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We sat down with Denny Lynch, former SVP of Communications at Wendy’s®, to hear more about the early days of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption as shared in his new book, “Call Me Dave: Behind the Counter with Dave Thomas, Founder of Wendy’s.”

Denny worked closely with Dave Thomas, helping create the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption in 1992 and serving on its board of trustees for 25 years. The book shares stories about the impact that being adopted had on Dave’s life and how that translated into a lifetime of advocacy for other children.  

Why did you want to write this book?  

• “I wrote this book as a tribute to Dave and the way he faced every challenge in front of him. He remained humble throughout his highly successful years, and he wanted to give back to others for the opportunities he was given to fulfill his childhood dream.


• I believe Dave’s core values of honesty, integrity, determination, hard work, kindness and respect for others are extremely important to reinforce to the next generations.”


• “I also was encouraged by the community of Wendy’s alumni from the very beginning. Their support inspired me to put my stories on paper.”

What do you remember most about starting the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption?

• “When we started the Foundation, we had high hopes we could get more kids adopted by simply promoting awareness campaigns with the number of kids who needed to be adopted. We thought that if we could get more prospective parents coming to child welfare agencies, more kids would find permanent homes. Obviously, we were extremely naive.”


• “Dave exuded a great sense of urgency. He would say, ‘Foster care is extremely important, but it should be temporary. These kids are losing their childhood waiting for a family.’ He fervently believed every child deserved a permanent home and a loving family. When he would say those words, time and time again, you could feel his conviction.”


• “Charlie Rath, Don Calhoon and I volunteered to help Dave get things up and running with the Foundation. I knew how sincere he was and that’s all that mattered. I was all in.”

What is your favorite memory from your time as board chair?  

• “Over my 25 years, the board members took their roles seriously. They genuinely were committed to helping the Foundation succeed. The pinnacle moment was the creation of Wendy’s Wonderful Kids^®. I promised Dave that the board and staff would find a way to get thousands of children adopted every year. I felt that child-focused recruitment had unlimited potential, especially with Rita (Foundation President & CEO) leading the way.” 

What’s your favorite story from the book in connection to Dave’s work with adoption?  

• “Dave never forgot what it means to be all alone, with no sense of belonging. Whenever he met children in foster care, he would make an immediate connection. Watching him interact with these children was amazing. And he was tenacious in using his voice to connect with business leaders across the country and helping them understand the importance of adoption benefits and making adoption more accessible for families because it was the right thing to do. There are so many stories it’s hard to pick just one, but I share some pretty special ones in the book.”

If Dave was here now, what do you hope he would say about the Foundation? 

• “Dave would absolutely love the Foundation’s proven results. He would be extremely proud and encourage the team to keep improving the Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program so even more children would get adopted. He was all about continuous improvement.” 

Thank you, Denny, for taking a walk down memory lane to honor Dave Thomas’ legacy as a lifelong advocate for adoption in this new book, and for your steadfast partnership with us to help find forever families for children waiting in foster care. Learn more about “Call Me Dave”.