Have read all the responses--having done 4 of these now, I can tell you it is truly not that difficult. I always made sure we had a CPA on board, we handled the pw between us. The IRS office I delt with(in MD, IIRC) was actually very helpful, and let us amend pw on one of them without making us refile /repay. We did it for the reasons above, many of the large corps won't give you a penny w/o the "charitable" designation. One problem--make sure you have COMPLETELY vetted anybody you plan on having on your board, because there is no time like in the middle of everything having an IRS agent tell you one your Board has a "major tax problem;&..." Felony convictions, liens, etc. can turn your app. fee into a contribution real fast. And remember, if you go as an Ohio corp. you have to file all the Ohio pw on a timely basis, and make sure you do the follow-up pw on a timely basis.And, if you are getting all the services provided voluntarily, it goes a loooong way if you actually thank the person/people who helped you after it is done.