The Nonprofit

How Boat For Sail becomes a real, legal, lasting Illinois 501(c)(3).

Giving sailing away still needs a vehicle that can hold donations, carry insurance, and last beyond any one of us. That vehicle is an Illinois 501(c)(3) nonprofit, currently in formation. This page is the short version; the full playbook lives in the formation guides below.

Where we are: governance and formation planning. The guides walk the entire DIY path — board structure, state filings, IRS Form 1023, budget, and an AI-assisted playbook — at a total cost of under ~$800 to start and ~$85–$145/year to maintain.

The essentials

  • State: Illinois — incorporate where you operate; the CEO can self-appoint as registered agent. (Delaware/Wyoming would mean double compliance — see the guide.)
  • Board: five seats, with at least three genuinely independent members (no family, business, or financial tie to the CEO). This isn’t optional — it’s how the IRS protects against private benefit.
  • Programs: 100% free. That’s the strongest possible public-charity case and the reason this whole thing exists.
  • Budget: philanthropy-funded — major gifts, online fundraising, and small grants.

Diagram of a ship's wheel with the CEO at center and Board Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, and At-Large Director around it, each marked 'must be independent', on a base labeled Conflict of Interest Policy / Form 1023 Part V

The governance architecture we build to: a five-seat board where the paid CEO sits at the center and at least three seats must be independent — the structure the IRS Form 1023 (Part V) and our Conflict-of-Interest Policy are designed around.

The formation guides

These are the working documents behind the nonprofit, kept under version history. v3 is the current source of truth; v1 and v2 are kept for the record.

Version File Notes
v3 (current) boatforsail_nonprofit_v3.docx Merge of v1 + v2: adds Critical Warnings, DIY Tools & Services, D&O insurance, CEO-comp safe harbor.
v2 boatforsail_nonprofit_v2.docx First Illinois-specific draft; introduced the governance section and free-budget model.
v1 boatforsail_nonprofit_v1.docx The original draft, organized around the formation process.

Not legal advice. These guides are for planning. Before filing Form 1023 — especially on compensation disclosures and board-independence determinations — consult a licensed Illinois nonprofit attorney or CPA.

How the website and the nonprofit fit together

The nonprofit is the engine; this site is the front door. The site recruits learners, hosts, and boat-builders and gives the knowledge away for free; the nonprofit holds the donations and the insurance that make it sustainable and safe.