Kim Joyce, GPC
Kim Joyce, GPC (Grant Professional Certified), a native of Phoenix, began her career in education and has been involved with the nonprofit sector as a grant professional, fundraising professional, and volunteer for over 20 years. In 2010, Kim founded her grant writing firm, Kim Joyce & Associates, that provides services in the areas of grant writing, prospect research, grant writing training, grant office assessments, donor cultivation coaching, and nonprofit capacity building.
Kim’s clients have included nonprofits providing services in the areas of health and human services, education, at-risk youth, homelessness, healthcare, the arts, charter schools, and faith-based organizations, as well as institutes of higher education, school districts, tribes, and units of local government. Her firm, one of the largest in Arizona, is comprised of highly skilled employees and subcontractors from across the nation and has assisted clients in receiving grant awards of more than $164 million.
Two distinctions set Kim apart from her peers in the industry: she is one of only 21 GPCs in the state of Arizona, and she is one of only 32 GPA Grant Professionals Association (GPA) Approved Trainers in the world. Kim earned her GPC certification through the Grant Professionals Certification Institute (GPCI) and is also a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) Continuing Education Approved Provider.
Kim is a proud member of GPA – Arizona Founding Chapter, the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits, the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the National Grants Management Association (NGMA), and also serves as a Board Member of the GPCI. She enjoys giving back to the community, both personally, and professionally. Kim previously served as the Board Secretary of the GPA – Arizona Founding Chapter and on various local foundation and government review panels, such as Valley of the Sun United Way, the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission, and the City of Phoenix CDBG grant review panel.
Kimberly Rogers, GPC
Dr. Rekha Rajan
Dr. Rekha S. Rajan is the Senior Evaluation and Training Specialist at Kim Joyce & Associates. She has a Doctorate in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City, where she also holds a Masters in Education. She also holds a Masters in Education from Roosevelt University in Chicago. Dr. Rajan was an Associate Professor and Director of the Masters in Grant Writing, Management, and Evaluation Program at Concordia University Chicago for over a decade. There, she designed and taught courses on grant writing, budgeting, grants management, and program evaluation. Collectively, her students have been awarded over 30 million dollars through their work in her Capstone course.
Dr. Rajan’s academic research has been funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, the California Arts Council, and the Chicago Community Trust. She has conducted over 100 program evaluations for organizations across the country. She is also an award-winning musician and a prolific author of over 15 books. Titles include Grant Writing: Practical Strategies for Scholars and Professionals and Arts Evaluation: Measuring Assessment in Schools and Communities.
Susan Santilena
Susan holds a Master's degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor's degree in Marketing from California State University, Chico, which, along with her extensive career in multiple industries, has equipped her with a solid foundation to transform companies and organizations.
She is a multifaceted individual with a wide range of interests and passions for art, music, and storytelling. She loves to travel and explore new cultures. In all aspects of her life, Susan is driven by a desire to make a positive impact. Whether it's through her work or travel, she is always seeking ways to create a better world. Her passion, creativity, and dedication make her a true asset and a source of inspiration to those around her.
Dale Braden, GPC
Dale Braden, GPC, is a Colorado native and moved to Portland, Oregon after graduating from Colorado State University. Dale worked as a post-award grant administrator at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) for 8.5 years before leaving to work with an international nonprofit organization, Youth With A Mission. He returned to OHSU in March 2006 as research grant administrator, ensuring grant applications were complete, as well as assisting with budget preparation and application assembly. Dale worked with investigators on internal compliance, provided monthly spending projections, approved expendit
D’Laun Oubre
D’Laun earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Southern University and A&M College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix.
Formerly a resident of Los Angeles, California, D’Laun moved back to Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina to assist with relief efforts. She now resides in St. James Parish, Louisiana, a river parish suburb southwest of New Orleans, LA.
Her hobbies include baking southern-inspired desserts and traveling.
Amanda Ripstra, GPC
Meredith Burke Hammons, Ph.D., GPC
Smyrna, GA
Dr. Meredith Burke Hammons has a varied career in education. She taught at the high school, college, and graduate levels, worked as a librarian in public and academic libraries, and served as the assistant director of the local office of a national, education-based nonprofit. Through her library work and love for research, she began grant writing, primarily focusing on youth development, education, human services, and faith-based organizations. She is active in the Georgia Grant Professionals Association, currently serving as treasurer, and is a long-time volunteer in a local mentoring program for elementary school children. Meredith holds a Ph.D. in Religion from Vanderbilt University, a Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Religion from Davidson College.
Harmony Nelson
Senior Quality Assurance Manager
Mesa, Arizona
Harmony is an experienced nonprofit executive, having worked with the Boys and Girls Clubs, United Way, and multiple government and collegiate organizations in Arizona, California, and Missouri. She brings expertise in program development and management, grant writing, and management information systems. Harmony has bachelor's degrees in Business Administration and English Literature. Her non-profit experience has focused on foster care, workforce development, veterans, children’s literacy, and homelessness.
