Make-A-Wish Mississippi

What Make-A-Wish Mississippi does

Make-A-Wish Foundation of Mississippi is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation (EIN 64-0730362) and a local chapter of Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, operating from its headquarters in Ridgeland, Mississippi with a Southern Region office in Gulfport. Founded in 1984 and currently employing eight staff, the chapter's core mission is to grant wishes to children with critical illnesses living in Mississippi. Wish fulfillment is delivered through the national Make-A-Wish infrastructure, which provides brand standards, governance, and shared digital platforms; the chapter executes locally through volunteer networks, medical referrals, and partnerships such as the National Park Service for experience-based wishes.

The chapter's product surface is a unified wish-granting program, supported by three revenue-generating components: an online donation platform (secure2.wish.org) offering one-time and monthly giving, a peer-to-peer fundraising tool (site.wish.org/yourway036) for supporter-led campaigns, and a Square-powered apparel store (mawmiss.square.site) with 100% of net proceeds directed to local wish grants. Revenue is generated entirely through voluntary charitable contributions across three streams: individual donations (one-time and recurring), fundraising events, and corporate partnerships/sponsorships. Public pricing is not disclosed as donations are voluntary.

The organization has no proprietary technology platform beyond standard nonprofit SaaS integrations (Square, GuideStar for transparency, the national chapter's donation CMS). Go-to-market is a multi-channel mix of social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn), email newsletter, events, and in-person fundraising. Demand-side metrics show 3 children waiting for every wish granted and a nationwide cadence of 15 wishes granted per day, indicating significant unmet demand relative to current funding capacity.

Name

Make-A-Wish Mississippi

Legal name

Make-A-Wish Foundation of Mississippi

Website

https://ms.wish.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Make-A-Wish Mississippi is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit chapter of Make-A-Wish America that grants wishes to children with critical illnesses in Mississippi, funded through individual donations, corporate partnerships, fundraising events, and an online apparel store.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Wish Granting Services

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAKAE

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Philanthropy, Foundations & Grantmaking

Keywords

• Children's charity
• Wish granting
• Nonprofit fundraising
• Critical illness support
• Corporate philanthropy

Headquarters

HQ city

Ridgeland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: One-time and monthly donations from individuals to fund wish grants for children with critical illnesses
2. Fundraising Events: Annual and recurring fundraising campaigns and events that generate donations to support wish granting
3. Corporate Partnerships: Corporate sponsorships and partnerships from businesses supporting the mission

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Make-A-Wish Mississippi grants wishes to children with critical illnesses in Mississippi, fulfilling personally meaningful requests such as becoming a park ranger, meeting celebrities, or experiencing special events. The organization funds these wish experiences through an online donation platform, personal fundraising tools, corporate sponsorships, and a branded apparel merchandise shop whose net proceeds support the local chapter.

Product overview

Make-A-Wish Mississippi is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity that operates as a single, unified service offering focused on granting wishes to children with critical illnesses. The organization's portfolio includes three interconnected programs: wish granting as the core mission, a donation/fundraising platform to sustain operations, and a merchandise shop generating additional revenue. All programs work together to support the mission of transforming lives through wish experiences, with the main website serving as the hub for referrals, donations, and volunteer engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wish Granting Program Core service that grants personally meaningful wishes to children with critical illnesses (such as congenital heart disease) residing in Mississippi, fulfilling requests like becoming a park ranger, meeting celebrities, or seeing snow.
• Donation Platform Online donation system enabling one-time and recurring monthly contributions to fund wish-granting operations for the Mississippi chapter, accessible via the secure wish.org portal.
• Fundraising Tools Digital fundraising platform that allows supporters to create personal fundraising campaigns and events to raise money for wish grants, accessible at site.wish.org/yourway036.
• Merchandise Shop (Square) Online apparel store selling Make-A-Wish Mississippi branded merchandise through Square's e-commerce platform, with 100% of net proceeds going to support local wish grants.

Quantifiable outcome

• 15 wishes granted per day (nationally)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• National Park ServiceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal agency that collaborates with Make-A-Wish to fulfill wishes for children who wish to be park rangers, providing uniform and experience opportunities
• GuideStarminorOthersGuideStar provides nonprofit transparency information for Make-A-Wish Mississippi (EIN: 64-0730362), allowing donors to verify nonprofit status and financial information

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Sunshine Foundation: Wish-granting charity focused on children with severe/profound physical disabilities and life-threatening conditions. Directly comparable wish-fulfillment service model and nonprofit donation-funded operating structure.
• Ronald McDonald House Charities: Major nonprofit serving critically ill children and their families through hospitality and support programs. Comparable donor base, mission focus on pediatric critical illness, and reliance on individual/corporate donations and volunteer networks.
• Starlight Children's Foundation: National nonprofit delivering programs (including wish-like experiences, toys, and hospital entertainment) to seriously ill children. Closely aligned mission of transforming the experience of critical pediatric illness through joy-based programs.
• Kids Wish Network: Direct wish-granting nonprofit for children with life-threatening illnesses. Almost identical service offering (wish fulfillment), overlapping donor base, and similar small-staff nonprofit operational model.

Broad incumbents

• Make-A-Wish Foundation of America: The national parent organization and world's largest wish-granting charity. Directly comparable mission, brand, and beneficiary population; serves as the umbrella for the Mississippi chapter and 50+ other state chapters.
• Make-A-Wish Foundation International: Affiliated global organization supporting Make-A-Wish chapters worldwide. Highly comparable mission (granting wishes to critically ill children) and operates under the same brand system as the Mississippi chapter.
• Children's Miracle Network Hospitals: National nonprofit raising funds for children's hospitals. Directly comparable in mission to fund pediatric medical care, similar reliance on corporate partners and individual donors, and overlapping brand presence in cause marketing.
• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital: Predominant nonprofit focused on pediatric catastrophic diseases (cancer and other life-threatening illnesses). Competes for the same donor audience and serves an overlapping beneficiary population, with national fundraising scale and brand recognition.

Emerging players

• Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation: Pediatric cancer nonprofit combining research funding, family support, and grassroots fundraising. Comparable in beneficiary focus (children with critical illness), donor activation model (event-driven giving), and chapter-affiliated community presence.
• The National Children's Cancer Society: National nonprofit providing direct financial and emotional support to children with cancer and their families. Comparable pediatric-critical-illness beneficiary population and donor-driven funding model, though focuses on financial assistance rather than wish experiences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/MAWMississippi/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/mswish
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/makeawishms
• Instagraminstagram.com/makeawishms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Make-A-Wish Mississippi