Fundraising & Community Engagement Specialist

Our vision is that every person has the opportunity to learn, work, and thrive in all aspects of life.

To achieve our vision, we are committed to dismantling racism and advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion so we can help people reach their fullest potential through our education, job placement, and career pathway services. We do our work with great gratitude for the community donations, purchases, and partnerships that make our mission possible.

Position Summary:  The Fundraising and Community Engagement Specialist supports the organization’s development strategy by planning and executing donor and community engagement efforts, creating compelling donor content, maintaining accurate donor data, and supporting both traditional and legacy giving efforts. This is a dynamic role ideal for someone who has a passion for community fundraising and engagement.

Hourly Rate: $32.12 - $34.90 per hour

Essential Duties and Responsibilities: The Fundraising and Community Engagement Specialist responsibilities include the following and other duties as assigned:

Donor Events & Engagement:

• Plan and execute donor-focused events such as galas, cultivation receptions, stewardship gatherings, and community outreach.
• Oversee event planning and logistics, coordinate internal and external resources, and manage guest communications and post-event follow-up.
• Manage regular rhythm of direct donor engagement, stewardship and appeals.

Community Engagement & Awareness:

• Plan and support community-focused events that raise awareness of the organization’s mission, expand reach, and attract new donors and funders.
• Work with staff to ensure inclusive, welcoming experiences and alignment with organizational messaging.

Donor & Funder Research:

• Conduct research on individual and business donors to support cultivation and solicitation strategies.
• Analyze giving capacity, patterns and engagement history to inform segmentation, outreach, and cultivation.

Sponsorship Development:

• Support the identification and solicitation of sponsorships for events and campaigns.
• Draft sponsorship proposals and ensure timely recognition and communication with corporate and community partners.

Legacy Giving Program Support:

• Assist in the planning and implementation of legacy giving outreach and stewardship strategies.
• Contribute to the development of educational materials and communication campaigns targeted at planned giving prospects.

Content Creation:

• Create engaging donor content including fundraising appeals, impact updates, event materials, and donor education pieces.
• Collaborate with the Advancement team members to ensure consistency in voice and brand.

Donor Communication & Stewardship:

• Maintain regular, personalized communication with major donors through email, phone, handwritten notes, and in-person interactions.
• Help implement stewardship plans to recognize donor contributions and deepen engagement.

Data Management:

• Enter and update donor and event data in the CRM system to ensure accurate and complete records.
• Generate reports to support analysis and decision-making.

Qualifications

Qualifications/Basic Job Requirements:

• Minimum of 3-5 years of experience in nonprofit fundraising, donor engagement, event planning, or a related role.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with attention to detail and audience-specific messaging.
• Strong organizational and project management abilities, with a track record of meeting deadlines.
• Proficiency in CRM or donor management platforms (e.g., Salesforce, Raiser’s Edge, Bloomerang).
• Ability to work occasional evenings and weekends for events and outreach.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build trusted relationships with donors, partners, and colleagues; Comfort in public speaking and representing the organization externally preferrred
• Experience with legacy or planned giving programs preferred
• Familiarity with donor research tools (e.g., Foundation Directory, iWave) preferred
• Experience with design or marketing platforms such as Canva or Mailchimp preferred
• Demonstrate cultural competence; specifically, awareness, attitude, knowledge, willingness and skills to work effectively with a culturally and demographically diverse population
• Superior coaching, leadership and interpersonal skills, including the ability to build understanding and consensus

 

We Have You Covered! Benefits Offered:

• Medical, Vision, and Dental (M/V/D) insurance coverage for employees.
  • We provide coverage for you, with a portion of the employee premium paid by Goodwill.
  • Dependent coverage is available, with the cost being the responsibility of the employee
• Accident & Life insurance options to ensure financial protection. 
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Vacation (1-4 Years: 80 hours annually)
• 10 paid Holidays annually
• 8 days prorated sick leave annually
• Access to Childcare Benefits through Upwards
• Parental leave covered by sick/vacation hours
• All employees receive merchandise discounts
• We strongly believe in promoting from within, and have multiple avenues for career growth

Supervisory Responsibilities: Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organization’s policies and applicable laws.

Cultural Competency: Ability to work in a diverse organization. Ability to work on a team and willingness to roll up one’s sleeves to get the job done.

Language Skills: Ability to read and interpret hard data and metrics. Ability to write creatively and articulately with an emphasis on tact and diplomacy. Ability to speak effectively before groups of customers or employees of the organization.

Mathematical Skills: Ability to calculate figures and amounts such as:  addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, percentages, and average. Ability to apply concepts of basic algebra when working on spreadsheets. Ability to create and manage departmental budget.

Computer Skills: To perform this job successfully, an individual should have knowledge of Microsoft Office products, specifically Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Other Skills and Abilities: Comprehensive understanding of all aspects of Fundraising and Community Engagement Specialist

Certificates, Licenses, Registrations: Washington State Driver’s License required

Other Qualifications: Self-motivated; resourceful, creative; high integrity; problem solver; looks to resolve issues; positive can-do approach; and ability to build effective working relationships.

Physical Demands: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, talk, hear and type. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk and reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision.

Work Environment: The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Employees must be able to perform the essential functions of this position with or without reasonable accommodation. 

Goodwill gladly considers requests for accommodation and, if the requested accommodation is reasonable, will make such reasonable accommodations as will enable an otherwise qualified person with a disability to perform the essential functions of this position.

At Goodwill we are committed to creating and sustaining a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion. We embrace our employees’ differences, and believe in meeting the members of our workforce and their communities where they are.  Since our doors first opened in 1921, we have been changing lives by offering a hand up, not a hand out. We invite you to join us for our next 100 years of service to our neighbors.

Our Mission is to help people reach their fullest potential through individual education, job placement and career pathway services made possible by community donations, purchases and partnerships.

At Goodwill, we welcome people with diverse backgrounds, including persons with disabilities or other disadvantages. In fact, a substantial portion of our employees have a disability and/or economic disadvantage and we strongly encourage such persons to apply.

This organization participates in E-Verify. E-Verify is a service that verifies authorization to work in the U.S. through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of Social Security (SSA). For further information on E-Verify contact DHS at 1-888-464-4218.