At Fox Campaigns, we’re honored to work alongside consultants whose passion, expertise, and dedication make an incredible difference for nonprofits nationwide. In our Consultant Spotlight series, featured in our newsletters, we highlight the people behind capital campaigns, grant writing, and fractional staffing—the trusted advisors guiding organizations to dream bigger, plan smarter, and achieve transformative results.
This month, we’re featuring Laurie Grant Nichols, CFRE, who has been helping nonprofits elevate their impact for nearly two decades. Laurie began her career in Atlanta’s nonprofit sector before launching into resource development consulting in 2010, and she’s been part of the Fox team since 2022. With experience spanning causes from conservation and affordable housing to arts and culture, Laurie brings a wealth of knowledge and a generalist’s perspective to campaign leadership.
In our conversation, Laurie shares what inspires her most about this work, why she sees herself as a facilitator and coach for organizational leaders, and which nonprofit founder from history she would most love to meet. Her reflections offer both practical insight and a reminder of the joy that comes from connecting people to their passion.
Tell us all about you!
I began as a resource development consultant in 2010, and worked for nonprofits in Atlanta, Georgia for a decade prior to consulting. I earned my CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) credential in 2021, one of 7,700 professionals around the world who hold the CFRE designation, and I have been with Fox since 2022. My nonprofit experience encompasses causes that support the environment, conservation, health and human services, affordable housing, historic preservation, and arts and culture. I provide campaign leadership, and consider myself to be a generalist.
Why do you love your work/profession?
I love to connect people with their passion. In the philanthropy field, I have the opportunity to work with volunteer leaders who are committed to a cause, and their enthusiasm is contagious. I view my role as that of facilitator, coach, and guide. My goal is to provide the tools and expertise to help organizational leaders achieve their vision. This field can be profoundly rewarding and fun, and I have developed wonderful relationships along the way.
If you were to meet the founder or CEO of any non-profit, who would it be and why?
If I could travel back in time, I would choose Gladys Lawrence, who founded the National Charity League in 1925 in Los Angeles, California. NCL fosters the mother-daughter relationship through an ongoing commitment to philanthropy and leadership. I imagine that Gladys, as she made layettes for the American Red Cross and assembled food baskets for the hungry along with her friends, did not realize that she was launching a national movement that would span 100 years. Now, each year, NCL members from coast-to-coast volunteer nearly three million hands-on hours in their communities and serve more than 6,000 philanthropies nationwide. I just served as president of my local chapter, and had the privilege of attending the national conference in April in Anaheim, California. I love that NCL is inspiring the next generation of philanthropy leaders.
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