Your goal is ours. Our mission is yours.
Philanthropy expertise for Maine nonprofits.
High-level services offered to connect nonprofits to the right donors.
Results driven, energetic, and highly motivated, sincere philanthropic professional with a proven track record of 28 years; with an ability to cultivate and ready internal and external teams, prospective donors, and steward donor relations for successful advancement of fundraising outcomes for your nonprofit. Accomplished in board and committee development and engagement to ensure accountability and proper protocols for philanthropic success. Well versed in campaign feasibility studies with many successful campaigns exceeding goals, annual fund programs, event planning and sponsorship fundraising, corporate fundraising, planned giving, and major donor solicitation with social service organizations, higher education, elementary schools, hospitals, a nursing home, and other nonprofits.
2023 KVCC Gala
Services
Strategic Planning • Capital Campaigns • Major Gifts Solicitation
Annual Fund • Events • Business Partnerships
Strategy
We skillfully help you utilize a philanthropy plan that is built on the foundation of the fundraising cycle which includes prospect identification, cultivation, solicitation, acknowledgement, engagement, and stewardship.
When a donor is constantly “moved” through this circular process—especially stewardship, then it is possible to ask for continued and more significant support and advocacy. Relationship building and active communication and stewardship are major keys to success.
Identify
How does my nonprofit qualify prospective donors?
How do I help my Board to leverage prospects?
Cultivation
How can my nonprofit bring people together?
What do I need to learn to be most effective?
Solicitation
Has your prospect research been completed?
Do your prospects and donors realize the impact of giving?
Acknowledgement
Are thank you letters, and other communications well received by donors?
Do your donors feel connected to your mission?
Engagement
What types of organizations should you collaborate with?
Are we responding to the needs of the community?
Stewardship
How do you steward your donors and the next generation of donors effectively throughout their lifetimes?
Are you satisfied with the projected goals and outcomes?
Is your nonprofit top of mind in your catchment area?
How does your nonprofit evaluate the impact of giving?
We connect donors’ passion with your nonprofit!
Identify
Passion with Purpose — Philanthropy is most effective and sustainable when donors are connected to what inspires and matters most to them. We can help you identify and facilitate new relationships to advance your philanthropy program.
Cultivation
Strategic Planning — With our broad array of resources, we can help you develop and implement strategies with clear deliverables to enhance your decision making to maximize your rate of return.
Solicitation
With ongoing stewardship, donors are likely to be more engaged with your nonprofit and more personally committed to increase their giving. We will help you to determine the type of donor engagement and solicit donors for your unrestricted and restricted goals.
Acknowledgement
Well crafted, but genuine, approach to thanking and connecting with donors will heighten awareness and enthusiasm to give to your nonprofits mission.
Engagement
Annual Fund, Signature Event, Campaign Readiness, Planned Giving Materials with best practices and procedures will help to guide your fundraising decisions and to structure calendar or fiscal year goals to achieve maximum return of investment.
Stewardship
Evaluation and Impact — The ability to measure outcomes is a critical component of effective philanthropy. We will help you to establish best practices with which to assess whether you are achieving your philanthropic goals and to adjust your giving strategy accordingly to steward donors through the giving cycle successfully.
Past and Current Client List
Our Events
Jazz Gala
Client: Kennebec Valley Community College
Designed, planned, and solicited major donors nearly doubling goal raising $180,000 for KVCC students.
Lights Shine Bright
Client: Mt. Merici
Academy
Pops Concert
Client: Northern Light Inland Hospital
May Day Auction
Client: Lakewood Continuing Care Center
Northern Light Continuing Care Lakewood’s May Day Auction unique fundraiser brought $50,000+ annually for seniors’ outings and special events throughout the year.
Testimonials
I had the privilege of working with Donna-Jo on a highly successful campaign for the Maine Children’s Home. With her expert leadership and vast experience, we exceeded our very ambitious fundraising goal.
When one has worked in his business for 62 years, you get to know your community quite well. You get many opportunities to work with organizations, community, and people over time. I have worked with this woman extensively on fundraising and event planning. She has been very successful and has just started her own business.
If any organization is seeking assistance, I would highly recommend her and her company. DJ is truly a performance-based individual.
Donna-Jo delivers. Having worked with her I have witnessed that not only does she deliver, but she is engaging and passionate about the projects that she works on, resulting in other people exhibiting similar levels of excitement about the project. I highly recommend her to assist in meeting your fundraising goals.
For nearly 3 decades, we’ve worked with Donna-Jo on numerous fundraising projects. She is knowledgeable and professional. Most importantly, she becomes a passionate advocate for every nonprofit effort she undertakes.
More than you could expect!
Contracting with DJ Mitchell Fundraising is a true partnership. DJ’s knowledge and skills are surpassed only by her incredible work ethic. I was astounded by the immediate understanding and grasp of our service needs. The system’s improvements will be long lasting for our program and our clients.
I had the pleasure of working with DJ for 12 years at NL Inland Hospital and NL Continuing Care Lakewood. Her knowledge, experience and passion for the work drove the success of our fundraising efforts from capital campaigns and fundraisers large and small to donor stewardship and the routine management of donor relations. And all of it with boundless energy, a smile, a strong sense of the appropriate, and a relentless drive for success.
DJ is enthusiastic, energic, and of exceptional character. In the years that we have known and worked with DJ on many campaigns and events we have developed enduring respect for her work ethic and critical thinking. We can confidently say that DJ would make a positive and beneficial impact at any nonprofit. She has our highest recommendation.
DJ’s innovative prowess elevated visibility and funding for Northern Light Lakewood Continuing Care Center with unique fundraisers and carefully selected volunteers. With all efforts, she showed a remarkable capacity to clearly communicate the vision with Board members, community leaders, and the community at large effortlessly to produce exceptional results.
About Donna-Jo (DJ)
I launched Mitchell Fundraising Consultants in June 2023 to equip nonprofits with skills, best practices, and to provide face-to-face solicitation needed to become successful and sustainable. My business model is centered on my key values: honesty, keen intuition to bring the right people together, persistence measured with dynamic and realistic optimism, strong work ethic, extremely decisive and understanding priorities and living them to bring exceptional results to Maine communities.
My passion in the specialized field of fundraising spanning nearly 3 decades can help nonprofits increase and maintain capacity to raise dollars. My extensive fundraising, budget planning, and senior management experience informs successful philanthropic strategy and results.
Growing up in a military family has given me the ability to interact with a vast array of personalities and a lasting insight into the need to work together to better communities. I received my BS and MBA from Thomas College in 3 years with distinction while working full-time and raising my youngest of 4 children. I have been fortunate to be recruited in all job positions throughout my career. My sincere desire is to bring people together to help your worthy nonprofit!
Affiliation
Contact Us
For more information on how Mitchell Fundraising Consultants can help you achieve your philanthropic vision and goals, please contact us at dj@mitchellfundraising.com.