The Sparrow Fund

What The Sparrow Fund does

The Sparrow Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2011 by Mark and Kelly Raudenbush and headquartered in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, that serves adoptive and foster families across the United States. Its work spans the full lifecycle of adoption: pre-adoption preparation, the first year post-placement, and ongoing support for children and adults navigating trauma, attachment difficulties, and relationship strain. The organization delivers services through three primary programs — the free Family Care Program, Child + Family Services (clinical therapy), and the annual Together Called marriage retreat — supplemented by sub-services including Project Puppy Love (canine-assisted therapy) and Training + Speaking engagements.

The clinical model is grounded in evidence-based trauma and attachment modalities, including Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Child-Parent Psychotherapy, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, Confessional Communities, and Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI), augmented by experiential techniques (art, structured play, writing, imagining) and a canine co-therapist (currently Banks, a golden retriever). Therapeutic services are priced at $135 per 60-minute hour with a discounted fee scale for hardship cases; insurance is not directly accepted. The Together Called retreat is capped at 100 couples per year and held at Bear Creek Mountain Resort in Berks County, PA.

The business model is a hybrid of fee-for-service therapy, charitable fundraising, and event sponsorship. The Family Care Program is free to qualifying families (including up to $500 in medical review subsidies per family), funded by a community of recurring individual monthly donors and event sponsors; therapeutic services generate fee revenue, and Together Called is subsidized by sponsors so couples pay below actual cost. There are no equity investors, no parent company, and no publicly disclosed revenue figure; the organization operates on a small six-person team plus a facility dog.

Name

The Sparrow Fund

Legal name

The Sparrow Fund

Website

https://sparrowfund.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Sparrow Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Phoenixville, PA that supports adoptive and foster families nationwide through free pre/post-adoption case management, trauma-informed clinical therapy, an annual couples' retreat, and canine-assisted therapy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Adoption and Foster Care Support Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Child and Youth Services (624110)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Family & Parenting Support Services (BPAGAEAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Family & Parent Support Services (Parent Coaching, Advocacy) (EDAJALAK), Family Resource Centers & Wraparound Support Services (EDACALAH)

Keywords

• Adoption support services
• Foster care therapy
• Trauma-informed counseling
• Canine-assisted therapy
• Attachment-based intervention

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenixville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The organization relies on individual donations from a community of monthly donors, many of whom have been personally impacted by adoption. Donations support the Family Care Program, Child + Family Services, Together Called retreats, Project Puppy Love, and operating budget.
2. Sponsorships: Generous sponsors allow the organization to offer the Together Called marriage retreat experience to couples below actual cost.
3. Therapeutic Services Fees: Family therapy services at $135 per 60-minute hour with discounted fee scale available for families demonstrating financial hardship.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Sparrow Fund provides trauma-informed clinical therapy, a free Family Care Program, an annual marriage retreat, and canine-assisted therapy (Project Puppy Love) to foster and adoptive children and their families. Services are delivered by a 6-person clinical and operations team in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, supported by individual donations, sponsorships, and fee-based therapy at $135 per 60-minute hour with a discounted sliding scale.

Product overview

The Sparrow Fund offers a unified suite of services for adoptive and foster families rather than a software product. The core offerings include the Family Care Program (pre/post-adoption support with case management, therapist reviews, and financial assistance up to $500), Child + Family Services (trauma-responsive clinical therapy), and Together Called (annual marriage retreat). Sub-services include Project Puppy Love (canine-assisted therapy with facility dog Banks) and Training + Speaking (professional education). The organization also provides Recommended Resources as supplementary materials. All services are integrated around the organization's relationship-centered, trauma-informed approach.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Project Puppy Love: An attachment-based canine-assisted therapy program for adoptive and foster families, launched in June 2018 in partnership with Paws & Affection. The program involves trained facility dogs working with children and grownups to build connection skills.
• Together Called
• Family Care Program
• Child + Family Services

Products and services

• Family Care Program A free support program for families pursuing adoption that provides individualized care, a Family Care Partner, resources, referral reviews by child and family therapists, up to $500 in medical review funding, Prepare-Enrich assessment access, and attachment coaching through the first year post-placement.
• Child + Family Services (Sparrow Counseling) Trauma-responsive therapeutic services for foster and adopted children and their families, delivered at $135 per 60-minute hour with a discounted fee scale, integrating TF-CBT, Child-Parent Psychotherapy, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, TBRI, and canine-assisted interaction.
• Project Puppy Love Canine-assisted therapy program partnering with Paws & Affection to provide trained facility dogs (currently Banks, a golden retriever) who work alongside clinicians as cotherapists to help children and families develop connection skills.
• Together Called Marriage Retreat
• Training + Speaking Professional training events and speaking engagements delivered at adoption and foster care conferences including the Northeast Adoption Summit, MidAtlantic Orphan Care Coalition Summit, ATTACh conference, and CAFO Summit, covering trauma-informed care and attachment topics.
• Recommended Resources Curated book and resource lists for grownups and children focused on adoption, trauma, attachment, and family connection, including titles such as The Connected Child and The Body Keeps the Score.

Quantifiable outcome

• Free Family Care Program available to families with completed home study regardless of financial need status
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Paws & AffectioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Paws & Affection, a nonprofit in the Philadelphia area that trains and places service, companion, and facility dogs. The partnership enables Project Puppy Love, an attachment-based canine-assisted therapy program. Paws & Affection provides expertly trained dogs including Louie (2018-2025) and Banks (2022-present) who work as cotherapists alongside Kelly Raudenbush.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• North American Council on Adoptable Children: Adoption and foster care advocacy organization providing resources, training, and support for adoptive families and professionals; comparable as a peer nonprofit supporting the adoption and foster care community with educational and family services.
• ATTACh: Association for Training and Trauma Treatment in Childhood focused on attachment and trauma-informed care; directly comparable as Sparrow's Executive Director is a credentialed trauma/attachment practitioner and the organization regularly presents at ATTACh.
• Lifesong for Orphans: Faith-rooted nonprofit providing adoption aid, foster care support, and family grants; directly comparable as an adoption/foster-focused family support nonprofit with similar faith-rooted positioning.
• Gladney Center for Adoption: Long-standing nonprofit adoption agency offering post-adoption support, family counseling, and education programs; closely mirrors Sparrow's combination of clinical services and family-facing support for adoptive families.
• National Council for Adoption: Advocacy and support organization focused on adoption education and family resources; comparable to Sparrow's adoption-focused family support and community education work.
• Hand in Hand: The Parent and Child Network: Nonprofit that supports parents raising children with early trauma or attachment challenges through online parent support groups and educational content; directly comparable to Sparrow's parent coaching and attachment-focused mission.
• Bethany Christian Services: One of the largest U.S. adoption and foster care service organizations; directly comparable to The Sparrow Fund as a nonprofit providing a continuum of adoption services, post-adoption support, and family counseling across the country.
• Show Hope: Nonprofit focused on reducing financial barriers to adoption and providing post-adoption care including medical care grants and family support; directly comparable in mission and adoption-focused service offering.

Emerging players

• Embrace Race: Nonprofit focused on raising multiracial children and supporting adoptive/foster parents navigating racial identity; emerging peer with overlapping audience of transracial adoptive and foster families.

Others

• Paws & Affection: Philadelphia-area nonprofit that trains and places service, companion, and facility dogs; comparability lies in being a direct strategic partner that enables Sparrow's Project Puppy Love canine-assisted therapy program.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Project-Puppy-Love-193047638027050
• Instagraminstagram.com/projectpuppylove
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thesparrowfund

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 The Sparrow Fund