Dream Big!

What Dream Big! does

Dream Big! is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization incorporated in Massachusetts in February 2010 by Linda Driscoll. Its core mission is to remove the economic barriers that prevent girls and young women from low-income and homeless situations in Massachusetts from participating in sports and physical activities. The organization does this by providing equipment grants, athletic footwear, sports attire, program fees, and college showcase scholarships, distributed through a network of 100+ partner schools, Boys & Girls Clubs, and after-school programs across the state, and processed through a Sports Attire Distribution Center operated out of its Needham, MA headquarters warehouse.

The organization's core products are Equipment Grants, Program Scholarships, College Showcase Scholarships, and the annual Dream Big! Leadership Conference (now in its 11th year, hosted at UMass Boston) that pairs female student athletes with accomplished women leaders. Supplementary programs include the Sponsor-A-Dream individual-sponsorship program and the Kathy Dooley Inspiration Grant & Scholarship. The technology stack is minimal and non-proprietary: standard nonprofit management tools, a basic inventory tracking system for donated equipment, and online application forms for grants and scholarships. There is no software platform, no mobile app, and no published APIs.

The business model is a donation- and grant-funded nonprofit operating model. Revenue streams include foundation and corporate grants (notably a $250,000 grant from Jack Dorsey's #startsmall initiative in 2023 and $100,000+ grants from the Frederick A. Deluca Foundation and the Women's Foundation of Massachusetts), individual giving (Circle of Champions at $1,000+), in-kind donations (Good360 at $250,000+ in goods annually), event-based fundraising through the Boston Marathon charity team (over $216,000 raised in 2026), and the annual Sports Gala & Auction at Fenway Park. Services are provided at no cost to beneficiaries, and geographic eligibility for equipment grants is restricted to Massachusetts residents. Major corporate partners include Boston Bruins Foundation, Boston Red Sox Foundation, New England Patriots Foundation, Nike, adidas, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and State Street Foundation.

Name

Dream Big!

Legal name

Dream Big!

Website

https://dream-big.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Dream Big! is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides sports equipment, footwear, attire, program fees, and college showcase scholarships to girls and young women from economically disadvantaged communities in Massachusetts, distributed through a network of 100+ partner schools and community organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Sports Nonprofit Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (8134)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts, Sports & Recreation-Based Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sports Fundraising & Development Services (Foundations, NIL Collectives Support) (MPAKAKAK), Cause, Community & CSR-Linked Sports Partnerships (Foundations, Youth Programs) (MPAKALAJ)

Keywords

• Youth sports nonprofit
• Equipment grants
• Program scholarships
• Girls empowerment programs
• Athletic leadership training

Headquarters

HQ city

Needham, Massachusetts

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation and Corporate Grants: Dream Big! receives major grants from foundations and corporations including a $250,000 grant from Jack Dorsey's #startsmall initiative, $100,000+ from The Frederick A. Deluca Foundation and Women's Foundation of Massachusetts, and support from Nike Foundation, Boston Bruins Foundation, Boston Red Sox Foundation, New England Patriots Foundation, Goldman Sachs, and others. These grants fund equipment donations, program scholarships, and organizational operations.
2. Individual and Family Donations: Individual donors contribute at various levels ranging from $25 to $20,000+. The Dream Big! Circle of Champions recognizes individual/family gifts of $1,000 or more. Individual giving is solicited through the website, email updates, events, and volunteer engagement.
3. In-Kind Donations: Manufacturers, retailers, and wholesalers donate new sports equipment, uniforms, sneakers, and sports attire. Good360 is a major in-kind partner providing $250,000+ in donated goods. adidas, Nike, and Boston Globe also provide in-kind donations. These goods are distributed to girls in need rather than sold.
4. Boston Marathon Charity Team Fundraising: As a Boston Athletic Association official charity partner, Dream Big! fields a team of runners who commit to minimum fundraising thresholds ($12,000 per runner for charity bibs, $2,000 for runners with their own bibs). The 2026 team raised over $216,000.
5. Event Sponsorships: The annual Dream Big! Sports Gala & Auction at Fenway Park generates revenue through ticket sales, table sponsorships ($1,200 for a reserved table of 10), corporate sponsors, and auction donations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Dream Big! is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides sports equipment, athletic footwear, sports attire, program fees, and college showcase scholarships to girls and young women from economically disadvantaged communities in Massachusetts so they can participate in sports and physical activities. It also runs an annual Leadership Conference, a Sponsor-A-Dream program, and a Boston Marathon charity team to fundraise and engage the community.

