Pennsylvania Lake Management Society logo

Pennsylvania Lake Management Society

Public charity · Grantmaker Mertztown, PA EIN: 23-2569587 Website

The Pennsylvania Lake Management Society (PALMS) is a public charity based in Mertztown, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1989, it promotes lake and watershed management through education, technical assistance, workshops, conferences, and grants for lake-related projects.

Key facts about Pennsylvania Lake Management Society

EIN
23-2569587
Latest 990 filing
Form 990, 2025
Total assets
$120,031
How to apply
It describes a competitive application for eligible lake-related projects and requires public education as part of a project. Full details ↓
Deadline
The page required eligible projects and expenses to be completed by September 30, 2026; that date has passed.

Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026. Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990 · View filing

Total Assets

$120K

+167.1% YoY

Revenue

$165K

-2.4% YoY

Net Investment Income

$4

-55.6% YoY

Expenses

$90K

-69.1% YoY

How Pennsylvania Lake Management Society gives

  • 0% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
  • Giving grew 291% from 2021 to 2024. Method

Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

PALMS’s mission is to promote understanding of ponds, lakes, reservoirs, impoundments, and their watersheds and ecosystems, and their protection, restoration, and management. Its stated activities include passing through state grant funds for the maintenance and improvement of lakes and ponds in Pennsylvania, and providing forums to share information about lake and watershed management.

The mini-grant program has offered competitive awards for shoreline restoration, stormwater improvements, nutrient or sediment reduction, and aquatic invasive species management. The program calls for an educational public-awareness component. Its stated eligible applicants include landowners, nonprofits, county conservation districts, and municipalities. A grantee, Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy, received $15,000 in 2024; the conservancy describes its own mission as conserving and enhancing the lands and waters of northcentral Pennsylvania to support local communities’ environmental well-being and recreational needs.

Grantmaking

IRS filing data reports 10 grants totaling $159,175 in 2024, an average of about $15,918 per grant, and 9 grants totaling $184,023 in 2023, an average of about $20,447 per grant. The 2025 filing reports no grants. One identified 2024 recipient is Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy, which received $15,000.

PALMS’s website says that its 2019 Growing Greener award supported 23 mini-grants totaling $374,352.25, with projects completed between 2022 and 2024. Separately, PALMS reported receiving a $333,214 Growing Greener award in January 2025 for a subsequent lake best-management-practices project; that was funding received by PALMS, not grants it gave.

The mini-grant page lists awards of up to $24,000 and says the call is closed through at least all of 2026 and early 2027. It excludes, among other items, design studies, surveys, plan development, maintenance, dredging, and certain algae-control activities.

Review Cycle

The page required eligible projects and expenses to be completed by September 30, 2026; that date has passed.

How to Apply

It describes a competitive application for eligible lake-related projects and requires public education as part of a project.

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

PALMS describes its work and mini-grant program as statewide, serving lakes and watersheds across Pennsylvania.

Grant Distribution by State

1state

States

Cities

BellefonteBrackneyCalvinDingmans FerryDoylestownErieFactoryvilleHarrisburgHarveys LakeHonesdaleLake ArielLeesportLords ValleyMeadvilleMontrosePhiladelphiaSchwenksvilleTaftonWarringtonWilliamsport

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$50K$100K$150K$200K1 grant2019 1 grant2020 2 grants2021 1 grant2022 9 grants2023 10 grants2024 0 grants2025

From 2019 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $17K (2019) to $184K (2023). In 2024 it made 10 grants totaling $159K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Grant Size Distribution

22 grants across all recorded years

22<$50K$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 22 grants of 22 (100%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

No grants recorded for 2025.

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants reported
2025 $120,031 $164,747 $89,661 0
2024 $44,945 $168,728 $290,616 10 grants; $159,175 total
2023 $166,833 $277,480 $261,955 9 grants; $184,023 total
Revenue
Expenses
Net Investment Income
$0$100K$200K$300K$400K2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$120,031$44,945$166,833
Revenue$164,747$168,728$277,480
Expenses$89,661$290,616$261,955
Net Investment Income$4$9$16

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 10, 2024)
  2. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS April 17, 2025)
  3. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 6, 2020)
  4. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 5, 2026)
  5. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Kate Harms as executive director; Ed Molesky as president; Nick Spinelli as past president; Gretchen Schatschneider as treasurer; and Brian Pilarcik, Josh Burnside, Robert Schindler, Joe Pinkerton, Megan Kresila, and Lorah Reese as directors.

Pennsylvania Lake Management Society is led by Kate Harms, Executive Director on every filing since 2019; 1 of 12 officers listed in 2025 is compensated.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Kate Harms

    Executive Director

    On filings since 2019

    15 hrs/week

    $24K (2019) → $62K (2025)

  • Ed Molesky

    President

    Regional Director → President Elect, 2024

    President Elect → President, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Brian Pilarcik

    Director

    Past President → Regional Director, 2020

    Regional Director → Director, 2024

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Josh Burnside

    Director

    President → Past President, 2024

    Past President → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Robert Schindler

    Director

    Regional Director → Director, 2024

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Joe Pinkerton

    Director

    Regional Director → Director, 2024

    On filings since 2020

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Lorah Reese

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Megan Kresila

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Gretchen Schatschneider

    Treasurer

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Joseph Hudson

    Secretary

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Nick Spinelli

    Past President

    Presidnt Elect → President, 2024

    President → Past President, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Jeanette Schnass

    President Elect

    Regional Director → Director, 2024

    Director → President Elect, 2025

    On filings since 2022

    5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (5)
  • Former: Martin Mesko (2019–2023) — President Past
  • Former: Nick Decker (2019–2022) — Regional Director
  • Former: Tricia Mazik (2020–2021) — Regional Director
  • Former: Milt Ostrofsky (2019) — Regional Director
  • Former: Tim Hummel (2019) — Regional Director

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Compensation Overview

From 2025 IRS filing

Kate Harms — Executive Director: $62KKate HarmsExecutive Director$62K

The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $62K, to Kate Harms (Executive Director).

Contact

Mailing address: PO Box 171, Mertztown, PA 19539
Phone: (215) 345-7577
Website: https://palakes.org

Frequently asked questions about Pennsylvania Lake Management Society

How large is Pennsylvania Lake Management Society?

Pennsylvania Lake Management Society reported $120K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $165K.

What does Pennsylvania Lake Management Society fund?

PALMS’s mission is to promote understanding of ponds, lakes, reservoirs, impoundments, and their watersheds and ecosystems, and their protection, restoration, and management. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Pennsylvania Lake Management Society?

It describes a competitive application for eligible lake-related projects and requires public education as part of a project. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

Where does Pennsylvania Lake Management Society make grants?

PALMS describes its work and mini-grant program as statewide, serving lakes and watersheds across Pennsylvania.

What is Pennsylvania Lake Management Society's EIN?

Pennsylvania Lake Management Society's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 23-2569587. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.

Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.

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