East Cooper Community Outreach
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
We provide assistance, guidance, and resources to help our neighbors navigate through life's challenges. Together with the community's support, ECCO is able to provide food assistance, a clothing closet, dental and medical care, and financial assistance all in one location.
- Income
- $5.3 million
- Spending
- $4.6 million
- Spent on programs
- 86%
- Reserves
- 8 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 94%
- Employees
- 26
- Volunteers
- 1,121
- Highest pay
- $117,316, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 80% of charities in its peer group (human services, $1m to $10m).
Reserves
28 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 8.0 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 2% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 14% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 23% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1586% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 4 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 65% of charities in its peer group (human services, $1m to $10m).
Independent board
25 of 2517 of 17 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (2)
- $3.5 million spent. ECCO was founded in the wake of Hurricane Hugo on the principle of neighbors helping neighbors. What began as an emergency relief effort has grown into a permanent resource in the community for families facing financial distress. Since 1989, compassion has been at the heart of everything we do. At ECCO we believe in the dignity and worth of every individual. While our programs and services may pivot to meet the changing needs of the community, the bedrock values of our organization which include Compassion, Collaboration, Respect and Integrity remain strong. We are proud of the community's commitment to living out ECCO's motto of "Neighbors Helping Neighbors." The community's generous support is what makes it possible for ECCO to provide essential services to assist local neighbors in their time of need. We recognize clients' situations are often complex and may not stay resolved, which is why Client Navigators keep communications open. Ongoing circumstances often test clients' resiliency, and the ECCO staff and volunteers ensure clients do not lose hope in their time of need. Our mission statement reads: "We provide assistance, guidance, and resources to help our neighbors navigate through life's challenges." ECCO's vision statement is, "A community where all people can discover a path to opportunity." The mission and vision statements align and materialize through compassionate staff and volunteers who offer ASSISTANCE in the form of essential services to local neighbors facing financial hardship. Services include food, financial assistance, dental and medical care, prescription assistance, access to SNAP and Medicaid enrollment, seasonal initiatives, emergency response, and a Clothing Closet. We offer GUIDANCE through the direction and system of support provided by staff and volunteers as we walk with clients along their path to opportunity. Services include becoming an ECCO client and receiving client navigation support, access to workshops and programs, and the Asset Development Program (ADP). ADP is a savings match program to help low wealth families develop assets including post secondary education, a first-time home purchase or to start a small business. Additionally, ECCO connects clients to a network of community partners who maximize support on their journey towards achieving personal financial goals. These RESOURCES include education and career readiness, financial assistance referrals and benefits, specialty healthcare and wellness, and home repair. When a person experiencing crisis becomes an ECCO client, they receive the skills, knowledge, ear, and action from a team of staff and volunteers who pull together resources on their behalf and provide the reassurance the client needs to move forward. ECCO is uniquely positioned in the area as one of only a few agencies in the greater Charleston region which provides comprehensive wrap-around support services and programs to households experiencing financial distress. All of ECCO's essential services are available to those who live or work East of the Cooper River and meet ECCO's income eligibility guidelines that are based on 250% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. ECCO's demographics show that 38% of ECCO clients make no more than the Federal Poverty Level and 22% have zero income. The average annual income of ECCO's clients in FYE25 was $17,128 ($703 less than the average annual income in FYE24). Clients are primarily women (74%), Black (62%), and over the age of 50 (62%). Ninety-two percent are single (includes divorced, separated, never married and widowed). There are currently 351 ECCO-assisted households with at least 1 child and only 10% of these households have both parents in the home. 29% are grandparents caring for their grandchildren, and 61% are single parents (primarily single mothers). ECCO services are for adults but because there are 738 children under the age of 18 living in the households ECCO serves, we know that our work impacts multiple generations. Eleven percent of clients did not complete High School, 52% have a High School diploma or credential, 14% have some college, and 23% have completed a post-secondary degree or certification. Twenty-four percent of clients must borrow a vehicle, pay for rides, or use public transportation because they do not have a vehicle. In FYE25, 1,444 families comprised of 2,711 individuals relied on ECCO to help them overcome hunger, eviction, utility disconnection, unmet health and dental needs, the difficult choice between buying food or life-saving prescriptions, and/or a sense of despair that can come when weathering life's emergencies. These numbers represent a 6% decrease in the total number of households served from the prior fiscal year and 179 less family members. This may have been an unintended consequence of the year-long construction project that was happening at our facility on Six Mile Road. During construction the dental clinic was closed for two months for renovations, the medical clinic was closed for a week in October 2024 to relocate, client services were suspended for a week in April 2025 to resurface the parking lot and a second week in June 2025 for volunteer training, and the main entrance to the building moved three times. ECCO has operated out of the organization's main campus facility at 1145 Six Mile Road since 2003. As the organization has grown over the past two decades, so has the facility. In the fall of 2020, the food pantry was expanded to include additional shelving and refrigeration units, as well as adding a receiving area with space to store donated goods. In order to do this, the clothing closet had to be relocated to a temporary location across town at 1111 Bowman Road while ECCO raised the funds to renovate the Six Mile Road facility. The Beyond Our Walls Campaign launched in 2022, raising $5.6M dollars to expand ECCO's reach by renovating our facility and reuniting all of our services back under one roof, expanding our outreach to th
