The Opportunity

Campfire Circle is looking for a dynamic Senior Manager, Philanthropic Communications who will help us tell our story and engage donors with our mission to provide joyful and transformative programs in hospitals, communities and overnight camps connecting with kids and families affected by childhood cancer. Reporting to the Senior Director, Marketing & Communications, the Senior Manager will engage our donors by creating communications that will ignite and inspire giving.

As a communications leader and member of the MarComs team, the Senior Manager will support the CEO, CDO and Philanthropy leaders and relationship managers to engage donors in funding the long-term needs of the organization and motivate our audiences to take the call to action. Working directly with the executive, program, and operations teams to develop messaging to engage donors and prospective donors in our largest funding priorities as we prepare for our milestone fundraising Campaign, the ideal candidate will be an excellent philanthropic writer, with effective project management skills, who has experience developing cases for support and bringing complex funding proposals to life.  In addition to writing the case for support the Senior Manager will create collateral, briefs, discussion documents, proposals, impact reports, stewardship assets, digital copy, and mini cases that align with the overall mission and vision for Campfire Circle.

The successful candidate will be passionate about Campfire Circle’s programs, initiatives, and people, and will become a knowledgeable champion for the organization and the communities we serve helping children with cancer and their families find joy.

About Campfire Circle

Childhood cancer changes lives. So does camp.

Campfire Circle (formerly Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium) is often referred to as the social cure for cancer. It’s a place where kids play, grow, and enjoy new experiences in a safe, welcoming environment. Our programs celebrate kids for who they are – not what they have.

Year-round community, in-hospital and overnight camp programs deliver fun, friendship, and a sense of community at any stage of a childhood cancer journey. With the return to in-person programs this year, Campfire Circle continues to be there for kids and families through in-hospital, community and overnight camp programs, all across Ontario.

The joy and confidence gained from camp is a crucial aspect of our Campers’ health and well-being. Campfire Circle gives Campers the chance to meet other kids, families or Counsellors who’ve faced the same illnesses, had the same surgeries, or other Campers who know what it’s like to have a sick sibling. Camp restores a sense of normalcy, newfound strength, and hope.

When you’re at camp, the only elephant in the room is the elephant that Campers have handcrafted out of paper mache and pipe cleaners.

Land Acknowledgement

Campfire Circle is grateful for Indigenous communities’ stewardship of the land that we occupy—including the traditional territory of many nations including the Anishnabeg, the Chippewas, the Haudenosaunee peoples, and many other diverse First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples. We aspire to be deserving stewards of the land, in partnership with them.

History & Merger

What began as two humble summer camps for kids with cancer and their families has grown into magical programs all across the province. Camp Ooch was founded in 1983, and Camp Trillium was founded in 1984. On January 1, 2020, Camp Ooch and Camp Trillium merged and now leverage their combined strengths, supporting children and families affected by childhood cancer in Ontario with year-round social supports, including programs that meet the wide social, emotional, and developmental needs of Campers.

Professional full-time staff, specially trained medical teams, and hundreds of volunteers help us serve kids and their families in communities and paediatric oncology centres, and at three camp sites across Ontario, including Campfire Circle Muskoka, the only overnight oncology camp in Canada able to provide onsite IV chemotherapy and blood transfusions.

Following the merger of Camp Ooch and Camp Trillium in 2020, a journey began to discover a new name that would signal our new future, together.

We wanted our new name to place kids and families affected by childhood cancer at the heart of what we do and recognize the caring community surrounding them. It needed to acknowledge our roots and carry us into the future.

After speaking with many of you—our community—we found it! Starting January 2022, we are excited to announce that we will be called Campfire Circle. We aren’t changing what we do—we’re just changing our name.

At Campfire Circle, we’ve been trusted for 39 years to provide healing through happiness. Over the years, our volunteer-driven organization has expanded to deliver camp-inspired programs year-round in hospitals, in communities, at overnight camp, and now, online.

Please view our announcement video here.

Additional Information

• The Story of Camp Ooch & Camp Trillium
• Our Model
• Our Stories
• 2021 Impact Report
• 2021 Financial Statements
• Board of Directors, Leadership and Medical Advisory Committee
• Camp Association and Hospital / Healthcare Centre Partners

Key Duties & Responsibilities

Planning and Oversight (20%)

• Lead the development of an annual plan for philanthropic communications, acting as the primary liaison and project manager to coordinate between MarComs and Philanthropy.
• Contribute to the organization’s strategic planning and annual budget process.
• Liaise as a part of cross-functional teams to plan projects and manage deadlines, demonstrating excellent project management skills.
• Coordinate and collaborate with other team members in a leadership capacity to achieve departmental and organizational goals.

