Fundraiser Cover Letter Example

A donor who gave $500 a year for a decade signed a $250,000 estate commitment last spring, after eighteen months where I mostly just listened to why the mission mattered to her before asking for anything larger. That shift from transactional asks to real relationships is how I manage a portfolio of 180 major and mid-level donors at Peachtree Arts Alliance, and it's the approach I want to bring to a growing major gifts program.

Last fiscal year I personally closed $1.4 million against a $1.1 million individual-giving goal, including 11 gifts of $10,000 or more that came from donors previously capped at annual gifts under $1,000. I also rebuilt our lapsed-donor reactivation campaign, recovering 340 donors who hadn't given in at least two years and adding $95,000 in gifts the budget hadn't counted on.

I run donor moves in Raiser's Edge, brief our executive director before every six-figure ask, and write stewardship reports donors actually read instead of filing away. I manage two part-time gift officers and coordinate closely with our board's development committee on prospect strategy, and I hold a Certified Fund Raising Executive credential I renew every three years.

I'd welcome the chance to walk through my current portfolio and pipeline with [Organization name], and I'm glad to share how I'd approach your next capital or major-gifts push.