Martin Bimler, CFRE
Quality Assurance Manager
St. Petersburg, Florida
Martin Bimler, CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive), brings more than 20 years of experience in marketing communication, fundraising, and grant development. He has worked with local, national, and international organizations helping funders and clients connect to solve problems. His non-profit experience has focused on children and family services, substance use, mental and behavioral health, workforce development, homeless services, and the arts. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication/Advertising from Purdue University and a Master’s Degree in Advertising from The University of Texas at Austin, where he earned the designation of Texas Creative for writing. He is an active member of the Association for Christian Fundraising, a Past President of the Grants Collaborative of Tampa Bay, and a member of the Board of Directors of a grassroots organization dedicated to eradicating mental health disparities in marginalized communities. Originally from the Chicago area, he calls St. Petersburg, FL his home and remains active in the ceramic arts community by teaching wheel throwing and raku firing.
Kristen Krey
Director of Government and Community Engagement
Avondale, AZ
Kristen serves as our Director of Government and Community Engagement. She has over thirty years of public service with direct experience in Public Safety, Community Services/Engagement, and Grants Management. She has a proven track record of executive leadership, delivering results-driven approaches, providing strategic advisory services, and successfully leading complex projects. She has also created and delivered training in numerous disciplines, including Grants Management, Project Management, Leadership Development, and Public Safety. Kristen has a BA in Criminal Justice and Political Science, an MA in Organizational Management and is a CPM, Certified Public Manager. She has served as Adjunct Professor for Webster University MBA program at Luke Airforce Base. She lives in the metro-Phoenix area.
Becca Buster
Human Resource Specialist
Phoenix, Arizona
Becca is originally from Morrison Colorado and after graduating high school went out to Phoenix to attend Grand Canyon University. While there she gained experience in leadership, volunteer work, time management, and organizational skills. After graduation, she worked for a small company where she utilized her skills to help rapidly grow the team from 1 employee to 45. She specializes in hiring and onboarding new employees, training and implementation, and organizational management. Becca is excited to bring her experience to the Administration Division at Kim Joyce and Associates as the Human Resource Specialist.
Liz Gould
Project Managment Specialist
Erie, Pennsylvania
Liz brings 17 years of experience in the non-profit and education fields. She has worked with several non-profit organizations in various management, fundraising, and event planning roles. Liz also has a background in higher education having served as a financial aid counselor for many years. Liz is a 2005 graduate of Baldwin Wallace College with a BA in Communications.
Jenna Joyce
Data Entry Specialist
Scottsdale, AZ
Jenna Joyce is a senior at Grand Canyon University where she is majoring in Psychology with a minor in Behavioral Health Sciences. She has varied skillsets including data entry, writing, customer relations management, and more. She has volunteered with nonprofits and youth serving organizations both nationally and internationally. She is excited to bring her love of serving others, strong academic background and attention to detail to Kim Joyce & Associates.
Laurie Pierce
Senior Grants Associate
Scottsdale, AZ
Terry Driscoll, MPA
Senior Grants Specialist
Phoenix, Arizona
Terry Driscoll, MPA has experience securing funding from a wide spectrum of sources, including corporate and private foundations, state and local governments, and federal grant programs. Successful federal grants he has secured include HOME and CDBG grant programs, SAMHSA, the Economic Development Association, and the Department of Labor. Throughout his career, he has obtained support for a diverse array of programs, such as workforce development, youth education, low-income housing construction, HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, immigration, substance abuse treatment, parenting education, homelessness prevention/transitional housing, financial literacy, and small business technical assistance and funding. Terry is highly motivated by, and indeed thrives on, diving into new subject matter and fields.
Terry's past work history also includes nearly a decade of compliance and quality work in the private sector, as well as nonprofit program evaluation and strategic planning experience. Terry's work history has provided him a rich knowledge of the Arizona nonprofit, business, and funding landscape, as well as a skillset that enables him to envision social service programs holistically: from securing funding, through implementation, evaluation, compliance, and reporting.
Terry is a two-time Arizona State Sun Devil, earning a Bachelor of Science in Political Science with an International Relations certificate, and a Master's in Public Administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Administration.
Barbara Polston
Senior Grants Specialist
Tucson, Arizona
Barbara Polston brings 24 years of proposal writing experience and joins Kim Joyce & Associates as a Senior Grants Specialist. Despite achieving success with her first grant proposal, Barbara Polston never set out to be a grant professional. A talent for writing and a passion to improve the world led her to a successful career in proposal and contract writing. She has won millions of dollars through foundation, corporation, and government grants and contracts for human services agencies. Now, semi-retired, Barbara is happy to be part of the Kim Joyce & Associates team and contribute to client success. She earned a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from San Francisco Theological Seminary and a Certificate in Nonprofit Management through the Nonprofit Management Institute of Arizona State University. When not writing proposals, Barbara can be found in her quilt studio or working on a series of children's books.
