I’m not your average grant writer. I spent the first half of my career as an ambitious fundraising generalist with work smarter ethics. As a fundraising generalist, I learned donor strategies for every type of fundraising, because I had to. At the small organizations where I worked, every dollar was fundraised and every dollar mattered. I bring that sense of urgency into my grant writing and consulting business. Every dollar matters.

 

As I’ve grown in my career, I have had the opportunity to focus on the strategy aspect of grant proposal writing. When I think through a strategy for a proposal, I bring my 20+ years of fundraising experience into that strategy, plus a deep knowledge of the local funding community. I have raised over $32 million through private and corporate grants, family foundations, local government, and federal government funding opportunities.

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Education

• Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of La Verne

• Certificate in Fundraising Management from the University of Washington

• Master of Public Administration from Seattle University

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Speaking Engagements

• November 2021, Grants Professional Association Conference in Seattle, WA. Presented "Beyond Grant Writing: Managing Your Grants Process" alongside Kat Reuter, Mercy Housing Northwest.

• March 2021, Puget Sound Grant Grantwriters Association Specialized Training presenter. Presented "Beyond Grantwriting: Managing Your Grants Process for Beginners" alongside Kat Reuter, Mercy Housing Northwest.

• November 2018, Grants Professional Association Conference in Chicago, IL. Panel member for a session titled “Wearing Multiple Fundraising Hats: Exploding the Myth of the Sequestered Grants Professional.”

• September 2018, Catalyst Kitchens and Feeding America National Summit, Winston-Salem, NC. Panel member for a session titled "Making the Case for Support: SROI and Framing Program Outcomes."

• February 2018, FareStart’s national program Catalyst Kitchens consulting project with national locations of Catholic Community Services. A webinar titled “How Your Social Enterprise Fits Into Your Grant Proposal.”

• November 2017 for FareStart’s national program Catalyst Kitchens. A webinar titled “Take Your Grant to the Next Level” presented in partnership with Tobin Scipione of Community Servings in Massachusetts.

• January 2016, Puget Sound Grantwriters Association. Panel member for a program titled “Trends in Corporate Grant Making.”

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Professional Associations

Grants Professional Association 

Puget Sound Grantwriters Association 

Association of Fundraising Professionals

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Bio

Melissa Ralston has twenty years of experience in grant writing, fundraising, event planning, and nonprofit marketing. Currently, she volunteers for the Puget Sound Grantwriters Association and Grants Professional Association. She works with organizations throughout the US with an emphasis on the King County/Puget Sound region in Washington. In 2021, Melissa moved to Tucson, Arizona and has continued to work with clients in Washington State who value her 20+ years of knowledge of local funders.

To contact Melissa about grants, click here!

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