Career Track Profile

Stephanie Chew
Senior Director, Gifts and Special Campaigns for Girl Scouts of Northern California

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How many years have you been in fundraising?
Six years.

What achievements are you most proud of in your career?
I’ve been the special event director for fundraising events honoring role models in the Girl Scout community, including Secretary Madeleine Albright, Senator Dianne Feinstein, Richard Goldman, Dr. Sylvia Earle, Meg Whitman, Myrtle Potter and Marsha Evans. Recently, I guided our organization through a regional merger (which occurred with Girl Scout councils nationwide) and facilitated database merges, campaign reorganization and shifts in giving cultures. It continues to be a long but meaningful process, and I enjoy the challenge!

What have you enjoyed most about being a fundraiser?
Giving is a joyful act, and I enjoy being a part of a part of someone’s philanthropy.

What do you wish you could do better than you do now?
I wish someone would share the secret to managing 100-plus daily incoming emails! We are victims of our own technological efficiency!

What is your motto?
I have two mottoes:
1. “Everything is open to interpretation.” I truly believe that every perspective contributes to our diverse humanity and our compassion for each other.
2. “Be prepared.” It’s the Girl Scout motto, of course!

Who or what has had the greatest influence on your life, and why?
My mother, Linda Chew, CFRE, has been my mentor in life and also in fundraising! She blazed trails for the fundraising profession when AFP (then NSFRE) was first getting started. Linda trained under Hank Rosso and set the bar for success in the profession. She is modest about her career, but I am so lucky to have her as the ultimate mentor!

Name at least three things you like to do when you’re not fundraising.
Running with Team In Training (while raising money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society!), cooking for family and friends and traveling around the world.

About diversity:

In your own words, describe diversity.
Diversity is recognizing and celebrating our differences as people and as a community, so that together we can achieve greater common goals and make the world a better place for each other and for the future.

What are the barriers to deeper diversity within fundraising and the nonprofit sector?
We have to push ourselves beyond what we already know about diverse communities. We learn from each other when we share stories, insights and best practices. Sometimes we have to keep searching for wisdom beyond our comfort zone!

What do you think fundraisers can do to foster deeper inclusion in fundraising and the nonprofit sector?
Do not be afraid to publish your organization’s policies on inclusion or to remind your donors about them! Even in a 97-year-old organization like Girl Scouts, we still have to educate everyone about our inclusion policies and share stories about the innovative and cutting-edge programs we offer to today’s girls.

Do you have any other thoughts on diversity?
We must think carefully about how we use labels for people today, especially with our donors. The face of America is always changing, and so is our concept of identity. Take me for example. I am half Asian and half Caucasian. But would you know just by my photo? I relate to multiple-generational personalities: I grew up valuing integrity and a strong work ethic like the WWII generation and the baby boomers. But I also believe in the work-life balance of Gen Xers and my own networking power like a Millennial. I may be outwardly compassionate, but I am also silently opinionated. Sometimes I conform; sometimes I’m an individualist. I sat in a classroom and studied five languages, but I also traveled the world before I turned 30. Judge me not in terms of single labels based on your own experience, but as a diverse collection of perspectives and multiple identities. Our donors want us to approach them with the same mindful consideration of identity, so that we understand them and their personal philanthropic interests. The new face of America is one you cannot categorize. Together we are as diverse as ever!

About fundraising:

What most concerns you about the profession?
Consistency. There are so many nonprofits that struggle just to achieve their mission and operate effectively. Sometimes this also means their fundraising efforts or their fundraising staff are inconsistent, which can strain donor relations and ultimately damage public opinion about the profession. We must mentor as many fundraisers as we can in order to build an even stronger community of fundraising professionals!

What is the biggest challenge that fundraisers face today?
Technology demands that we embrace change willingly and quickly so that we can adapt to the ever-changing donor climate. Our donor relationships are strongest when we know where, when and how to communicate with them.

What is the most essential quality of a good fundraiser?
Possess a strong moral compass! We work with highly sensitive and confidential information, and we are charged with maintaining its security and integrity. We are also the interpreter for matching our donors’ values with the organization’s values and mission. This requires diplomacy even when we, ourselves, may personally disagree.

Why are you a fundraiser?
At the end of the day, I think we can all agree that we feel good about working in the nonprofit sector. The work is challenging, but also exciting and rewarding. We seek to serve others, and it is deeply fulfilling to see how our efforts are changing the world!

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