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How we got here
Inception
This is the backstory of how TalentDreams came into creation. For the founders, it's a passion project more than a decade in the making. Life is filled with adversity, challenges, and important decision-making.
Where we come from and the resources we have to work with, play a critical role in how we overcome adversity, work through challenges, and approach decision-making. And the reality is, not all of us have the same access to resources as the next person. TalentDreams is all about leveling the playing field and providing that access to anyone who wants it.
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Andrew Elliott, the President of TalentDreams, realized how impactful it was to have resources to help in navigating the adversity, challenges, and decisions that shape our lives. And the resource that made the most leveraged impact, was mentorship. When people, and in particular youth, have role models they are able to learn from, the positive effect of that is striking. Not only can it change where they go, but it can also accelerate how fast they get there, and how easy or challenging the path is. The net outcome is a single point of input at the right time can change lives, for the better.
2017
So in 2017, after building a (mildly) successful career in Tech, Andrew decided to get involved as a Mentor with Year Up, and help others work to start their career in Tech. Year Up is a national nonprofit whose mission is to close the Opportunity Divide by providing urban young adults ages 18-29 with the professional skills, experience, and support that will empower them to reach their potential through professional careers and higher education.
Year Up profile on 60 Minutes
2019
In 2019, Andrew decided he wanted to climb Kilimanjaro, the highest free-standing mountain in the world. But he wanted to put a purpose behind it. So working with a small team, they partnered with and volunteered onsite at MedShare. MedShare is a humanitarian aid nonprofit dedicated to improving the quality of life of people, communities and our planet by sourcing and directly delivering surplus medical supplies and equipment to communities in need around the world.
He tormented his friends, making them participate and volunteer. Together, Andrew and the team used the climb as an opportunity to generate awareness and helped raise $25,000. This subsidized sending a shipping container with $150,000+ worth of medical supplies and equipment to Friends of Shirati and the Shirati Hospital in Tanzania. MedShare has developed an incredible program and was an amazing partner for us.
2020
After serving as a Mentor for several years, and seeing first-hand the impact Year Up was making, Andrew knew he wanted to eventually build something that served the population of youth in the phase of life just before the cohort Year Up was focusing on. High School and whatever comes next, can be a turbulent, chaotic time for many people. There are often major decisions being considered, and it can be a difficult, confusing period.
When Covid hit, Andrew knew it was time. He had just returned from Africa, visiting Tanzania and climbing Kili, and had the chance to see a Maasai school (it might be made out of sticks, but what a stunning setting!) as remote as you can possibly imagine in the bush near the Serengeti. It was a deeply impactful experience and ignited a passion to explore more of the beautiful and rugged continent, filled with so much potential.
2021
Knowing, is not the same as doing! It took another year before he began to seriously consider the parts necessary to make TalentDreams a reality. But gradually, it came together. As he started sharing the concept with friends, family, and peers, people began getting excited. They identified with the vision, and wanted to get involved. Eventually, a board of directors started to take shape, the 501(c)(3) status was approved by the IRS, and suddenly, it was very real!
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2022
Interestingly, as the pieces began coming together, Andrew was just returning from Africa again. He had the opportunity to go observe operations at Ishimwe Pioneer, a nonprofit doing incredible things in the Bugesera region of Rwanda. They built an elementary and high school serving over 300 students, and support the local village of Mwendo, at times employing 100+ locals from the village. In a land-locked region struggling with poverty and a seemingly impossible-to-meet demand for food due to scarcity of available resources, they have built an absolutely amazing self-sustaining fish farm that is renowned across the entire country for the quality of product they produce.
Today...
Fast forward to late-2022, and things are converging for TalentDreams. The initial concept has been narrowed in focus, the board of directors began meeting for the first time in person, advisors with phenomenal experience and expertise are getting involved, and the momentum is palpable. The only thing we need now, is a strong fundraising response to fully materialize the concept so the team has the financial resources to deliver on our mission: To inspire, enrich, and mentor young people so they can discover, embrace, and express their talent and pursue their dreams.
We need your help!! Every donation brings us closer to achieving our vision of helping today's youth and young adults develop into their future potential.