Mission Statement
What we do 
Where we work
Board members
Annual reportsAbout Angelwish
Mission Statement
Angelwish.org was created in 1999 with the mission to provide the public with an easy way to grant wishes to the millions of children that are living with chronic illnesses around the world.
Angelwish achieves its mission by ensuring that 100% of individual donations are used for program services and that those funds are extended, where possible, to incorporate an educational component giving young people a hands on lesson in philanthropy.
Angelwish is a registered 501(c)3 charitable organization in the United States and is Registered Charity No. 1141090 in the United Kingdom.
About Angelwish
What We Do
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Online Birthday and Holiday Wish Granting
Angelwish pioneered the concept of digital philanthropy, engaging the public to provide critical psychosocial and educational support for children and adolescents living with chronic illnesses all over the world.
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International Giving
Angelwish offers donors the opportunity to support over 9 programs overseas, where monetary contributions have the greatest impact. Angelwish collects these funds from the public and redistributes 100% of the money to the partner organization to use for medical, nutritional, and educational purposes.
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Angelwish Holiday Toy Drive
Angelwish operates the physical distribution of toys donated by the Today Show Charitable Foundation. Though our roots are in online fulfillment of wishes, Angelwish is able to support our core values by reaching more children and encouraging civic engagement as a result of this drive.
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Angelwish Learning to Give Program
Angelwish has developed a curriculum for 3rd and 4th grade school children on Angelwish Giving Sprees at various toy stores or bookstores, talking to them about children living with chronic illnesses all over the country, and then asking them to select toys for those children using our money to pay for the items. Participating children go on to associate giving back with something fun.
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Angelwish Educational Support
Angelwish believes that there is a gap in support to at risk children with chronic illnesses and that our network and services can have an even greater impact on the educational opportunities for children.
About Angelwish
Where We Work
North America
Together, we can make holidays and birthdays something to celebrate for children living with Chronic Illnesses all over the country. Start by selecting a state, city, and care center that means something to you. You can grant a wish through the wishlist or you can make a donation and we'll take school children on an Angelwish Giving Spree to buy birthday presents for the children we support.
Internationally
However, the truth is that 80% of all chronic disease deaths occur in low and middle income countries. People from developing countries who develop chronic diseases are also more likely to die from them at a younger age than people in the developed world.
This is because chronic diseases and poverty tend to go hand in hand. Impoverished people are usually more vulnerable to these conditions, as they are exposed to more risks and have less access to health services. Chronic diseases also hurt economic development and worsen poverty as people are forced to miss work and pay for medical expenses.
About Angelwish
Management
Shimmy Mehta, founder/CEO
Early in his career with a Big Four accounting firm, Shimmy saw the need
for a simple and rewarding way for busy people like himself to get
involved in the community.
He quickly tapped into his network of contacts and mentors to pioneer the concept of digital philanthropy through Angelwish.org,
spending the greater part of his 9 years at the Firm matching the resources
of his peers with the needs of the many children who were living with HIV/AIDS.
In 2006, Shimmy sent his resignation by text message, took the helm of Angelwish in the US, jumped over the pond to start up Angelwish in the UK, and co-founded another nonprofit called "Karma Geek". In 2009-2010, during what was possibly the worst economic climate to hit nonprofits, he made unorthodox decision to expand services to include children in need who were dealing with Chronic Illnesses.
Angelwish Board of Directors (US)
Jim Brinksma, Director
Dr. Jim Brinksma is the Founding Partner of Visible Arbitrage, an investment and advisory firm that focuses on Angel Investing, Corporate and Nonprofit Mentoring, Proprietary Trading, and Research. Jim has global experience and has provided a range of services to entrepreneurs, venture capital firms, hedge funds, institutional banks, service providers, equipment manufacturers, and non-profits.
Doug Ferrick, Director
Doug is the Vice President of Donor Relations; Vice President of Fund Development; and Senior Director of Donor Relations at the United Way for Southeastern Michigan. Being the Vice President of Donor Relations for United Way for Southeastern Michigan allows Doug to tap into his core passion, bringing communities and people together around a common cause to create lasting change. By working with donors, volunteers and staff he helps guide their passions by investing in quality of life issues (basic needs, education, financial stability).