Thomas Bona
Senior Grants Specialist
Goshen, Indiana
Thomas Bona has more than two decades of experience in research-based writing, including careers in newspaper journalism, public relations, and economic development. He became a grant writer in 2014, when his boss said, “You write well. We need money. Write this grant.” Since then, he has written successful (and unsuccessful but darn good!) grant applications in economic and workforce development, healthcare, public safety, brownfield redevelopment, housing, social services, and other topics. Before joining Kim Joyce & Associates, he spent four years as a grants manager for a health system in Indiana, winning funding to reduce infant mortality, fight food and diaper insecurity, reduce accidental childhood injury, prevent substance abuse, care for sexual assault victims, and keep the lights on at a clinic serving one of the poorest parts of the state.
Thomas is not only experienced in obtaining federal and state grants but has written and helped implement the required workforce and economic development plans needed for regions to get such grants. He also spent 11 years as a local government and transportation reporter, so he geeks out every time an infrastructure bill is passed. Thomas loves learning what exciting and important things his clients and partners are doing and translating their needs into fundable proposals. He also is a data geek who visits Data.Census.Gov for fun.
Tomi Simmons
Grants Specialist
Phoenix, AZ
Kim Thevabalasingham
Grants Specialist
Yorktown, Virginia
Kim Thevabalasingham has 11 years of experience in grant research and writing, grant management, grant reporting, program development, and non-profit management. She has secured and managed over 5 million dollars in state and local grant awards for a local non-profit. She believes the Oxford comma is essential, and Word Crimes is one of her favorite songs. She has also been an active member of the Grant Professionals Association (GPA) since 2016, where she has served in multiple roles. Kim earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Anderson University. She is the mother of two older teenagers, which keeps life interesting, but she is close to emptying the nest. She has lived in Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Virginia. The next stop on her Southeast tour is likely Tennessee, but Kim currently resides in Yorktown, VA, where our great nation was born in battle. She loves the gym; her favorite hobbies are traveling and dancing West Coast Swing.
Andrea Forsmo
Grants Specialist
Groton, Massachusetts
Andrea brings expertise in the education field, programs that benefit children and adolescents, and making the heart connection between organizations and funders. After several years of volunteering, teaching, and grant writing for a local school system, she made a career change from retail bank management to following her passion. Andrea is experienced in persuasive and effective writing across the grant proposal process, assessing educational impacts and metrics, and prospect research. Andrea is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Lowell (BA, English, Writing Concentration) and earned two fundraising certificates at Arizona State University Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation, Grant Development: State and Foundation Proposals and Advanced Grant Development: Federal Proposals. She is also a member of the Grant Professionals Association.
Adam Sommers
Grants Specialist
Kalispell, Montana
Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Adam joined Kim Joyce & Associates after several years of fundraising and development work in Northwest Montana. Adam is passionate about putting time and energy behind causes and efforts that he believes in, as well as protecting and enjoying Montana’s public lands. Adam earned an undergraduate degree in History and Political Science from Christian Brothers University, and later a graduate degree (Master of Public Administration and Nonprofit Management) from Arkansas State University. Outside of the office, Adam spends as much time as possible outside walking, hiking, running, backpacking, floating, and exploring Northwest Montana's rugged landscape.
Mandy Rossi
Canon City, Colorado
Amanda “Mandy” Rossi is a Pennsylvania native but has made Colorado home. She is a 25-year veteran of the U.S. Army and obtained specialties in Human Resource Management, Public Affairs, and Strategic Plans and Policy. Mandy is a combat veteran, experienced at senior levels of the Army to include the Pentagon and NATO, and is also experienced at working across federal, state, and local agencies and governments. After retirement, she spent the next few years volunteering to help rescue horses in Colorado and supporting nonprofits in the field of equine therapies. Mandy is currently a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) with Heart of CASA Colorado in Canon City, Colorado.
Mandy decided after retiring from the Army to pursue a career change in grant writing so that she could bring her myriad of skills to bear to assist organizations doing good work to secure funding for those efforts. To that end, she completed a Masters’ Degree in Grant Writing, Management & Evaluation through Concordia University Chicago in 2021. Mandy also holds a bachelor’s degree in Government and Politics and a master’s degree in Diplomacy/International Relations. When not working or volunteering, you will find Mandy spending time riding and training her two beloved horses: Jess and Louie.
Ashley Mastey
Grant Writer
Scottsdale, Arizona
Ashley Mastey was born and raised in Scottsdale, AZ. After high school, she went on to get her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at the University of Arizona. Bear Down! While in school she managed to help grow and train staff within the company at a local gym chain. Some of her favorite hobbies are trying local coffee shops, working out, and enjoying the Arizona sun! She looks forward to bringing her knowledge & experiences to KJA.
Kaitlyn Cooper
Executive Assistant to the CEO
Mesa, AZ
Kaitlyn Cooper, an Arizona native, specializes in maintaining a professional service that helps keep executives on a path to success. After growing up mainly in Prescott, AZ, she started her path in the medical field. She became a certified nursing assistant, certified caregiver and med tech, and began nursing school. After deciding that was no longer the path she wanted to continue, Kaitlyn began her degree in business. Now, in the Mesa area, she continues her education in business while also utilizing her skills to assist others in achieving an optimal, organized, and flowing office environment. Kaitlyn is excited to bring her experience and join Kim Joyce & Associates as the Executive Assistant to the CEO.