SURPRISE SUNDANCERS

What SURPRISE SUNDANCERS does

SURPRISE SUNDANCERS is a 501(c)(3) volunteer non-profit founded in 2002 in Surprise, Arizona, that serves as the official Spring Training volunteer organization for the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers and the City of Surprise. Its core offering is operational: 750+ members deliver more than 36,000 volunteer hours per Cactus League season across stadium functions (ushers, parking, water, will call, raffles, clubhouse, etc.), valued at approximately $888,840 annually using Independent Sector metrics. The technology stack is minimal and consists of a PayPal/credit-card donation page and an Arizona Community Foundation-administered blind-ranking scholarship application workflow; there is no proprietary platform or AI component.

The business model is donation-driven rather than commercial. Revenue streams include individual charitable contributions, daily 50/50 raffle proceeds during Surprise Stadium games (cumulative $366,873 since 2014 to 31 youth organizations), and one annual charity game per MLB partner whose full ticket, concession, and merchandise proceeds flow to the scholarship fund, supplemented by grants such as the $5,000 MLB Players Trust award in 2022. These funds are redistributed as tiered college scholarships ($10,000 Mark Coronado, $5,000 Tier 1, $3,000 Tier 2, $1,500 returning recipients) to Northwest Valley high-school student athletes and previous recipients attending universities including the University of Arizona, ASU, and NAU.

Since inception the organization has directed over $2.389 million in donations to local youth, including $1.601 million in 718 scholarships since 2012; 2026 alone produced $193,500 to 50 scholars, the largest annual disbursement in the organization's history, and the Cactus League Baseball Association named the Scholarship Program its "Outstanding Community Program of the Year" in 2026.

Name

SURPRISE SUNDANCERS

Legal name

Surprise Sundancers

Website

https://surprisesundancers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Surprise Sundancers is a 501(c)(3) volunteer non-profit that provides Spring Training operational support for the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers at Surprise Stadium and funds college scholarships for Northwest Valley student athletes, having awarded over $2.389 million since 2002.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Surprise

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Contributions: The organization raises charitable donations and receives contributions from individuals and organizations to support youth-related programs and projects in the Surprise/Northwest Valley area.
2. 50/50 Raffle Proceeds: Daily 50/50 raffles held during each Spring Training game at Surprise Stadium, with half going to winners and half to the scholarship fund. Has provided over $366,873 in donations through 2026 to 31 local organizations.
3. Charity Game Proceeds: The Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals designate one game each season where all proceeds from tickets, concessions, and merchandise are donated to the Surprise Sundancers scholarship fund.
4. MLB Players Trust Grant: Received a $5,000 grant from the MLB Players Trust in 2022 to supplement scholarship funds.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Surprise Sundancers is a 501(c)(3) non-profit volunteer organization that provides volunteer services for Spring Training operations at Surprise Stadium for the Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers, and the City of Surprise. It raises funds through charity games, daily 50/50 raffles, and donations to award tiered college scholarships ($1,500 to $10,000) to graduating high school students from the Northwest Valley of Arizona, administered in partnership with the Arizona Community Foundation.

Product overview

The Surprise Sundancers is a 501(c)(3) non-profit volunteer organization founded in 2002 that supports Spring Training baseball operations for the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers at Surprise Stadium. The organization offers a portfolio of youth-focused programs including a Scholarship Program (administered through the Arizona Community Foundation with tiered awards up to $10,000), a 50/50 Raffle Program running during all Spring Training games, and an annual Charity Game. Over 750 volunteers provide operational support across multiple divisions. The organization has awarded over $2.38 million in scholarships to Northwest Valley youth since inception.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Mark Coronado Scholarship: A prestigious top-tier scholarship of $10,000 endowed in 2018 for first-year scholarship recipients, named after Mark Coronado who served as Director of Community & Recreation Services for the City of Surprise.

