Community Development Assistant

Willamette Vital Health, your local nonprofit that helps families through one of the most difficult times in life — losing a loved one — is searching for a Community Development Assistant. If you have the ability to establish, build, and maintain respectful and professional relationships with donors, team members, professional groups, volunteers, and the general public, we would love to meet you.

The Role:

The Development Assistant has an important role in the success of fundraising initiatives and donor stewardship by providing administrative support to the Community Development Department and Manager. Responsibilities include providing excellent customer service, donor database management, donor relations, report production, direct mail appeals and planning/executing special events.

Essential Functions/Major Responsibilities:

We are looking for a perceptive contributor who has great attention to detail, excels in a fast-paced environment, is creative, works independently and collaboratively, and is adaptable. The ideal candidate is professional and confident with donor management recordkeeping, donor relations, letter writing, producing reports, and supporting fundraising events.

Demonstrates teamwork through cooperation, adaptability, flexible communication, dependability, and support of the team goals.

Demonstrates care and respect (compassion, customer relations, professional behavior, and confidentiality) and maintains patient and staff confidentiality.

Effectively use resources (time, people, supplies, safe and attentive work practices).

Demonstrates initiative (self-motivation, takes on projects willingly, acts on opportunities to improve, contributes new ideas)

Database Management and Gift Processing

• Accurately processes and records all of the organization’s gifts, pledges, and pledge payments into the Donor Perfect database daily and produces timely acknowledgments, tax letters and receipts.
• Accurately processes gifts, including checks, online transactions, and credit cards in daily batches, into donor database, and linking gifts to donor records.
• Serves as the primary liaison between Community Development and the Accounting Department.
• Provides excellent donor relations customer service support by responding to donor inquiries and questions via phone, email, and mail.
• Pulls reports and queries from donor database as directed.
• Develops donor reports in Excel, as directed.
• Provides phone back up and assistance to the Community Development Manager for donation specific questions and needs.
• Serves as point person for monthly giving data and requirements for all monthly giving gift processing and records. Processes, validates, and imports monthly gifts on a regular schedule. Updates payment information, as directed.
• Performs data entry and manages the entire data entry process to ensure that donor information is accurate, updated, and relevant.
• Uses and analyzes data for the purpose of identifying and categorizing new and existing donors.
• Continually updates and corrects database records.
• Maintains a working knowledge of the DonorPerfect donor database, payment processing systems and other systems as necessary.
• Effectively utilizes DonorPerfect, Excel, Word, and other software programs to update, capture, retrieve, calculate, and report data and/or manage fundraising lists.
• Creates, updates, and assembles mailing lists from DonorPerfect and the electronic patient record system for direct mail appeals working with direct mail agency and other vendors as needed.
• Regularly updates donor acknowledgment language and writes donor correspondence as needed.
• Responds to various returned mail issues.
• Operates within defined budgets and maintains budget tracking reports for events and appeals.
• Assists in developing standards and procedures for data and database use to ensure that proper documentation, procedures, and policies are maintained for data integrity.
• Ensures compliance with policies and procedures to support ethical and successful fundraising practices.

Special Events Coordination

• Serves as support to Community Development team for fundraising, community, and stewardship events, both on and off site
• Identifies and helps coordinate logistic special events with a fundraising component, partnering with local businesses and organizations for sponsorships and in-kind donations, as needed and when possible.
• Assists in special events planning, logistics, and acquisitions.
• Provides donor development, community outreach and volunteer staff support for annual special events.
• Maintains invitation, registration and response lists for special events using donor software - DonorPerfect and Excel.
• May help coordinate and provide training for volunteers during special events.

Job Complexity

• Wide range of administrative skills including gift processing, acknowledgments, customer service, donor communications and special event coordination.
• Duties are varied and require participation in planning and executing direct appeals and special events.
• Duties require attention to and/or coordination of concurrent job assignments.
• Responsibilities concerning confidential and/or sensitive information require the use of discretion at all times. Ability to maintain the highest level of confidentiality and professionalism is required.
• Demonstrates high level of proficiency in Windows/PC environment, including Microsoft Office, Excel and donor management software and have the ability to embrace various computer programs.
• Under limited supervision, anticipates the needs of department and solves problems for self and others.
• Operating equipment such as a telephone, copy machine/printer, computer, cell phone, and facsimile machine is required.
• Occasional evening and weekend work may be required.
• Other duties as assigned.

Interpersonal Contacts

• Ability to establish, build and maintain respectful and professional relationships with donors, team members, professional groups, volunteers, and the general public.
• Teamwork and cooperation skills are essential to the successful completion of own and others’ job duties.
• Ability to anticipate and initiate support of Community Development Manager, as needed.
• Ability to work in a team environment, staff in other departments, and with multiple individuals at a time.
• Must be able to work effectively with individuals on the telephone and in-person.
• Excellent organizational and communications skills required (written and oral).

Specific Job Skills

• Demonstrates excellent customer service/communication skills and the ability to be highly organized with excellent attention to detail.
• Meets deadlines while handling multiple tasks and utilizing effective time management skills.
• Must demonstrate a high level of computer proficiency in a Windows/PC format, including Microsoft Office, Excel, and Donor Management Software.
• Must have excellent and legible writing skills.
• Strong ability to work independently and as part of a team.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in business, nonprofit management or related field required.
• Experience in nonprofit development database management, Excel and Word preferred.
• Experience planning, support, organization, and execution of fundraisers preferred.

Certification/Licensure

• Must have valid Oregon driver’s license, dependable transportation, and proof of current automobile insurance.

Job Conditions

• Office, or other facility and automobile settings.
• Involves climbing stairs and working outdoors.
• Use/ownership of personal automobile.
• Ability to lift 50 pounds.

Why Willamette Vital Health:

You’re offered…

• Competitive salary and 401-k with matching contributions
• Health benefits and pre-tax spending accounts for healthcare (FSA) and dependent care (DCA)
• Excellent Paid time Off (PTO) program
• Collaborative training and orientation
• Ongoing education and support
• Option to purchase several programs at low cost: critical illness/accident insurance, voluntary life insurance, ID/Legal Shield, FIGO pet insurance

Who Are We:

It’s not our organization itself that delivers deeply impactful work. It's our people. We provide rewarding careers for passionate, caring, empathetic, resilient, and dedicated employees who work together to create the best care possible for those facing serious illness and grief. We believe personalized care and grief support should be available to all who need it, so we provide our services regardless of ability to pay.

Thank you for your interest in joining our team of professionals. Willamette Vital Health is an Equal Opportunity Employer dedicated to providing a diverse, equitable and inclusive work environment. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, physical characteristics, age, religion, creed, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, mental or physical disability, or veteran status. All qualified candidates legally able to work in the United States are encouraged to apply.