The Challenge
When Dan Minor joined Child Bridge in October 2023, the organization was at an inflection point. Founded fifteen years earlier, Child Bridge had grown into a statewide presence across Montana with six offices—but its fundraising operations still depended heavily on the personal relationships of its co-founder, Mary, who was preparing to step back.
Dan inherited a contracted grant writer and hired two more team members Brennan (spring 2024) and Raychelle (summer 2025) as associate directors of donor relations. Their executive director who also manages a donor portfolio was hired in March 2024. The challenge was clear—how do you scale fundraising operations from a founder-dependent model into a sustainable, team-driven engine capable of doubling revenue?
“When I came on board, we were a $3 million organization,” Dan explains. “Mary told me: in a couple of years, I anticipate we’ll be $5 million. I need someone to build the capacity and scale the fundraising operations.”
Dan’s team members were at different experience levels. Brennan, who managed mid-level and monthly donors, had been on the team just over a year. Raychelle, overseeing major donors and estate planning, was brand new. The executive director, while experienced, was deeply task-oriented and needed support shifting toward more strategic donor engagement. And Dan himself, a 17-year veteran of fundraising, was juggling the dual responsibilities of managing his own portfolio while mentoring a growing team.
Professional development options were limited. The team had invested in modules through Veritus Group, but Dan needed something different—a platform that could meet each team member where they were and give them structured, ongoing support.
Discovering Practivated
Dan first encountered Practivated at a Montana conference where Mallory Erickson’s books were being sold. He picked up a copy, started reading, subscribed to the podcast, and found himself hooked. After 17 years in fundraising, Mallory’s approach offered both affirmation and rejuvenation.
“I’ve been in fundraising for 17 years. For me, it’s been a nice level of affirmation and also rejuvenation—kind of recalibrating, looking at some habits, what are good, what are bad.” — Dan Minor, CFRE
In June 2025, Dan took a demo with Allie Jewell on the Practivated team. What struck him immediately was the platform’s simulation feature—AI-powered avatars that let fundraisers practice real donor conversations at varying difficulty levels and receive detailed, actionable feedback. For Dan, who was investing significant time mentoring his team one-on-one, this was a breakthrough. The platform could provide the repetitions and coaching his team needed, 24/7, without stretching him even thinner.
Within a month, Child Bridge signed on as a team customer—becoming one of Practivated’s earliest organizational partners.
The Implementation
Child Bridge onboarded in July 2025 with the full team—Dan, Brennan, and Raychelle—joining a comprehensive walkthrough of the platform. Even before the formal onboarding, Brennan had already started using the simulation feature to prepare for donor meetings and was seeing results.
The onboarding focused on three core capabilities that aligned with Child Bridge’s needs: practice scenarios that let fundraisers simulate challenging donor conversations at adjustable difficulty levels; donor profiles that the team could customize with real portfolio data for targeted practice; and Coach Tivy, Practivated’s AI coaching tool, which provides on-demand guidance for fundraising strategy and donor communication.
As the platform evolved, Child Bridge’s usage deepened. By early 2026, Charlotte introduced the program marketplace—structured, guided training experiences that walk fundraisers through specific skill areas step by step. Dan also leveraged Practivated’s data-informed donor profiles to build customized practice scenarios based on Child Bridge’s own data modeling, which had segmented their 2,500 donor records into 68 distinct groups.
The Results
Revenue Growth: In less than two years, Child Bridge grew from a $3 million organization to $5.1 million in annual fundraising—a 40% increase. Dan credits this growth to a combination of strengthened donor relationships, improved team confidence, and more strategic conversations with donors at every level.
Donor Retention: Child Bridge maintained a 67% donor retention rate, well above the national average, even as they aggressively pursued new donor acquisition.
Team Development: Each member of the fundraising team has used Practivated to sharpen their approach. Brennan has applied it to monthly donor strategies and mid-level stewardship. Raychellel has used donor simulations to prepare for major gift conversations. And the executive director has used it to refine her own engagement style.
Strategic Planning: Dan has built a comprehensive plan to reach $6.5 million by 2028 through a major donor acquisition campaign targeting 55,000 households in Montana—launching during Foster Care Awareness Month in May. Practivated’s custom programs are helping the team prepare for the surge in new donor relationships this campaign will generate.
“I’m super stoked about what we are building for 2028—a sustainable fundraising engine. I look forward to the continued partnership with Practivated.” — Dan Minor, CFRE
What’s Next
Child Bridge renewed and expanded their Practivated partnership in March 2026, adding customizations tailored to their donor segments—including a program focused on reactivating high-potential lapsed donors and another for engaging younger professionals through digital communications and monthly giving.
Dan is also planning to hire a new development coordinator and is exploring Practivated’s onboarding tools to reduce ramp-up time for new team members. With a $5 million budget this year and sights set on $6.5 million by 2028, Child Bridge is building the kind of fundraising infrastructure that will serve Montana’s foster and adoptive families for decades to come.
And at the center of that engine? A team that practices, improves, and shows up to every donor conversation with confidence.
