Passion. Experience. Creativity.

Lindsay Simonds Consulting (LSC) is a boutique firm of senior-level fundraising professionals offering strategic fundraising and management consulting. With over four decades of combined experience partnering with organizations for transformational change, LSC provides strategic onboarding, board and staff training, interim leadership management, campaign management, and more. Team members have served as consultants and frontline fundraisers, as board members and as donors, as volunteers, and as professional coaches. We have fewer clients at a time and offer hands-on management and deeply thoughtful recommendations that are tailored specifically to each unique organization. We are distinguished in this way.

Having raised over $3 billion in philanthropic dollars, LSC is an integral lead in expanding and deepening donor investments and major gifts campaigns. LSC is a solutions-based firm calling on metrics-driven analysis, conscious communication, and natural creativity. With an eye for structures of influence, donor engagement, project management, compelling storytelling, brand evangelism, and productivity, LSC brings all clients comprehensive fundraising expertise and campaign management.

Lindsay Simonds (she/her) is a senior nonprofit fundraising and management professional with over a dozen years of experience partnering with organizations across the country for transformational change. Having raised over $1 billion in philanthropic dollars cumulatively and collaboratively, she is an integral lead in expanding and deepening donor investments and major gift campaigns. Lindsay is a solutions-based thinker who calls on metrics-driven analysis, conscious communication, and instinctual creativity.

Lindsay founded LSC in 2017 after her role as Vice President at CCS, a large, global fundraising consulting and management firm. Lindsay and CCS continue to partner on projects today. She and the team at LSC offer a variety of professional services to nonprofit organizations as fundraising specialists and department generalists ranging from capital campaign management, interim leadership, recruiting and hiring, executive coaching (junior and senior level fundraisers), and staff and board training.

Lindsay is a local Coloradan who graduated from Kent Denver and received her B.A. in International Studies and Business Administration at the University of Denver. She is on the executive committee and corporate committee of the board at BUILD.org, which centers on experiential learning through entrepreneurship to ignite the potential of youth in under-resourced communities, locally and nationally. During her tenure at CCS, Lindsay was the head of internal continued learning and training. She also served as a faculty member and trainer for the Sanford Institute on Philanthropy at JFK University with a focus on annual strategic fundraising planning, major individual gifts, campaign readiness, moves management, making the ask, and cause-based fundraising.

You can connect with Lindsay at: [email protected] or on LinkedIn.

Jeff has been a senior development practitioner for over 25 years. With an eye toward marrying inspired gift opportunities with donors’ philanthropic passions, he has developed meaningful partnerships between donors and several of the nation’s most prestigious organizations, including The Trust for Public Land; National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine; CARE USA, University of California San Francisco; and The Johns Hopkins University. Throughout his career, Jeff has personally solicited and secured over $50 million in philanthropic support and has been an integral member of complex teams that have raised over $2 billion.

Jeff has led small and large teams, alike, including geographically distributed teams. He has managed multi-million-dollar budgets and served on the leadership team of several capital and comprehensive campaigns throughout his career. His experience transcends the entire donor experience, from annual giving to major gifts, to planned giving, as well as corporate partnerships, donor relations and events, and foundation relations.

Jeff received his Master of Business Administration from Johns Hopkins University and his Bachelor of Science in Education from Miami University (Ohio). Based in Portland, OR, Jeff and his partner enjoy hiking, bike riding, and attending as many arts performances as possible.

Kyson (ze/he) is an explorer of connections, design thinker, and a gritty optimist in the face of challenges. As a dedicated philanthropy professional and social impact nerd, ze leads with optimism, pragmatism, and intention. Kyson’s diverse experiences in the social sector over the past decade—corporate social responsibility, volunteerism, board service, strategic partnerships, international development, collective giving, and philanthropy—all provide a unique perspective that converges fundraising best practices with forward-thinking, community-centered approaches. Ze has led workshops and spoken at various fundraising and philanthropy conferences on the power of igniting the “everyday philanthropist.” Most recently, he served as the Director of Development & Partnerships for Philanthropy Together, a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation seed-funded venture catalyzing the global collective giving movement, a model of giving based on community and democratic philanthropy. His recent interests revolve around how social sector infrastructure, field catalysts, and organizations pushing for systems change can be better supported.

Ze brings over a decade of “in the trenches experience” having managed development and marketing teams at leading international and national nonprofits including myAgro, Village Enterprise, and the Taproot Foundation. Ze has a deep understanding of the fundraising ecosystem and enjoys working on complex development challenges, especially on a national scale. Having worked across startup and established nonprofit organizations, Kyson brings a highly adaptable and savvy mindset to each effort ze leads and partners on. Previously, he was also Senior Director at CCS Fundraising, a consulting and management firm that partners with nonprofit organizations across a multitude of sectors on large-scale campaigns and transformative fundraising projects. Past clients and projects have included UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, Oakland, where ze helped plan and lead the strategy for the close of a $90M capital campaign to build a new outpatient center; St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church in Vallejo, where ze led a successful $2 million capital campaign to eliminate the parish’s debt; and Alameda Health System Foundation where ze implemented a $50M county-wide campaign to fund the health system’s new electronic health record system and COVID-19 response. Ze’s previous client list extends across various issue areas and causes including the Central California Food Bank, Denver Zoo, YMCA of Silicon Valley, and East Bay Dance Center.

