AFP Member Spotlight: Kristal Frazier

AFP Member Spotlights are a recurring series of interviews with AFP members, highlighting the unique individuals and career paths that exist within the fundraising profession. If you know an inspiring fundraising professional who deserves to be featured, please email [email protected].

In this member spotlight, we interviewed Kristal Frazier, founder of FundJoy®. She shares how an early success in grant writing has turned into a career dedicated to empowering fundraisers with practical skills, ethical AI use, and a deeper focus on understanding.

Q: How did you start your career in the fundraising profession and what led you there?
A: My career began with a college capstone project. The assignment was to write a grant proposal, and it ended up getting funded. That single moment changed everything for me. I saw what was possible when a strong ask met a real need, and I have stayed in the nonprofit space ever since. What started as a class requirement turned into a career built on writing winning proposals, training fundraisers, and helping development teams find joy in the work.

Q: When and why did you decide to become an AFP member?
A: I joined AFP a few years ago. The truth is I had always been connected to AFP members through industry conferences, but I never made it official. Once I joined, I understood what I had been missing. The connections and the people have moved my career forward in ways I did not expect.

Q: Are you doing anything innovative at your organization (or a past organization) that you think other fundraisers could benefit from?
A: At FundJoy®, we are helping development teams understand that AI will not replace them. It has a place inside the many roles a fundraiser already fills. We teach ethical AI best practices for donor data, what to use, what to keep human, and where the line sits when it comes to privacy and trust. Through FundJoy.ai courses and workshops, fundraisers learn how to use AI as a tool that protects donor relationships rather than risks them. The goal is simple: confident teams, protected donors, stronger results.

Q: What is your favorite word? How has this word influenced or inspired your career?
A: Understanding. Understanding that the fundraising training I share is needed by the audience receiving it. Understanding my client’s point of view before I offer a suggestion. And always, always seeking more understanding for my own growth as a professional and as a person. When I lead with understanding, it creates better relationships and connections. It is the component behind everything I teach through FundJoy® and the Assertive Ask® system.

Q: What professional accomplishment are you most proud of?
A: I have been fortunate in my career. I have worked at large, mid-size, and small nonprofits. I have helped land big grants and watched organizations break their own funding records. None of it has meant more to me than helping a small group of women who depend on grants to bring food and water to their village and to support the women around them. It is humbling. Knowing that my guidance played even a small role in that work changes how I see everything I do. I simply love what I do.

Q: How has being an AFP member and participating in the AFP affinity groups benefited you in your career?
A: Since AFP became part of my professional development, the doors it has opened are real. I presented at AFP ICON, grew my network, and was introduced to new clients, all through connections made inside AFP. The affinity groups keep me linked to specific communities, like small nonprofits and the African American group. The groups give me a place to trade ideas, and help me stay close to people doing the same work I do. 

Q: In your opinion, what is the biggest challenge facing the nonprofit fundraising profession today?
A: Beyond the current climate of fundraising, the biggest challenge I see is the missing next generation of fundraisers. We are not bringing enough new people into the profession, and we are not always training and keeping the ones who do arrive. Development roles turn over fast, there is a lot of competition, and seasoned fundraisers are stretched thin covering the gaps. If we do not invest in mentoring, clear career paths, and real training for newer staff, the talent pool will keep shrinking while the need keeps growing. I have committed to being a mentor to try to do my part to help. 

Q: What advice do you have for other fundraising professionals?
A: I will frame my advice through the facets I have lived in my own fundraising career.

Professional: you can only go so far without a network. Commit to connecting with your peers at least once a quarter through groups, meetings, and conferences.

Mental: if you are a consultant, create your own work hours and stick to them. The boundary protects the work and protects you.

Productivity: get a project management system that carries the load your memory shouldn’t have to.

Relational: when grants decrease, your relationships matter more than ever. Work on them consistently.