A bird's eye view of our team
Cormorant Collective has 25+ years of combined experience working with small and mid-sized nonprofits and grassroots campaigns in Portland, Maine and Boston, Massachusetts. Together, we use our fundraising, design, and organizing expertise to resource the movements that matter to us.
Laura Simocko
Co-Founder and Fundraising Strategist
she/her
Experience:
15+ years in fundraising and communications for dynamic, community-based nonprofits.
You can also ask me about:
Tea recommendations 🍵 and house plant troubleshooting 🌱
Laura was the Development Director at the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project in Portland, Maine from 2018 to 2024. While there, she sustainably grew the annual budget more than 250% to $3.2 million and successfully developed and led the organization’s first-ever growth campaign for $4 million.
Laura previously worked in fundraising with Sociedad Latina in Boston, Massachusetts for five years, building a robust base of institutional support through new multi-year, national, and six-figure grant awards. She also secured $4 million in foundation and government grants as part of a $7 million capital and growth campaign.
She is a volunteer with the Maine Association of Nonprofit’s Sounding Board program and a practitioner of community-centric fundraising and ethical storytelling. Before her development career, Laura lived in West Africa, the Caribbean, and Europe and strives to bring a global perspective to her fundraising approach.
Olivia Orr
Co-Founder and Graphic Designer
she/they
Experience:
10+ years as a graphic designer and in the nonprofit sector.
You can also ask me about:
World Cup Cross-Country Skiing ❄ and movie score recommendations 🎶
Olivia was an award-winning Senior Web Designer at Bates College from 2018 to 2024. In that role, she designed for both web and print—crafting everything from websites and email campaigns to event posters, social media templates, and motion graphics. Her approach aligns with design accessibility values and practices.
Olivia has been a long-time advisor for the Maine Community Foundation’s Equity Fund, is on the Portland Outright Board, and was a middle school ski coach and Board member for Portland Nordic for five years. They also worked at the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project in Portland, Maine and Silver Lining Mentoring in Boston, Massachusetts.
She is actively involved in local political campaigns, supporting progressive candidates and causes in Portland, Maine. This commitment to building community and shifting power informs their design work.
Fun fact: We held the exact same job at different points in our careers and before we knew each other – Office and Development Associate at the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project!
Why Cormorants?
They are highly focused and successful at reaching their #1 goal – catching fish. They do this by diving deeper than most other birds, using special underwater hearing, and working together to get more fish for everyone. We bring this focused and collaborative cormorant spirit to our work to help our clients catch some fish!
