Position Overview
Dogs with Wings Assistance Dog Society is seeking a creative, organized and relationship-focused Fundraising and Communications Coordinator to advance the organization's fundraising, donor engagement and public communications initiatives.
This position supports the delivery of integrated fundraising campaigns, donor stewardship, events, sponsorship activities, grant administration and compelling mission-based communications. The successful candidate will translate the organization's impact into clear, respectful and accessible stories that inspire donors, volunteers, partners and the broader community to support life-changing assistance-dog partnerships.
Dogs with Wings is an Edmonton-based registered charity that breeds, trains and places highly skilled assistance dogs with individuals living with disabilities and professionals in caring environments. Its mission is to empower individuals and strengthen communities through trained assistance dogs and a supportive network of volunteers, donors and partners.
Key Responsibilities
Fundraising and Donor Engagement
- Coordinate annual and seasonal fundraising campaigns, including calendars, content, schedules, budgets and stewardship activities.
- Support donor acquisition, retention and upgrade initiatives across individual, monthly, tribute, corporate and event giving, backed by accurate CRM records and reporting.
- Prepare donor communications, acknowledgement letters, tax-receipt materials, impact updates and stewardship reports.
- Conduct prospect research and support major-gift cultivation, proposal preparation and donor follow-up.
- Coordinate third-party fundraising, sponsorship packages and sponsor recognition in line with brand and ethical-giving requirements.
- Prepare grant applications and funding reports, and monitor fundraising revenue, expenses and campaign performance.
Communications and Storytelling
- Develop and maintain an integrated communications calendar tied to fundraising cycles, programs, events and organizational priorities.
- Create and edit content for the website, newsletters, social media, appeals, annual reports and presentations.
- Draft accessible, audience-appropriate stories featuring assistance dogs, clients, volunteers and donors while protecting client privacy and dignity.
- Collaborate with program and canine-operations teams to gather information, photography, video and testimonials, including consent collection.
- Monitor digital engagement and campaign results to guide messaging, timing and channel decisions.
- Maintain consistent brand voice, visual standards and accessibility across all communications, including website updates.
Events and Community Presence
- Support the planning and execution of donor, community and signature fundraising events.
- Coordinate invitations, registrations, run-of-show documents, and vendor and volunteer communications and materials.
- Support event-related sponsorship, donor stewardship and post-event recognition.
- Represent Dogs with Wings at community events and donor gatherings, and help evaluate results through revenue, attendance and feedback.
Administrative and Team Support
- Maintain organized fundraising, communications and sponsorship files.
- Track deadlines, approvals, deliverables, expenses and restricted-funding requirements.
- Prepare meeting agendas, briefing materials, action lists and performance summaries.
- Follow applicable charitable-giving, privacy, accessibility and consent requirements.
- Work collaboratively with staff and volunteers while contributing to a positive, respectful and mission-focused workplace.
- Undertake other organizational duties appropriate to the role.
Qualifications
- Post-secondary education in fundraising, communications, marketing, public relations, nonprofit administration or a related discipline.
- Two to four years of relevant experience in nonprofit fundraising, donor relations, communications, marketing or community engagement.
- Demonstrated experience writing persuasive, accurate and audience-focused content.
- Experience coordinating campaigns, events, sponsorships or grant submissions.
- Working knowledge of donor stewardship, fundraising ethics and relationship-based giving.
- Proficiency with Microsoft 365 applications, particularly Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams and SharePoint.
- Experience using a CRM or donor database, email-marketing platform and website content-management system.
- Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines and stakeholders.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- High standards of accuracy, discretion and confidentiality.
- Ability to work independently while contributing effectively to a collaborative team.
- Valid driver's licence and access to reliable transportation for occasional community travel.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with charitable events, sponsorships, monthly giving or peer-to-peer fundraising.
- Experience preparing grant applications and funder reports.
- Familiarity with Canada Revenue Agency charitable-receipting requirements and Canadian fundraising practices.
- Experience with tools such as donor CRMs, Mailchimp or similar platforms, WordPress, Canva and social-media scheduling systems.
- Experience working with photography, video or basic graphic and content production.
- Knowledge of assistance dogs, disability inclusion, volunteer-based organizations or animal welfare.
- Ability to handle sensitive client stories with empathy, informed consent and sound judgement.
Working Conditions
This role combines office-based work with occasional evenings, weekends, community travel and event attendance. Some scheduling flexibility is expected during campaign periods and around fundraising events.
Dogs with Wings prioritizes the well-being of every dog and every person. Candidates must be comfortable working respectfully in an environment involving assistance dogs, clients, volunteers and visitors with diverse abilities and needs.
Dogs with Wings is committed to an inclusive, accessible recruitment process. Accommodation is available throughout the selection process upon request. Candidates are invited to advise the organization of accommodation needs when applying.
Pay: $56,000.00-$66,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Casual dress
- Company events
- Dental care
- Employee assistance program
- Extended health care
- Mileage reimbursement
- On-site parking
- Wellness program
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Edmonton, AB