Product overview

Dream Big! is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that operates as a single integrated program focused on empowering girls and young women from economically disadvantaged communities through sports and physical activities. The organization offers Equipment Grants, Program Scholarships, and College Showcase Scholarships as its core services, distributed through a Sports Attire Distribution Center. Additional offerings include the annual Dream Big! Leadership Conferences, the Sponsor-A-Dream individual sponsorship program, and the Boston Marathon Team fundraising program. Since 2010, the organization has impacted over 108,000 girls through equipment donations, program scholarships, sports clinics, and leadership conferences serving Massachusetts communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Equipment Grants Provides sports equipment, athletic footwear, sports attire, and uniforms to girls and young women from low-income situations in Massachusetts to enable participation in sports and physical activities.
• Program Scholarships Covers program fees for dance, fitness, sports, and other physical activity programs for girls and young women from economically disadvantaged communities.
• College Showcase Scholarships Provides financial assistance for college showcase fees and national championship participation for female athletes.
• Dream Big! Leadership Conferences Annual conferences that pair female student athletes from urban communities with accomplished women leaders, featuring Olympic, professional, collegiate, and high school athletes sharing insights on sports, education, and career success.
• Sports Attire Distribution Center Warehouse facility that stores and distributes sports attire, equipment, athletic footwear, and uniforms to girls in need throughout Massachusetts.
• Sponsor-A-Dream Program that allows donors to sponsor specific equipment, sports attire, footwear, and program fee requests from individual girls or programs in need.
• Boston Marathon Team Program Official Bank of America Boston Marathon charity program partner that recruits runners to fundraise, with funds supporting equipment, footwear, sports attire, program fees, and college showcase scholarships for girls in need.
• Kathy Dooley Inspiration Grant & Scholarship Annual scholarship named in memory of Kathy Dooley, awarded to a female basketball player in junior high or high school who exhibits extraordinary courage, values education, and serves as an inspiration to others. Includes sneakers, sports attire, and week-long basketball camp attendance.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 108,000 girls and young women positively impacted since 2010
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Good360flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerGood360 is a major in-kind partner providing $250,000+ in donated goods annually. As a product donation partner, Good360 connects Dream Big! with manufacturers and retailers who have surplus inventory, enabling the distribution of new sports equipment, attire, and footwear to girls in need. Good360 also serves as a $250,000+ financial donor.
• Boston Athletic Association (BAA)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerDream Big! is an official charity partner of the Bank of America Boston Marathon, receiving charity bib numbers and access to the marathon’s fundraising platform. The BAA is a $50,000+ corporate donor and provides in-kind event support. Dream Big! has been a BAA charity partner since 2013.
• Bank of AmericaflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerAs the presenting sponsor of the Boston Marathon, Bank of America enables Dream Big!’s participation as an official charity partner through the BAA. Dream Big! is a Bank of America Boston Marathon Official Charity Program Partner.
• Harvard University Athletic DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHarvard University Athletic Department serves as an Equipment Partner Organization, providing sports equipment donations to Dream Big! for distribution to girls in need.
• Babson College Athletic DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBabson College Athletic Department serves as an Equipment Partner Organization, contributing sports equipment to Dream Big!’s donation pipeline.
• Franklin SportsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFranklin Sports made a generous donation of softball gloves, bats, balls, and other equipment to Dream Big! to help create new opportunities for girls to train and compete in softball. The equipment was used to fill grant requests from Boston Public Schools Athletic Department.
• Sudbury Youth SoccerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSudbury Youth Soccer donated soccer equipment including balls, pinnies, cones, and other items to Dream Big! impacting over 500 girls throughout Greater Boston.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Right To Play: Right To Play is an international nonprofit that uses sport and play to educate and empower children facing adversity. Its sport-for-development mission and equipment/program support model align closely with Dream Big!'s core activities.
• Women's Sports Foundation: Women's Sports Foundation is a nonprofit that advances participation, leadership, and opportunities for girls and women in sports. Dream Big!'s founder previously served as Community Relations Director for its GoGirlGo! Boston program, indicating direct operational adjacency.
• Laureus Sport for Good Foundation: Laureus Sport for Good funds and supports community sport programs that use sport to address social challenges for young people. It is a global benchmark peer for the youth-development-through-sport grantmaking space that Dream Big! operates in.
• Playworks: Playworks is a nonprofit that improves the health and wellbeing of children through safe, inclusive play and physical activity at school. It shares Dream Big!'s school-based delivery model and focus on removing barriers to sports participation for under-resourced youth.
• Girls on the Run International: Girls on the Run is a nonprofit that inspires girls to develop confidence and social/emotional skills through running and physical activity. It overlaps with Dream Big! on the girls' empowerment through sports mission and similar school-based delivery model.
• Good Sports: Good Sports is a nonprofit that donates new sports equipment, apparel, and footwear to youth in need across the U.S. It is the most direct peer to Dream Big!, operating a similar in-kind donation model for under-resourced youth athletes.

Broad incumbents

• Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Boys & Girls Clubs of America is the largest national youth-development nonprofit, providing sports, education, and enrichment programming to under-resourced youth. It is a key distribution partner for Dream Big! and a broad incumbent spanning the same youth-sports beneficiary segment.
• Positive Coaching Alliance: Positive Coaching Alliance is a national nonprofit that develops positive youth sports cultures through coach and parent training. It is a broader incumbent in the youth-sports-development space, overlapping thematically with Dream Big!'s mission but not direct equipment provisioning.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/Auburndale-MA/Dream-Big/106061266105158
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dream-big-

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Dream Big!