC ARTIFACTS CULTURAL EXHIBITS AND INTERPRETIVE DISPLAYS. ALSO OFFERED ARE TRADITIONAL BOAT BUILDING COURSES MARINE-RELATED WORKSHOPS COMMUNITY EVENT HOST OF AN ANNUAL FESTIVAL KIDS BOAT BUILDING BOOTH GUIDED TOURS EXTENSIVE MARITIME LIBRARY ENVIRO-FRIENDLY MARINE WAYS ON-SITE BOAT RESTORATION FULLY-EQUIPPED WOODWORKING SHOP RENTAL SPACE FOR PRIVATE EVENTS AND COMMUNITY GROUPS AND CHILDREN'S MARITIME-THEMED EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING.
Ongoing-program description from its T3010 filing, verbatim.
The ledger, 2020–2024
| Year | Revenue | Spending | Programs | Fundraising | Gifts out | Net assets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $328K | $230K | $182K | $2,123 | $0 | $2.1M |
| 2023 | $508K | $162K | $138K | — | — | $2M |
| 2022 | $683K | $178K | $151K | — | — | $1.7M |
| 2021 | $196K | $181K | $142K | $3,406 | $0 | $1.2M |
| 2020 | $185K | $186K | $147K | $2,230 | — | $984K |
Revenue printed in red where the year ran a deficit. Fiscal years by period end.
Money between charities, 2024
Received $1,258 from 1 charity:
- Canadahelps Canadon$1,258
As reported on the donors’ own T3010 qualified-donee schedules.
What it pays
Its ten highest-paid positions, by band:
- $40,000–79,9991 position
- $1–39,9993 positions
- Permanent full-time positions1
- Total compensation, all staff$97K
Schedule 3 of its 2023 return. The CRA discloses bands, not names or exact salaries.
Directors & trustees (2024)
George Karras (president); Don Feil (director); Chris Lee (vice president); Michael Webb (treasurer); Estelle Matheson (secretary); Kai Robinson (director); Jeff Quinton (director); William Turner (director).
As listed on its 2024 return.
Check the source
Every figure on this page is from Cowichan Wooden Boat Society’s own T3010 filings, published by the Canada Revenue Agency. Verify against the CRA’s charities listing (search BN 128596830RR0001), or read how we compute the receipt.