Dear Dreamers and Doers,

Here’s something a branding firm thinks about when July 4th rolls around: America has a brand. A big, complicated, gorgeous, occasionally infuriating, wildly resilient brand. And right now, as we pull up to our 250th birthday — the semiquincentennial, if you want to drop the word at a cookout — we’ve been eyeing the official America 250 identity through our expert lens.

Classic, bold type for AMERICA. A swirling ribbon of motion for the 250. We would have thrown in a star, but that’s just us. It gives off exactly what it should: feel-good, forward-facing, big-tent energy.

Is the nation’s brand complicated right now? Sure. It’s always been complicated. But here’s the thing about a truly great brand: its core values and cultural foundation hold even when the customer base is divided, even when the product reviews are mixed, even when people are loudly arguing about what the thing stands for. We’re still invested. We’re still, most of us, pretty loyal consumers. That’s the power of a brand built on something real.

And then there’s this: Stars and Stripes on the FIFA World Cup pitch in what might be the most electric soccer summer this country has ever seen. The US Men’s National Team is still moving through (all of us asking… wait, are we… ACTUALLY GOOD?) to the Round of 32. And longtime soccer fans and brand-new ones alike — are wearing the kit with full conviction. And that, friends, is a branding phenomenon.

When people want to wear a brand, it’s because they feel like they own it, belong to it, and have something to say by putting it on. The American flag has always done this —but this summer it’s doing it with a new kind of collective joy. “We’re all in this together” hits different when there’s a scoreboard.

Coca-Cola knows this playbook by heart. As America 250’s largest corporate sponsor, they’ve released limited-edition collectible mini-cans — one for every state, D.C., and Puerto Rico — each featuring local imagery that says this place matters, these people matter. A Georgia peach. A California surfer. They’re committing to 250,000 volunteer hours nationwide and funding Paint the Nation, a public mural project putting local artists to work telling local stories. And their America 250 campaign? Drink in America. HOW PERFECT IS THAT??!!

And their new Anthem? It’s giving us all the I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke feelings — which, for those of us who were in elementary school for the 1976 Bicentennial, hits with a particular warmth. Coke was there then, too. Some brands just know how to show up for America’s big moments, and that’s never an accident. That’s what decades of emotional investment in community looks like.

As you head into the Fourth this year — whether you’re popping a collectible Coke, cheering on the Stars and Stripes (GO USA!), or pledging a few hours of service at America250— we hope you feel the full force of what a great brand, lived out loud, can do. Happy 250th, America. We’re still rooting for you.

Here’s to 250 More Years of Dreaming Boldly,

Surale + Laura + Cheryl

P.S. Ready to go from fizzle to fireworks? Reach out at hello@thedrmtm.com — a Happy Half-Hour with our team is always on us.

Why cause and culture organizations need more time in the room together. Funders, hear us.

Dear Dreamers and Doers,

We hear it after every workshop. The thing people remember most — the thing they pull us aside to say — is how much they valued the time they spent talking to each other.

In a sector defined by doing more with less, carrying the weight of the world’s most urgent problems on chronically underfunded shoulders, simply sitting in a room with people who get it turns out to be a radical act. A breathing space. A gift. And we at DRMTM have come to believe it is one of the most powerful tools funders never put on the agenda — but should.

During our spring workshop travels we had the privilege of watching it happen in real time — twice. CNY Arts in Syracuse and Extraordinary Charities in Palm Beach County each brought together their nonprofit ecosystems for a day of Bold Brand building. Funders like the Gifford Foundation and the LaFrance Project didn’t just write a check and walk away. They showed up. They sat at the tables. They learned right alongside the organizations they support. The result was something you can’t manufacture: real solidarity. Real recognition. That moment when a director from one organization locks eyes with someone from a “competing” organization and says, quietly, “You too?” — that is worth more than any slide deck we’ve ever built.

“I think the favorite part of the day beyond knowledge-building was the time the orgs had to talk to each other and collaborate — a rare gift.”​
​DRMTM x CNY Arts, Syracuse

Here’s what we know about the people who lead, manage, and champion cause and culture organizations: they are some of the most creative, strategic, fiercely committed professionals in any industry today — and some of the most chronically ignored. Low pay. Relentless pressure to prove impact. Funders who expect organizations to solve generations-old problems on shoestring budgets. A public that loves the mission but rarely sees the machine behind it. Burnout isn’t a failure of will in this sector. It’s a structural condition.

Which is why the energy in these rooms hits different. When you give people doing this work a focused topic and a table full of peers who are carrying the same weight, something quietly transformational happens. They choose trust. They stop surviving and start strategizing. They leave recharged, with tools, with language, and with the knowledge that they are not alone.

This is what collective investment looks like. No single organization carries the cost — funders, service agencies, and community partners come together to give their entire nonprofit ecosystem a capacity-building edge most organizations could never access on their own.

And when funders are in the room learning with the organizations they support — not just funding from a distance — the dynamic shifts. They see the challenges. They feel the passion. They understand what bold, strategic, well-resourced cause and culture organizations can actually do for a community.

We need more of this. A lot more. Whether the topic is brand strategy or budget planning, community engagement or digital communications, our sector grows when it grows together.

If you’re a funder, a service agency, or a community foundation with a network of nonprofits who deserve more than they’re getting — let’s bring them together. Reach out to us at hello@thedrmtm.com and let’s talk about what a day in the room could do for your community.

Here’s to the Conversations That Change Everything,

Surale + Laura + Cheryl