My Work

It's All About the Anti-Ordinary

Whenever I thought about what I wanted to do with my life, the one thing I knew was that I didn't want to be stuck at an average company, doing average work, having an average impact on the world. There's already too much ordinary going around – I wanted something more.

What I needed was anti-ordinary work. Work that challenged the status quo. Work that was bold, ambitious, and stimulating. Work that could really change the world.

This approach shapes everything I do. Whether it's at my day job fundraising for charity: water, launching my own murder mystery game company, or coaching karate at NYU – I'm drawn to work that dares to say that the old way of doing things isn't the best way.

So what have I done?

Key Relationships Officer
charity: water
June 2024 – Present
I lead major gifts fundraising across the Pacific Northwest and Northern California for charity: water – managing nearly $3M in annual revenue. The work combines a lot of what I love: finding patterns in donor data, crafting beautiful and compelling pitches and impact reports, and building genuine relationships with people who want to change the world.

One of my favorite moments on the job happened during a donor trip to Kenya last year. I was driving through Makueni County with a family of donors, and I found myself telling riddles to the kids in the backseat. Everyone was laughing. It wasn't planned – just a spontaneous moment of connection. It's a good reminder that yes, as fundraiers we're looking for big investments – but we're also looking for plain good people to partner with.
Senior Key Relationships Associate
charity: water
February 2023 – June 2024
This role taught me how to scale relationships. I raised over a million dollars from 150 donors in my first full fundraising year – 20% above goal – by developing systems that felt personal even when managing a lot of relationships. I also learned that I love the complex, behind-the-scenes work: at the moment, I sit on a task force overhauling our entire donor reporting system, acting as the bridge between big-picture strategy and day-to-day execution.
Key Relationships Associate
charity: water
May 2021 – February 2023
My first fundraising role at charity: water. I raised $900K in my first year and designed the organization's first major donor upgrade program, which generated an additional $150K+ in annual revenue. This is where I discovered what I was really good at: combining deep data analysis with genuine, personal relationships.
Development Associate
Lifebox Foundation
July 2019 – May 2021
Where it all started. Lifebox works on surgical safety in low-resource settings – incredibly important work, but not exactly easy to fundraise for. I learned how to translate complex programmatic work into compelling stories and executed fundraising initiatives that generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue. I also spearheaded an equity-focused coalition with some partner organizations around decolonizing global health.

What I Bring to the Table

💾 Data That Actually Matters

I geek out over Salesforce optimization and donor analytics, because good data helps me build better relationships. I can spot patterns in giving behavior and translate them into personalized stewardship strategies.

🤝 Relationships That Scale

White-glove donor stewardship, prospect identification, and cultivation strategies that feel personal even when you're managing hundreds of relationships. Every donor should feel like your only donor.

💰 Complex Gift Strategies

Planned giving, securities transfers, donor advised funds, qualified charitable distributions, and all the other acronyms that make donors' eyes light up when you can save them money while increasing their impact.

📊 Systems That Work

From moves management optimization to complex project coordination, I love building the behind-the-scenes systems that turn good fundraising into great fundraising. Someone has to make sure all the moving parts actually move together.

Beyond Fundraising

🪲 Goldbeetle Games

I'm building my own murder mystery party game company because I realized what was available online wasn't the quality I wanted. So I decided to do the very easy thing and create my own! It's teaching me a lot about entrepreneurship and creative development.

🥋 NYU Karate Club

I've been the assistant coach of NYU's Karate Club for over four years, developing curriculums, leading practice sessions, and mentoring dozens of student athletes. With 20 years of martial arts experience, it's a special gift to be able to share what I know!

Get in Touch

If you'd want to chat, I'd love to hear from you.