Staff

Why: I believe in the power of bringing people together to create a shared experience, build community and move a mission.
What I do at Swaim Strategies: I encourage and motivate. I teach and coach. I dream. I am a strategist at my core and bring that focus to planning events and reaching results. I am an ally to nonprofits and an advocate for their missions and dreams. I use events as a tool to build relationships, inspire connections and raise support.
My experience: I have been in nonprofit fundraising and event production for over 20 years and have a passion for working for a purpose. I come from theatre + TV production roots with a focus on details and a vision for the big picture. Great events are made better when they share a story and have impact.
What I believe in:  Community. I believe that we are stronger when we work together. I believe that together we can have impact, we can build stronger communities and we can have a richer and fuller experience.

Why: I believe in we.
What I do at Swaim Strategies: There is power in bringing people together. I help connect supporters more deeply to missions they believe in to create agency and capacity for nonprofits and their donors to change the world. I also manage internal systems for Swaim Strategies so that our staff can continue to focus on elevating our amazing clients and their work.
My experience: I am a writer and teacher by trade and have been a nonprofit advocate in Portland for over 26 years. I have answered crisis line calls, facilitated adult community writing workshops and coached playwriting for at-risk youth. I helped start Swaim Strategies 15 years ago and have been on the ground of nonprofit event fundraising ever since.
What I believe in: One of the bravest things we can do is tell our stories, and then listen as others tell theirs. The very human act of storytelling makes change possible.

Why: I believe in the power of relationships and their positive impact.
What I do at Swaim Strategies: I listen and learn from our clients to help them meet their goals and aspirations. I coach, cultivate and help customize their event fundraising efforts.
My experience: I have been building and cultivating relationships my entire life. Through my experiences at Oregon Food Bank and Hands On Greater Portland to serving on the Portland Trail Blazer Foundation board. I enjoy diving deeper into how community works. I understand how go get things done while inspiring others.
What I believe in: I believe relationships are the key to life. The more you invest in relationships, the more enriched life will be.

Why: I believe that organization and systems help people thrive.
What I do at Swaim Strategies: When people come together around a common cause, it can create systemic changes in the world. I know that in order to create the ideal environment for these changes to happen, it requires detail management and data tracking. It’s my job to make sure all the details are being tracked, updated and organized in the best way possible.
My experience: I love organizing things and creating order out of chaos. This has led me to seek systems-based, detail-oriented work throughout my career. I love to empower everyone we work with to use data to inform their decision-making and to train clients specifically on Greater Giving as a tool. I am also Swaim Strategies’ internal systems wiz.
What I believe in: I believe that everyone should be seen, understood and validated for who they really are. I believe in living authentically without fear.