About Kristi Yamaguchi's Always Dream

Always Dream is committed to impacting early literacy through fostering family engagement and building a love of reading. Our Always Reading program is about more than reading; we are building confidence in each child, nurturing the discovery of their unique voice, and inspiring them to dream bigger. Our program is a magical mix of fun and learning for the entire family because we know that reading isn’t just a skill – it’s a ticket to future academic success and a world of endless possibilities. Join us on this journey where we’re turning little bookworms into big dreamers, one story at a time.

About the role

Always Dream is seeking a highly organized, energetic, and mission-driven Development Associate to play a key role on our growing Development team. This role is ideal for a strong generalist who is equally comfortable behind the scenes—handling data entry, donor systems, and grant support—as well as stepping into front-facing event and donor engagement roles when needed.

The Development Associate will support the full range of development functions including data management, donor stewardship, grant drafting, prospect research, and event coordination. The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, tech-savvy, curious, and thrives in a collaborative nonprofit environment.

Key Responsibilities

Fundraising & Operations Support

• Enter and manage gifts and donor records in Salesforce with accuracy and consistency
• Generate timely acknowledgment letters and support monthly reconciliation with Classy and the Finance team
• Support appeals, donor mailings, and printing/mailing logistics
• Grant Support: researching, drafting, tracking and reporting

Prospect Research & Pipeline Development

• Support planning and execution of prospecting and pipeline-building efforts
• Conduct research on individual, institutional, and corporate prospects
• Build tools and systems to surface and prioritize high-potential donors

Donor Engagement & Stewardship

• Project manage deliverables and timelines for stewardship and donor events
• Coordinate stewardship approaches using templates, segmentation, and cadences, emphasizing ethical storytelling 
• Collaborate on donor recognition and volunteer experiences
• Draft appeal and newsletter content in collaboration with marketing and communications manager

Event Support & Execution

• Support donor and fundraising events, including logistical coordination, invitations, registration, RSVPs, and on-site management
• Serve as a front-facing representative at events and community tabling opportunities
• Support with collateral development and communications in coordination with marketing
• Coordinate volunteers and staff involved in event execution
• Maintain event supplies and storage inventory

Qualifications

• 1–3 years of nonprofit, development, or fundraising experience
• Strong organizational and project management skills with attention to detail
• Experience with CRM systems (Salesforce preferred) and proficiency with Google Suite and Microsoft Office
• Excellent writing and communication skills
• Self Driven working style - Ability to work collaboratively and independently in a mostly remote work environment
• Strong interpersonal skills and a customer service mindset
• Enthusiasm for prospect research, donor relations, and mission-driven work
• Willingness to work occasional evenings/weekends for events
• This is a hybrid role requiring 2 days a week in our Danville, CA office. Must have reliable transportation. 

Benefits

Always Dream will pay for 100% of the medical, dental, and vision premium costs for you and any dependents, based on a pre-selected plan offered by the organization. You will receive a connectivity stipend of $50.00 each month. And after one month of employment, you will be eligible to participate in an Always Dream sponsored 401K plan with a 3% match.

Time Off

Our team works hard and we want to ensure you have time off to rest. You will receive 120 hours (15 days) of vacation time per year, 10 paid holidays, and two paid closure periods (one in summer, typically the week of Independence Day, and one in winter, typically between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day). Additionally, you will be granted a bank of 80 hours (10 days) of sick leave at the start of each fiscal year.