Dream Makers

What Dream Makers does

Dream Makers (legally Dream Makers Project) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Windsor, Colorado, that connects community donors with youth aging out of the U.S. foster care system (ages 18-29). The organization operates a web-based platform at dreammakersproject.org where youth can apply for specific needs and donors can browse, select, and sponsor individual dreams across five categories: Education, Career, Transportation, Home Essentials, and Health and Wellness. Core products include the Dream Fund (a general recurring giving vehicle starting at $25/month), Sponsor A Dream (direct one-time sponsorship of specific items, typically $100-$1,000), a Youth Application Program, and a Donation Portal. The underlying technology is a Squarespace-hosted website with no disclosed proprietary AI, APIs, or integrations.

The business model is donation-driven with no earned revenue. Dream Makers generates funds through individual one-time and recurring donations, tiered dream sponsorships, and an annual Farm to Table Fundraiser event. Its go-to-market motion is community-led, centered on storytelling via Instagram (@dreammakersproject), a blog, a youth newsletter reaching 900+ recipients, and a stories page featuring fulfilled dream testimonials. The 2019 Adoption Excellence Award from HHS/ACF (recognized by then-VP Mike Pence) provides the strongest credibility signal. The organization operates with 12 employees and serves a U.S.-only footprint. Customer outcomes are framed around the systemic statistic that only 3% of former foster youth graduate from college, with Dream Makers positioning its tangible-resource model as a barrier-removal mechanism for education, employment, and stable adulthood.

Name

Dream Makers

Legal name

Dream Makers Project

Website

https://dreammakersproject.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dream Makers Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that connects community donors with youth aging out of the U.S. foster care system, enabling sponsors to fund specific needs across education, career, transportation, home essentials, and health and wellness via its web platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Foster Youth Support Services

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

akta.pro primary industry

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

Keywords

• Foster youth support
• Youth transitional services
• Nonprofit donation platform
• Community dream sponsorship
• Aging out support

Headquarters

HQ city

Windsor

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, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The organization generates revenue primarily through individual donations from supporters who fulfill youth dreams. Donors can make one-time or recurring donations at various levels ($25-$500+) or sponsor specific dreams ranging from $100-$1,000.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Dream Makers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that operates a donation and sponsorship platform connecting individual community donors with youth aging out of foster care (ages 18-29). The organization facilitates direct donor-to-recipient support through its Dream Fund (general giving) and Sponsor A Dream program, fulfilling tangible needs across five categories: Education, Career, Transportation, Home Essentials, and Health and Wellness. Eligible youth apply online, donors browse and select specific dreams to fund, and the organization processes gifts and fulfillment.

Product overview

Dream Makers is a nonprofit organization operating a platform-based program that connects community donors with youth aging out of foster care. The core offering consists of the Dream Fund (general giving fund), Sponsor A Dream (direct sponsorship), and a categorized Dream Request system covering Education, Career, Transportation, Home Essentials, and Health and Wellness. The organization processes donations through an online Donation Portal and shares impact through Blog/Resources and Success Stories content. Youth aged 18-29 who have aged out of foster care can apply through the Youth Application Program to have their dreams/needs fulfilled by community donors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Dream Fund A general donation fund that supports youth aging out of foster care by fulfilling urgent needs and life-changing dreams, providing essentials, education support, mentorship, and tangible items. Donors contribute to this fund when they do not wish to sponsor a specific dream.
• Sponsor A Dream A direct sponsorship program that allows donors to browse and fund specific youth dreams, helping recipients overcome barriers to independence. Dreams are organized into five categories: Education, Career, Transportation, Home Essentials, and Health and Wellness.
• Youth Application Program An online application system through which youth aged 18-29 who have aged out of the U.S. foster care system can request dream fulfillment support from Dream Makers.
• Donation Portal An online donation platform enabling supporters to make one-time or recurring donations to the Dream Fund or to sponsor specific youth dreams. Monthly giving starts at $25/month.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3% college graduation rate for supported youth vs. national average

Named customers8 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

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Business Partners (Logos displayed)minorOthersAcknowledged business partners who support the organization, though no specific partner names were disclosed in the source material. The logos section shows partner logos without naming individual companies.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Comfort Cases: Nonprofit providing duffel bags and essential items to youth in foster care and aging out. Operates a similar donor-funded, in-kind fulfillment model targeting the same foster-youth population.
• FosterClub: National nonprofit supporting current and former foster youth, including transition-age youth. Comparable target population (aging-out youth) with complementary programming and donor support.
• Raise the Future: Nonprofit (formerly RaiseAChild) focused on foster and adoption pathways. Comparable foster-youth mission with institutional and individual donor funding.
• Treehouse: Washington-state nonprofit focused on educational outcomes for foster youth, including graduation support, tutoring, and material assistance. Comparable youth-development focus with grant and donor funding.
• A Sense of Home: Nonprofit that creates furnished homes for youth aging out of foster care. Directly comparable in addressing the home essentials category that Dream Makers serves, with similar donor sponsorship mechanics.
• National Youth Advocate Program (NYAP): National nonprofit providing direct services to youth and families, including those in or aging out of foster care. Comparable youth-services mission with broader programmatic scope.
• Foster Care to Success (Fostering Connections): Nonprofit supporting current and former foster youth pursuing postsecondary education. Directly comparable education-support category served by Dream Makers, with scholarship-based programming.
• Together We Rise: 501(c)(3) nonprofit directly serving current and former foster youth with tangible goods, scholarships, and programs. Comparable mission (foster youth support), comparable direct-impact model, and similar donor-funded revenue model.

Emerging players

• Shoes That Fit: Nonprofit providing shoes and clothing to children in need, including those in the foster system. Comparable in-kind, donor-sponsored fulfillment model targeting children, though broader in mission than Dream Makers.

Broad incumbents

• Youth Villages: Large established nonprofit providing a continuum of services for children and young adults, including former foster youth. Significantly larger and broader in scope, but overlaps on the transition-age-youth segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• InstagramInstagram.com/dreammakersproject
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dreammakersproject

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Makers