HAMDEN - Delaware Opportunities, Inc. announced that its independent audit for the fiscal year ended Feb. 28, 2026, conducted by EFPR Group, CPAs, PLLC - the same external audit firm utilized by Delaware County to perform its annual audit - resulted in an unmodified or “clean” opinion. The auditors did not identify any material misstatements, disagreements with management, material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in internal controls with regard to the administration and operation of Delaware Opportunities and further did not find any issues across either the organization’s consolidated financial statements or its federal award programs.
In its formal report to Delaware Opportunities’ Board of Directors, EFPR Group stated plainly that when dealing with agency management there were no disagreements that arose during the course of the audit and that there were no material unrecorded misstatements detected as a result of their audit procedures.
The agency’s accompanying Schedule of Findings and Questioned Costs - which covers both the financial statement audit and compliance testing of federal grant dollars, including the organization’s Head Start program - confirmed there were no findings and no questioned costs in either section. These findings echo Delaware Opportunities’ record of clean/unmodified audits over the past decade as reported by ProPublica.
These results, achieved under exacting Government Auditing Standards and federal Uniform Guidance, reflect the outstanding stewardship Delaware Opportunities’ leadership and finance team bring to the organization every day. Auditors reported encountering “no difficulties” working with management throughout the engagement and found the agency’s financial statement disclosures to be “neutral, consistent and clear” - a hallmark of the culture of transparency and accountability the organization has built at every level of its operations.
“For 60 years, Delaware Opportunities has stood beside the families, seniors, and neighbors of Delaware County who need us most,” said Dr. Shelly Bartow, executive director of Delaware Opportunities, Inc. “This audit reflects the trust our community, our funders, and our Board have placed in us since our founding in 1966, and our daily efforts to live up to that precious trust. We are deeply grateful to our county, state, and federal partners, along with the countless volunteers and donors, whose partnership allows us to continue to lift up our neighbors who rely on us every day.”
The independent audit results affirm that Delaware Opportunities entered the year on sound financial footing. As of Feb. 28, the organization reported total assets of $8.78 million, up from $8.62 million a year earlier, and closed the year with $6.1 million in net assets. Cash and cash equivalents grew 68% year-over-year to $508,428. Of the organization’s $17.5 million in total expenses for the year, more than 92 cents of every dollar - $16.2 million - was directed to program services benefiting Delaware County residents, with total revenue of $17.1 million supporting that work.
Among the programs supported by this financial strength during the audited year was Delaware Opportunities’ Senior Dining Program. Operating under the federal Older Americans Act’s Title III-C Nutrition Services Program, the agency directed $208,040 in Title III-C base funding and Nutrition Services Incentive Program (NSIP) supplements toward congregate and home-delivered meals for older adults throughout Delaware County during fiscal year 2026. As with every other program area reviewed, Senior Dining operations were administered without a single audit exception - a reflection of the careful fiscal oversight Delaware Opportunities applied across its programming since it began administering senior nutrition services for the county more than 50-years ago.
While Delaware Opportunities no longer administers the Senior Dining Program for Delaware County residents, its five-decades of responsible stewardship built a solid foundation for Delaware County to continue serving seniors experiencing food insecurity.
The clean independent audit gives residents and stakeholders confidence in the financial infrastructure supporting the full range of safety-net programs Delaware Opportunities continues to operate, including Head Start and Early Head Start childhood education, the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) nutrition program, weatherization assistance, Section 8 housing vouchers, domestic violence and victim services, the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), and family support services that so many Delaware County residents depend upon every day.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to thank Dr. Bartow and her team for the dedication, professionalism, and integrity they bring to this organization every single day,” said Arthur Edel, president of the Delaware Opportunities Board of Directors. “Results like these don’t happen by accident or in a vacuum. They are a direct reflection of Dr. Bartow’s leadership, the team she has assembled and the disciplined, transparent culture she has built throughout the agency along with the unwavering commitment of the Delaware Opportunities family to lift up and support our neighbors in need.” Delaware Opportunities’ Board of Directors and management remain committed to the same fiscal discipline and transparency reflected in this year’s external audit as the organization continues its work on behalf of Delaware County residents.
For more information, visit www.delawareopportunities.org
