As part of our ongoing fight for transparency and accountability at the Washington Midsummer Renaissance Faire, the People’s Faire Council submitted formal public records requests to the two nonprofits operating the event:
👉 WRAES (Washington Renaissance Arts & Education Society)
👉 WCEA (West Coast Equestrian Arts)
These organizations are running public events and receiving tax-exempt status—meaning they don’t pay taxes and are legally bound to serve the public good. But both share resources, labor, and leadership with a for-profit company called Wandering in Time Productions (WITP), owned and operated by the same individuals: Dave and Tracy.
That’s a massive red flag.
🔍 Why We Requested the Records
We requested their financial records to:
Ensure money collected from vendors, ticket sales, and bar revenue is being used for public benefit, not private gain
Investigate insider reports that the nonprofit is being drained of resources
Confirm compliance with state and federal transparency laws
Under IRS Code §6104(d) and Washington State law (RCW 19.09.5411), nonprofits must publicly disclose:
✔️ Their three most recent Form 990s
✔️ An audited financial statement if they earn over $3 million annually
📬 Our Requests and the Responses So Far:
July 9: We requested the three most recent IRS Form 990s from both WRAES and WCEA
July 13: We followed up, expanding our request to include audited financials and noting that the addresses listed for both nonprofits are private residences—making in-person requests impossible
🛑 We shortened their legal response window to July 23 for WCEA and July 30 for WRAES
🔵 WRAES Response (Tracy Nietupski):
✅ On July 22, she provided the 2023 Form 990
❌ But the 2024 Form 990—which was due May 15, 2025—was not included
❌ No extension form (IRS Form 8868) was provided
❌ No audited financial statement was provided (despite WRAES exceeding $3M in annual revenue)
We responded on July 23 to clarify these requirements and set a final deadline of July 30.
🟣 WCEA Response (Elisabeth Day):
❌ On July 22, Elisabeth admitted that WCEA hasn’t filed their Form 990 yet
❌ No extension form or filing timeline was provided
❌ No comment on the financial overlap with for-profit WITP was given
We responded immediately, reminding them that their first Form 990 was due May 15, 2025, and that nonprofit law still requires disclosure even if an extension is filed. We asked that the filing be made available to the public by December 15, 2025.
⚠️ What Insiders Know
💸 Dave and Tracy’s end goal is to sell the Faire for profit.
But you can’t legally sell a nonprofit. Nonprofits don’t have owners, and all assets must stay in service of the public interest—even if the board dissolves.
So what are they doing?
They formed WITP, a for-profit company, and are attempting to transfer control, labor, and revenue from WRAES and WCEA into WITP. This way, they can:
Keep all profits privately
Avoid board accountability
And eventually sell the business outright—something they cannot legally do with a nonprofit
But here’s the problem:
They are allegedly doing this through illegally concealed revenue, incomplete or missing financial records, and private inurement (benefiting personally from nonprofit resources).
This isn’t just unethical.
👉 It may be criminal.
💥 Why This Fight Matters
When a nonprofit fails to file financial records, refuses to disclose audits, and starts shifting money into a for-profit business under the same leadership, the community loses. Vendors, volunteers, performers, and donors are left in the dark.
We’re using every legal tool available to expose this misuse of power and protect the future of our faire.
We are not going away. We are escalating. And we’re doing it for all of us.
Thank you for continuing to stand with the movement.
We believe in a faire that serves the people, not private interests.
✊The People’s Faire Council
📧 ethics@councilforfaire.com