My Approach
Fundraising is hard. And more often than not, we walk into an organization that needs something. More resources. Better processes. Stronger leadership. A shift in priorities. A clearer strategy. Sometimes, a little bit of everything.
It's rare that we walk into an office where everything is perfectly in place and we're ready to hit the ground running in two weeks. Yet, we're often expected to figure it all out, make an immediate impact, and do it with limited resources and even less time.
Affordable, accessible training and professional development can be hard to find. That's where I want to help.
After more than 20 years in fundraising and nonprofit leadership, I'm passionate about sharing what I've learned, helping others build confidence, and making the work a little more manageable along the way.
I also maintain a full-time fundraising role because I believe it's important to practice what I teach. I'm navigating the same evolving landscape, building relationships, working through challenges, and learning alongside the professionals I hope to support.
But perhaps most importantly, I believe fundraising should be human.
We're people working with people, building relationships around shared values and the desire to make a difference. We don't always get it right. We have challenging days, competing priorities, and moments when we're figuring things out as we go.
And that's okay.
I like to have fun in this work, lead with empathy, and remember that we're all humans doing our best with what we have.
My goal is to meet you where you are, help you recognize what you're capable of, and give you the tools, perspective, and encouragement to keep moving forward.
Whatever your role, whatever stage of your career, and whatever your organization needs right now, there's room to grow, learn, connect, and make an impact.
Because fundraising isn't just about raising money. It's about building relationships, creating connections, and moving people and communities forward.
Hi, I’m kari young.
I grew up in eastern Washington and attended Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. There, I graduated with a degree in sociology. Post-college, I served with AmeriCorps NCCC, then returned to the Puget Sound area and built up 20 years of nonprofit experience. The past 9 years have focused on major and planned giving. Most recently, we have relocated to North Carolina. Getting to see fundraising in action in a different part of the country has been fun, interesting, and successful!
My focus is on being the bridge between donors and service recipients. My passion is teaching others how to do this incredibly amazing, exhausting, challenging, and rewarding work. Being able to work with donors and use philanthropy to make a difference in our communities is what inspires me and brings me hope for our futures.
If you have read this far, you deserve to know more than my work rap-sheet! I am honored to be the mom to two incredible kids, grade school-aged. My husband and I have been married for the past decade-plus. As a military veteran, he is a balance to my non-profit heart. We sing, we dance, we like to create, explore and live life. As my career has progressed, nonprofit leadership keeps taking more and more of my time and energy. I am working to learn more about integrating my work and life in a way that feels honoring to me.
With coaching and training, I am passionate about transparency, the reality of what we are working with, and taking things step by step to hit big goals. It would be awesome to get to work with you, if this all sounds good-clickthatlittlewhitebutton and we’ll connect!
