Dave Thomas Foundation For Adoption
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption (EIN 31-1356151) is a national nonprofit based in Dublin, OH, dedicated to finding permanent homes for children in North America's foster care systems. The Foundation, started by Wendy’s founder Dave Thomas, runs programs such as Wendy’s Wonderful Kids, national grantmaking, awareness campaigns, and provides resources for adoptive families and child welfare professionals.
Source: Website · Mar 2026
Ideal Applicant
A state or local child-welfare agency or an established nonprofit running adoption/foster-care recruitment programs (especially Wendy's Wonderful Kids or similar targeted recruitment models).
Good Fit
- • Direct service work focused on finding permanent homes for children in foster care.
- • Experience implementing or partnering on targeted recruitment models like Wendy's Wonderful Kids.
- • Capacity to track placement and outcome metrics over multiple years.
- • Organizational scale to manage grants in the $50K–$1M+ range or to partner with county/state child welfare systems.
Geography
Observed grantmaking is national: the latest year shows recipients in 45 states and roughly 73% of dollars went to out-of-state recipients, so geographic reach is broad.
Recipient Variety
The foundation funded about 134 distinct recipients in 2024 (135 grants), with many independent organizations funded each year; although some large grants exist, the portfolio funds a wide set of organizations rather than a tiny circle.
New Applicants
Direct evidence of new entrants exists—17 new recipients in 2024 (and ~20 in 2023)—so unfamiliar organizations can join the portfolio, but no public application guidelines were found on the website, so openness to new applicants is plausible but not clearly formalized.
Source: Zeffy Agent · Mar 2026