With over 20 years of comprehensive nonprofit leadership experience in small to large nonprofits, Doug recently completed his master degree at Case Western Reserve University in Nonprofit Organizations. By serving on the board at Angelwish along with his daily work in making metro Detroit one of the top five cities to live and work by 2030, he believes that philanthropy plays a pivotal role in improving the social conditions of a neighborhood, a city and even a country.
Jeffrey Zink, Director
Jeffrey Zink has over 30 years of experience in successfully launching and developing companies, products and services. Equally, he has a proven track record as an outstanding turnaround specialist. He currently is the Managing Director/Partner in the Westchester Business Accelerator. The WBA is a business growth/growth advisory and turnaround resource that assists companies grow to their potential.
Jeffrey is responsible for the implementation of the growth plan; advising clients on developing and creating all sales, marketing and operation strategies.
His previous endeavor was as a Vice President of YAHOO! Jeffrey started with YAHOO! in 1995 shortly after its IPO launch. He was solely responsible for building the East Coast and Canada operations including sales, strategic alliances, business development, business operations and web broadcasting. During his tenure revenue grew in the eastern region to over $300 million dollars.
US Corporate Advisory Board
Romain Kapadia
Romain Kapadia has spent his career focused on building consumer/retail and hospitality businesses. Currently, Mr. Kapadia acts as an advisor to two of India's largest conglomerates spearheading international retail partnerships for the Indian market. From 2001 – 2008, Romain was an award-winning fashion entrepreneur and the recipient of over fifteen industry-accolades and notable press mentions in leading fashion publications. Romain has a BBA in Marketing from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from INSEAD/Wharton Business School. He's avid runner having completed 4 marathons and is active with several charities including being on the founding team of the American India Foundation's Young Professional's Chapter.
Angelwish (UK) Board of Trustees
Paul Caseiras
Born and raised in New York, Paul became interested in helping children,
especially those from developing countries, when he started his banking
career working with clients in Emerging Markets. Through his years of
experience in Latin America and Eastern Europe, Paul witnessed the
plight of underprivileged children and has used his contacts in
these countries to help them as much as possible
Paul is currently a Director of Credit Suisse in charge of Fixed Income
Prime Brokerage. In this role Paul deals with international investors
throughout the world and helps them with their fixed income investments.
Prior to Credit Suisse Paul held positions at Lehman Brothers, Citibank and Renaissance Capital.
Paul has a BS in Computer Engineering from Syracuse University and an MBA from University of Rochester. Paul is married with a daughter and a
son on the way. He, his wife Gisele, and daughter Beatriz, recently
relocated to New York from London.
Michael Walters
Born in Scotland, Michael moved to Trinidad when he was just a few days old and has been travelling ever since. After attending school in his native Scotland, Michael went on to study Artificial Intelligence and later Design and Digital Media at Edinburgh University. This equipped him well for his role as freelance web designer, where he used the freedom it afforded to continue travelling. Returning to the UK, Michael took up a role at the London office of Next Jump, a New York headquartered online e-commerce company, where he is currently helping grow the Marketing and Technology team.
Shimmy Mehta, founder
Early in his career with a Big Four accounting firm, Shimmy saw the need
for a simple and rewarding way for busy people like himself to get
involved in the community.
He quickly tapped into his network of contacts and mentors to pioneer the concept of digital philanthropy through Angelwish.org,
spending the greater part of his 9 years at the Firm matching the resources
of his peers with the needs of the many children who were living with HIV/AIDS.
In 2006, Shimmy sent his resignation by text message, took the helm of Angelwish in the US, jumped over the pond to start up Angelwish in the UK, and co-founded another nonprofit called "Karma Geek". In 2009-2010, during what was possibly the worst economic climate to hit nonprofits, he made unorthodox decision to expand services to include children in need who were dealing with Chronic Illnesses.
About Angelwish
Annual Reports
Angelwish is committed to providing the public with transparent access to our reports and records. We encourage the use of Guidestar.org as it provides an objective source of IRS verified data.