Products and services

• Surprise Sundancers Scholarship Program A tiered college scholarship program for graduating high school students from the Surprise, El Mirage, Youngtown, Waddell, and Wickenburg areas. Awards include Mark Coronado Scholarships ($10,000 for top-tier first-year recipients), Tier 1 Scholarships ($5,000), Tier 2 Scholarships ($3,000), and returning recipient scholarships ($1,500). Recipients must demonstrate athletic participation (including Spiritline, athletic training, Cheer, and Pom) or community engagement. Applications are administered by the Arizona Community Foundation.
• Mark Coronado Youth Scholarship Named top-tier scholarship of $10,000 awarded to highest-rated first-year scholarship recipients, established in honor of Mark Coronado's legacy of community and recreation leadership in Surprise.
• 50/50 Raffle Program A daily 50/50 raffle held during each Spring Training game at Surprise Stadium, with half the proceeds going to the raffle winner and half to the Surprise Sundancers scholarship fund. Operates throughout the Cactus League season.
• Annual Charity Game Annual charity game held in partnership with the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers, where all proceeds from ticket sales, concessions, and merchandise are donated to the Surprise Sundancers scholarship fund.
• Spring Training Volunteer Services Game-day volunteer services during Spring Training at Surprise Stadium, with over 750 volunteers staffing divisions for wheelchairs, information, pass gate, parking, water, will call, ushers, tickets, office, programs, raffle, shuttles, and clubhouse operations.

Quantifiable outcome

• $2.389 Million in total donations to youth since inception
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Arizona Community FoundationcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2016Since 2016, the Arizona Community Foundation has administered the scholarship application process for Surprise Sundancers. ACF manages over 120 scholarship funds for organizations throughout Arizona, providing evaluation infrastructure and disbursement services.
• Kansas City RoyalscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002The Kansas City Royals partner with Surprise Sundancers as one of two MLB teams using Surprise Stadium for Spring Training. The Royals designate one charity game annually where all ticket, concession, and merchandise proceeds go to Sundancers scholarships.
• Texas RangerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002The Texas Rangers partner with Surprise Sundancers as one of two MLB teams using Surprise Stadium for Spring Training. The Rangers designate one charity game annually where all ticket, concession, and merchandise proceeds go to Sundancers scholarships.
• City of SurprisecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002The City of Surprise is the official municipal partner, with Sundancers serving as the official Spring Training volunteer organization for the Surprise Recreation Campus. The organization provides volunteer services at the Surprise Recreation Campus and other City Special Events.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Scottsdale Charros: 501(c)(3) volunteer organization supporting SF Giants Spring Training at Scottsdale Stadium with a parallel scholarship program for local students. Mirrors Surprise Sundancers' exact combination of MLB Spring Training volunteer service plus community scholarship distribution, making it the closest comparable peer.
• Arizona Community Foundation: Administers the Surprise Sundancers scholarship program and manages over 120 scholarship funds across Arizona. Operates a similar grantmaking model — raising charitable funds and distributing them to students and community organizations statewide — at materially larger scale.
• Fiesta Bowl Foundation: Arizona-based charitable organization that funds youth scholarships and community programs using proceeds from major sporting events. Shares the sports-anchored fundraising and Arizona student scholarship mission, but operates at significantly larger scale with broader reach.

Broad incumbents

• Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation: MLB franchise community foundation supporting youth education, sports, and charitable programs across Arizona. Comparable as a pro-sports-anchored Arizona charitable organization, but with substantially larger scope, paid staff, and corporate funding rather than volunteer-only operations.
• Phoenix Suns Charities: NBA franchise charitable arm funding youth education and community programs across the Phoenix metro. Comparable pro-sports-community-giving structure but with a much larger operating budget, paid staff, and statewide rather than hyper-local geographic focus.
• Helios Education Foundation: Arizona-focused education foundation supporting college access and scholarships. Overlaps on the education-scholarship mission but operates with paid staff, an endowed foundation structure, and statewide programmatic reach rather than community-volunteer delivery.
• Valley of the Sun United Way: Large regional charitable organization funding education, youth, and community programs across the Phoenix metro. Shares the grantmaking-to-local-nonprofits model — Surprise Sundancers' 50/50 raffle has directed funds to 31 such organizations — but at materially greater scale with paid staff and institutional donor base.
• Scholarship America: National nonprofit that designs, manages, and administers scholarship programs for corporations, foundations, and individuals. Functionally similar back-office role to Arizona Community Foundation but at national scale, illustrating the more institutionalized alternative to Surprise Sundancers' ACF-dependent model.

Others

• Cactus League Baseball Association: Industry association representing the 10 MLB Spring Training facilities and 15 teams across Arizona. Surprise Sundancers received the association's 2026 Outstanding Community Program award. Not a direct competitor but a key ecosystem partner and recognition-granting body.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/surprise-sundancers

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SURPRISE SUNDANCERS