Make-A-Wish America has announced the addition of Scooter Braun, CEO and board member of HYBE America and founder of SB Projects, and Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, to the national board of directors following the national board meeting on Feb. 3.
Braun and D’Amaro are two of the most influential leaders at the intersection of entertainment and business. Each will bring his unique skills and respective expertise across areas of business expansion, strategy development, talent management and more to the Make-A-Wish mission to deliver the life-changing impact of a wish to more children with critical illnesses.
Braun founded SB Projects in 2007 to be a diversified entertainment and media company that sits at the junction of music, film, television, technology, brands, culture and social good. While the company has produced several notable TV and film projects and serves as a tech incubator, it’s in the music space where Braun and SB Projects have been able to work closely with Make-A-Wish. Braun, who has personally played a part in wishes for more than a decade, remains committed to his company’s founding philosophy of giving back and designs a philanthropic element for each new initiative. In partnership with the pop culture icons that SB Projects manages, the company has helped to grant 546 wishes to date. As a result, SB Projects was awarded the prestigious Chris Greicius Celebrity Award at the 2022 Make-A-Wish Annual Conference. Braun, who attended the conference to accept the award on the company’s behalf, used the opportunity to surprise a wish kid in attendance with the news that the company would be granting her wish to have a professional recording experience.
“One of the most impactful aspects of granting a wish is the chance to see the parents and siblings of these kids. I can assure you that you have never witnessed a more selfless and giving human being than those that support their loved ones. Witnessing these wishes reinforces your belief in humanity and allows for a profound realization of the important impact these moments have on the kids and all those around them,” shared Braun. “It is an honor to join the board and continue granting many more wishes ahead.”
As Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, D’Amaro oversees Disney’s iconic travel and leisure businesses, including six theme park-resort destinations in the United States, Europe and Asia; a top-rated cruise line; a popular vacation ownership program; an award-winning guided family adventure business; and the global consumer products operations, which includes the world’s leading licensing business across toys, apparel, home goods, digital games and apps; the world’s largest children’s print publisher; and the shopDisney e-commerce platform. Josh leads a cast of more than 150,000 people – and since Disney is the world’s largest wish granter, many cast members interact with Make-A-Wish families regularly. In total, the Walt Disney Company has helped to grant more than 145,000 wishes worldwide since 1980. D’Amaro continues the Disney legacy of top executives supporting the wish-granting organization through voluntary service on national, global and chapter boards.
“Both Disney and Make-A-Wish understand what a positive impact hope, imagination and happiness can have on the lives of seriously ill children,” said D’Amaro. “It’s an honor to represent the thousands of Disney cast members around the world who create magic and help make wishes come true every day for these amazing families.”
“I can’t think of another time when we’ve had two board members with more hands-on experience with wish granting than Scooter and Josh,” said Leslie Motter, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish America. “Through their companies, they’ve both been able to see repeatedly that wishes can play an important part in the healing process, frequently serving as a turning point in a child’s medical journey.”
The national board is made up of 24 members with diverse backgrounds and skills who can lend support in mission-critical areas such as human resources, finance, fundraising, management, marketing and operations. By leveraging the skills of some of the nation’s most talented business leaders, Make-A-Wish can get closer to its vision of granting the wish of every eligible child – an important goal considering that many children credit the wish experience with helping to save their lives.