Zir personal philanthropy is channeled through Lacuna, a local queer AAPI giving circle that funds grassroots social justice organizations, and board service with his alma mater and gymnastics team at UC Berkeley. As a Bay Area local, Kyson is passionate about building community in xučyun Ohlone land (Oakland) where ze resides with zir husband and two rescue pups.

Mike is a social entrepreneur, content creator, and social impact strategist. He’s the host and producer of the Cause & Purpose Podcast, and founder of Altruous.org, an impact discovery, funding, and management platform for the next generation of philanthropists.

A visionary leader who enjoys strategic thinking as well as in-the-weeds tactical work, Mike has planned, built, and executed dozens of fundraising campaigns and recurring gift programs. He’s implemented several CRM and marketing automation platforms as part of his consulting work.

An avid traveler, Spear has volunteered internationally on several occasions, supporting soccer and educational programs across South Africa and Lesotho, and building WASH projects in Ecuador, in addition to providing skilled volunteer support for several domestic nonprofit organizations.

Whenever he’s not working, you can find Mike traveling around the world, hiking, camping, skiing or hitting the beach, cooking or mixing cocktails, and winning the occasional poker tournament.

Before founding Altruous, Mike was part of the founding team at Classy.org, and spent several years as a journalist and filmmaker.

Dena is a seasoned nonprofit fundraiser recognized for her expertise in data quality and process optimization. Drawing from her experiences as a cancer survivor and a child of a Laotian refugee, she channels her efforts to promote accessibility within local communities. Dena started her career in sales and successfully transitioned to the nonprofit sector, achieving commendable recognition at City of Dreams and Family Giving Tree. At City of Dreams, she substantially increased revenue by an astounding 313 percent and procured significant major gifts. She designed and executed a successful major gifts program at Family Giving Tree in preparation for their capital campaign, raising 5-6 figure gifts.

Complementing her professional commitments, Dena devotes her time to volunteering at the Association of Fundraising Professionals Golden Gate. Here, she holds numerous roles: a board member, marketing and communications committee co-chair, co-lead of the Emerging Fundraisers constellation, and a member of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Committee. Her versatile professional skill set includes strategic donor communications, CRM data management, volunteer and board engagement, storytelling, content creation, and website management.

Hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, Dena is committed to uplifting underrepresented communities, particularly the Southeast Asian community, reflecting her family’s roots. Her involvement covers support services, volunteerism, job development, and mental health support, underscoring her passion for effecting lasting change.

Beyond her professional pursuits, Dena enjoys a wide array of hobbies, such as digital illustration, podcasts, travel, and reading, and she takes great pride in being a full-time dog mom. Her professional achievements and personal roles highlight her unwavering commitment to creating an inclusive and equitable world.

Kiesha has an extensive background of nearly 15 years of solving challenges and formulating productive strategies within the areas of business development and executive leadership support. In previous roles, she has supported multiple nonprofit and for-profit organizations in the areas of grants management, event management, research, administration, onboarding strategy, and program/project support.

Kiesha has earned a Bachelor’s in Biology from Spelman College and has completed the Career Pivot Series with Goldman Sachs along with a certificate in Women’s Entrepreneurship with eCornell. She is currently pursuing a certification in Project Management. She is the wife of Cedric and the mother of two children: Ava and Chandler.

Donna is a graduate of Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio where she graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Mass Communication. She is the sole proprietor of The Write Choice. She is a seasoned professional with extensive writing and editing skills, business and graphic communication, web content and social media marketing, fundraising, public speaking, and event planning experience. She has been working in a freelance capacity since 2010.

Donna has excellent interpersonal, organizational, time management, and multi-tasking skills. She is a self-starter with a keen eye for details. She has been published in multiple magazines and e-zines over the years and is a twice-published co-author. She edited her first client book in 2019.

Donna is retired from the Air Force and considers her greatest accomplishment her three children, including twin daughters and a son. Donna currently resides in Colorado with her dog, Breck.

Amanda founded Out of Office Admin, Inc. in 2014. After many years of working very closely with business owners from a variety of different industries, Amanda saw first-hand how providing administrative support to those owners was vital to the success of their businesses.

Amanda is precise, detail-oriented, and loves to multitask. With her cheerful and dedicated manner, she has a passion for learning new concepts and helping others to be successful. She enjoys the challenge of working with individuals from diverse backgrounds and feels it is her duty to keep her clients organized, focused on their business, and in compliance.

In her spare time, Amanda enjoys spending time with her family, loves portrait photography, and traveling with her husband. She is also a Day of Wedding Coordinator.