Desiree Vargas Wrigley
Age: 38
Title: Founder & CEO
Name of Organization: Pearachute
Desiree Vargas Wrigley is founder of Pearachute, a company that helps parents and children find the best family activities in town.
Prior to launching Pearachute, she co-founded GiveForward, the world’s leading crowd-sourcing platform for people facing a major life event. Under her leadership, the company helped friends and family contribute nearly $160M to loved ones in need.
After graduating from Yale University, she worked at the Kauffman Foundation as a specialist in entrepreneurship and at Arabella Philanthropic Investment Advisors.
Most recently, she taught New Venture Discovery at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. She has been named to Inc’s 30 Under 30, Crain’s 40 Under 40, one of Parents Magazine’s Most Inspiring Moms, a Forbes Woman to Watch, and she has appeared on Shark Tank, closing one of the largest deals on the show to date.
When not working, she enjoys spending time with her two young sons, stepdaughter, and crime-fighting husband.