Communications & Proposal Development (60%)

• Work with philanthropy leadership, fundraising portfolio managers, and other relevant staff to coordinate and lead proposal development, solicitation and stewardship content.
• Work with colleagues in program design, delivery, measurement and evaluation to create compelling communications that articulate the impact of the programs.
• Develop a robust case for support, in conjunction with external vendors, including the creation of corresponding materials.
• Serve as lead writer for proposals for major donors, corporations, foundations, and as required, institutional, with a focus on transformational and leadership gifts.
• Create compelling reports that clearly and effectively articulate the impact of the corporation/foundation/major donor’s contribution.
• Ensure communications assets (proposals, reports, correspondence, etc.) are error-free, adhere to guidelines and are in alignment with Campfire Circle’s strategic priorities.
• Create and maintain an inventory of “self-serve” written assets—templates that can be modified by relationship managers to submit proposals, LOIs and reports.

Strategic Communications (20%)

• Work with the Senior Director, Marketing & Communications to identify strategic communications opportunities and implement recommendations that support with philanthropic campaigns, brand building, thought leadership, content strategy, social media, media relations, and issues/reputation management.
• Support the CEO and executive team in developing strategic communications plans and content that further the long-term strategy and mission of the organization.

Qualifications & Experience

• Degree in communications or relevant experience.
• Minimum 7-10 years’ experience with communications, including experience with philanthropic case development and campaigns.
• Experience or aptitude to work in a fast paced, growing organization.
• Superior oral and written communications skills.
• Excellent project management abilities and/or training in project management.
• Strong knowledge of philanthropic trends, giving and campaign trends.
• Experience working with Major Gift fundraisers as a business partner and collaborator.
• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Office and related software.
• Experience with WordPress is beneficial.
• Ability to work independently and as a member of a high-performance team.
• Demonstrated commitment and experience in the volunteer sector or in volunteer management.
• Current police reference check with vulnerable sector screening.

Competencies, Ethics & Behaviours

• Superior interpersonal and relationship management skills.
• Well organized with proven planning and organizational skills.
• Ability to manage and prioritize multiple priorities and respond to multiple requests.
• Enthusiastic and diplomatic.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Attention to detail with sound judgement and decision-making abilities.
• Ability to work in an open-concept office environment.
• Sense of fiscal responsibility.
• In consideration of the population the organization serves, the Senior Manager, Philanthropic Communications must be a non-smoker.

The incoming Senior Manager must ensure that the integrity, image and quality of all ethics are consistent with Campfire Circle’s mission, operating principles and objectives and adhere to the code of ethics of Imagine Canada, the Association of Gift Planners, the Canadian Code for Volunteer Involvement and the Code of Ethics of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

For More Information

KCI (Ketchum Canada Inc.) has been retained to conduct this search on behalf of Campfire Circle. For more information about this opportunity, please contact Helena Debnam, Senior Search Consultant, KCI Search + Talent by email at PCOMM@kcitalent.com.

To view full position brief, visit www.kcitalent.com

All inquiries and applications will be held in strict confidence. To apply, please send a resume and letter of interest to the email address listed above by December 21, 2022.

Campfire Circle is strongly committed to diversity within its community and welcomes applications from racialized persons/persons of colour, Indigenous People of North America and the world, persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ persons, and those who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas. We are committed to providing equitable opportunities in employment and to providing a workplace which is free from discrimination and harassment.

We are equally committed to providing an inclusive and accessible workplace. Applicants requiring accommodations to access our job postings and apply for roles with our organization are invited to reach out to our HR Team at careers@campfirecircle.org or in a manner that fits their accessibility needs, and can trust that their application will be considered equitably for our available roles. Contact information for our HR Team is located on our website at https://campfirecircle.org/about-campfire-circle/careers/, and more information about our accessibility commitments can be found at https://campfirecircle.org/about-campfire-circle/accessibility-at-campfire-circle/.

This is a full-time position based out of Toronto (with flexibility to work primarily remotely or in an office environment). The position involves some evening and weekend commitments.

Accommodations are available on request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process. If you require any accommodations, please notify the Search Consultant.

Please note that the salary range for this position is $80,000 – $90,000 with a comprehensive benefits package.