When Dana Thomas started the Seed Circle Project in her neighborhood, it was a small initiative to provide healthy food and education to local families. Two years later, it’s a multi-state nonprofit empowering communities through regenerative agriculture—and it all accelerated through her time in the Altruist Impact Accelerator.
Starting Small, Thinking Big Dana’s original pilot served 30 families. She knew the model had potential but lacked the systems and support to scale responsibly.
A Strategic Turning Point During the Altruist Accelerator, Dana refined her mission, created a sustainable funding model, and built new partnerships with food equity organizations.
Major Wins By the end of the program, Seed Circle had tripled its funding, launched in three new cities, and hired its first full-time staff. Dana credits the program with helping her go from community leader to visionary executive director.
Lessons for Changemakers “The program gave me the clarity and confidence to say no to distractions and yes to scale,” Dana says. “I stopped feeling like I had to figure everything out alone.”
If you’ve been holding back on your vision because of capacity, support, or strategy, Dana’s story is proof: the right accelerator can change everything.