- $367,705 spent. ECCO's Health Services programs, including dental and medical services, as well as ECCO's prescription assistance program, continued to respond to the needs of our clients while adapting to the challenges of construction in FYE25. Both the dental and medical clinic serve as the dental and medical homes for ECCO's uninsured clients as well as other uninsured adults who live in the Tricounty area (Berkley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties) and meet ECCO's income guidelines. ECCO's Partners in Healthcare (PiH) Clinic focuses on helping to diagnose and treat chronic health conditions including diabetes, high blood pressure, and lipedema. Through an established partnership with the Medical University of South Carolina's College of Nursing, Nurse Practitioners are able to see clients regularly, track and analyze patient data, provide health-coaching, and coordinate patient care. The Partners in Healthcare Clinic is also supported by Roper St. Francis Healthcare for free lab work and imaging and the MUSC College of Pharmacy for consultation on medication reconciliation. Over the past twelve years, the clinic has served over 750 uninsured, unduplicated neighbors, 80% of which were diagnosed with a chronic illness. A primary goal of the PIH Clinic is to keep people out of the Emergency Rooms when what they really need is primary care. ECCO's partnership with the Best Chance Network (BCN), South Carolina's Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, was put on hold this year due to the medical clinic being relocated in October 2024. The ECCO Dental Clinic provides restorative dentistry two days a week based on the availability of the contracted and/or volunteer dentists and the dental hygienist, as well as emergency extraction clinic one night per week. This is possible because of ECCO's established partnership with MUSC's James B. Edwards Dental School and the Trident Technical College. Fourth-year dental students from MUSC and second-year hygiene students from TTC join part-time contracted dentists, one part-time hygienist, and several volunteer dentists to provide high-quality dental care and oral health education at no cost to our clients. ECCO is quite proud of the interprofessional collaboration demonstrated between the medical and dental clinics where the patient is at the center of care and referrals between clinics is highly encouraged. In anticipation of the opening of the unified Health Services wing in October 2024, a mission statement was created for the collaborative work being done to improve patient's health, it reads: "We strive to deliver accessible, compassionate, and high-quality medical and dental care by providing resources to enhance and empower the health and well-being of our community. ECCO's renovation project required the Dental Clinic to be closed for two months so that work could be done in this space to enclose the panoramic x-ray machine, remove windows from several of the operatories, update cabinetry and fixtures, and build-out an office for the Dental Clinic Director. This work was done in July and August 2024. The Medical Clinic closed for a week in October to relocate to the new unified Health Services Wing. On October 21, 2024 the new combined Medical and Dental Clinics with a shared reception area, triage space, and lobby opened to rave reviews from the community. One patient commented that she would never miss another appointment in this beautiful space. Impact Numbers for Health Services programs in FYE25 include: - 201 individuals were served in the ECCO Dental Clinic; 151 of these individuals were new, first-time patients. - 452 Dental Clinic appointments were conducted during which 1,516 dental procedures were provided to the community at no cost to the patient including both preventative and restorative care. 281 extractions were done to help get people out of pain. The retail value of the dental services was $243,630. - The Partners in Healthcare Clinic welcomed 59 new patients to the practice. 445 patient appointments were scheduled for 131 uninsured individuals at the Partners in Healthcare Clinic for free medical care and health coaching including 232 total services and 157 referrals. The retail value of ECCO's medical services was $207,685. - 37 transportation assistances were provided to dental patients and 37 for medical patients. The retail value for these ride-sharing services was $3,236. - 110 emergency prescriptions were filled at a cost of $5,804 for 35 individuals who could not afford their medications. 67 individuals were assisted in getting enrolled in a prescription assistance program for ongoing Rx needs. Highlights of programmatic enhancements in Health Services for the 2025 Fiscal Year include: - Developed a mission statement for the new integrated Health Services wing at ECCO. It reads: "We strive to deliver accessible, compassionate, and high-quality medical and dental care by providing resources to enhance and empower the health and well-being of our community." - Relocated the Medical Clinic into the new unified Health Services Wing in October 2024 to rave reviews by patients, providers, medical students and partners, alike. - Developed several one-page flyers used to distribute/promote Health Services Programs such as RX Assistance, Women's Health, and Medical and Dental Services. - Scheduled an In-Service meeting for Dental and Partners in Healthcare providers to better collaborate to increase cross-referrals and improve holistic patient care. - Established Open Dental texting appointment reminders to minimize No Show and Cancellation rates. - Trained a new volunteer for the Dental Clinic for scheduling support. - Completed quarterly CDBG Reports and exceeded patient goals to utilize all grant funding for PY2024. - Awarded Delta Dental grant to purchase materials to create in-house partials starting in FYE26. - Welcomed Dr. Mark Barry, DMD, as new Dental Clinic Director in August 2024. - Welcomed Gloria Kinard as the
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since June 1992.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.