Welcome to my blog! I’m excited to share a blend of insights from my years in the nonprofit world, along with lighthearted stories from my travels and everyday life. Whether you’re looking for practical tips, helpful resources, or simply a good laugh, you’ll find it here.
I hope these reflections and anecdotes will inform, inspire, and bring a smile to your face. Thank you for stopping by—I can’t wait to learn and grow together!
Making Time for Meaningful Connections (Even When You're Swamped)
When I was the Director of Development at a mid-sized nonprofit, I wanted to make space for cultivating relationships with our supporters. I knew how important it was. But between meetings, managing staff, responding to emails, and juggling the never-ending to-do list, relationship-building often felt like an afterthought.
And yet, as fundraisers, we know that meaningful connections are among the most effective things we can do.
So why do they often fall to the bottom of the list?
What If One Good Event Was Enough?
It’s the start of April, and along with the promised spring showers comes a flood of nonprofit event announcements—what we call “event season” around here.
Most fundraisers know that events are one of the lowest ROI fundraising activities. On average, it costs about 50 cents to raise $1—and that’s just direct costs. We often forget to factor in staff time and the opportunity costs. That’s not to say events don’t have value—but relying on them as a core strategy can be risky. Even worse? Spotting a revenue gap and saying, “Let’s throw an event to make up the difference.”
That said, events can absolutely play a meaningful role in a healthy fundraising program—when done with intentionality and in support of other activities. In fact, they can enhance revenue across channels when thoughtfully integrated.
Stop Competing, Start Connecting: The Abundance Mindset in Fundraising
The same applies to nonprofit fundraising. It’s easy to feel like we’re competing with other organizations for a fixed number of donors. If we focus solely on individuals and foundations with known wealth, we risk overlooking potential supporters who may be deeply passionate about our mission. Some donors give broadly across many causes, while others commit themselves to a single organization they truly believe in. Either way, the potential donor pool is vast.
Fundraising Reimagined: Connecting Passion with Purpose
Just a few days ago, I heard the statement I have heard over and over since I began working as a fundraiser. “That is such a hard job. No one wants to ask for money.”
That is why, soon into my tenure in development, I started introducing myself like this:
“My name is Angel Brunelle, and I connect good people with good work.”
This simple reframe can shift the mindset entirely. I am not ‘asking people for money’, I am introducing them to an organization that just may be fulfilling a wish they have for their community or meeting a need they are aware exists but aren’t sure how to help.
From Busywork to Bonding: Carving Out Time for Meaningful Donor Engagement
Have you ever walked into the office, sat down at your desk, looked at your relatively and surprisingly open schedule and thought “I am going to spend the day having meaningful interactions with supporters today.”
Then, maybe you take a look at your to-do list, read through your emails and chat with a colleague. And suddenly, it is the end of the day and you never got around to completing those meaningful interactions with your supporters.
And it happens time and again, until you get to the end of the week or quarter or year and realize that the bulk of your time was spent reacting to incoming requests, and not connecting with your supporters.
Anyone? No, just me?