Spread a Smile is delighted to welcome Krishan Solanki, our new Head of Fundraising to the team. We spoke to Krishan about his background in the charity sector and what he’s looking forward to most about being part of Team Smile.
“I have worked in fundraising roles in the third sector for the past 12 years at two national disability charities, Scope and Muscular Dystrophy UK. I came into the sector through events fundraising, and prior to that, from working for agencies and governing bodies in the sports sector. During my time in the charity sector, I’ve had the opportunity to work with some incredible fundraisers, build flagship events, campaigns, and corporate partnersand look to forward to applying my experience to help grow fundraising at Spread a Smile.
“As a sibling to someone who received a diagnosis of congenital muscular dystrophy as a toddler, I spent a lot of time in hospitals and at appointments with them growing up. Spread a Smile didn’t exist when we were younger, but it’s clear what a difference it would’ve made to us as a family if it had. As soon as I heard about the charity, I felt instantly connected to the cause. Remembering those times in hospital, it would’ve been brilliant to have met the team on their visits, to be cheered up and distracted from the clinical setting, medical procedures and discussions, and subsequently to be able to connect more positively to the experiences during those times.
“What Spread a Smile does is really special and I can’t wait to get stuck in and meet everyone connected to the cause. I’m really looking forward to driving and continuing to grow our fundraising offering, so we can bring even more joy to more people’s lives.
“Everyone I’ve met so far at Spread a Smile have been so welcoming. It’s a fun group of people with lots of positive energy pushing the charity forward and I feel right at home. I’m keen to meet as many of our supporters as possible and am open to being approached, so please do reach out at any time to chat about how you or your company can get involved with this wonderful charity. My inbox (krishan@spreadasmile.org) is always open.”
If you are interested in working with Spread a Smile, please take a look at our current open job roles here.