Meet Samantha Young
Director of Administration
Story-Driven | Spreadsheet Obsessed | Collaborative Leader
Education and Experience
Samantha's Experience:
Samantha brings over 15 years of operational leadership, project management, and nonprofit fundraising experience to Loving Venti. Her professional journey started in live theater, where she spent over a decade as a stage manager coordinating people, logistics, and creative visions. That love for helping productions run smoothly led her into nonprofit operations and fund development, where she has spent the past five years helping organizations tell their stories and secure the resources they need to thrive.
Before joining Loving Venti, Sam led fund development strategy and donor engagement at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Milwaukee, where she helped build a more sustainable fundraising program rooted in collaboration and community partnerships. She’s known for translating big-picture visions into actionable plans, building systems that reduce overwhelm, and creating the kind of back-end structure that allows mission-driven teams to focus on what matters most.
Samantha's Education:
BA in Drama, University of Dallas (2013)
Inspiration
What inspired Samantha to work with nonprofits?
“I didn’t set out to work in nonprofits—nonprofits found me, and I’m so grateful they did! I started backstage in theater, keeping artists happy and logistics aligned. That naturally evolved into operations and administrative roles, which eventually led me into fundraising at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Milwaukee. Nonprofit teams are often stretched thin but full of heart and I love walking alongside passionate changemakers. It is an honor to discover together new ways to tell stories, secure funding, and build systems that help make our community brighter and stronger.”
Fun Facts about Samantha
“My husband and I met in college when he was an actor and I was a stage manager! We now have three high-energy boys, which means most of our free time involves chauffeuring between baseball games, making sure plenty of snacks are on deck, and finding Legos in places they definitely shouldn’t be. I moonlight as an Airbnb host with my dad, and I’m always up for a waterskiing trip, even though my kids love to remind me they are now better at it than I am.
For a couple of years right after the pandemic, we ran a summer parish T-ball league for 200+ kindergartners (pro tip: popsicles are life). That was an experience!
If I’m not at my laptop, you’ll probably find me at a backyard firepit with my crew, listening to Mary Chapin Carpenter and teaching the fine art of the perfectly melty s’more. I secretly love 90s sci-fi almost as much as I love spreadsheets, I think road trip playlists are an underappreciated art form, and I still believe handwritten thank-you notes are magic.”
What led Samantha to join Loving Venti?
“I joined Loving Venti because I believe nonprofit work should feel meaningful and impactful, and leaders shouldn’t have to figure it all out alone. The team here approaches consulting as a true partnership. We don’t arrive with pre-packaged answers; we listen, collaborate, and work together to create space for clarity and tools that support efficacy.
Also, here at Loving Venti, while we take the work seriously, we also make room for joy along the way. It’s easy to get buried in the day-to-day when you’re serving your community; I love being part of a team that helps leaders pause, reflect, and move forward with confidence on their own terms, and with their values leading the way.”