Speakers
MEET OUR KEYNOTE!
KIA JARMON
Kia Jarmon works at the intersections of community, culture, crisis, and communication, guiding leaders, organizations, and systems on a pathway of improvement. Over the past 16 years, central to Jarmon’s work is studying and sharing how people are impacted by leadership decisions. Based in Nashville, in her everyday role Jarmon wears many hats: she leads boutique communications and community engagement consultancy, MEPR Agency; she is also founder and visionary for the Nonprofit Equity Collaborative; and she serves as philanthropy advisor of Give Black, Give Back the first effort from the Black Philanthropy Initiative in Middle Tennessee.
Through the lens of inclusion, Jarmon partners with high capacity leaders – in nonprofit, government, and the C-suite - on mission-driven, high impact initiatives to drive organization, community, or system changes. As a result of Jarmon’s commitment to the community and communications industry, she has been recognized by the 100 Black Women of Nashville with the Susan Short Jones Emerging Leader award, the Minority Business Center as the Minority Business of the Year, the Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum as the “Woman to Watch”, and the Nashville Business Journal’s “Top Forty Under 40” and “Women of Influence”, among others. Kia’s full bio can be viewed here.
Kia will bring an infectious, candidly caring energy to her keynote, and kick off an exciting day of sessions addressing innovation and disruption in the philanthropic sector.
SPEAKERS
Cathy Allwine
Cathy Allwine has been a leader on the DonorSearch Client Success team for 5 years. She has presented over 600 webinars and client training sessions, as well as spoken at conferences such as NEDRA, AFP, APC and AAM. In addition to working directly with clients, she has an active role in training new DonorSearch employees.
Jason Arbacheski
Jason Arbacheski serves as the Director of Gift Planning and Stewardship for the Chester County Community Foundation in West Chester where he develops and maintains working relationships with current fund advisors discussing their charitable priorities, charitable desires, and gift planning ideas while also identifying potential donors (individuals, families, businesses, and private foundations) and professional advisors for the purpose of attracting new endowed funds to the Foundation. Among primary responsibilities, Jason works to build the Planned Giving Legacy Society program through direct stewardship, helping facilitate the joy his donors experience through philanthropy and continue to work with regional nonprofit organizations regarding their legacy programs.
Prior to joining the Community Foundation, Jason spent the last several years as Director of Development for Community Volunteers in Medicine, Inc. (CVIM), a West Chester, Pennsylvania-based nonprofit comprehensive healthcare center serving low-income, uninsured families in the Southeast Pennsylvania region. Serving in this role since 2017, Jason’s chief responsibilities included developing fundraising strategies and individual and corporate fundraising, as well as establishing and maintaining comprehensive major gifts and planned giving programs, shepherding relationships with donors. Prior to joining CVIM, Jason spent 10 years at Main Line Health (MLH) working in several development and external affairs positions for the five-member hospital health system, where, starting in 2007, he joined Paoli Hospital Foundation in a development communications role, gaining additional responsibility in managing a portfolio of annual donors. In 2012, Jason became the lead for development special projects across MLH, continuing to manage a portfolio of annual donors and fundraising projects, while creating sustaining relationships with local, state, and federal elected officials.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from The University of Scranton and recently earned his Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP®) designation from The American College of Financial Services, King of Prussia. Jason volunteers as a Board member of the Association of Fundraising Professional Greater Philadelphia Chapter (AFP-GPC) and as a Judge for The Pennsylvania Society’s Benjamin Franklin Scholarship Award.
Leigh Ann Bridges
Leigh Ann Bridges is an accomplished nonprofit fundraiser with expertise in major gifts. In her current role as Executive Director of Regional Advancement for Villanova University, Leigh Ann oversees the University’s 5 region-based major gift offices in NYC, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, and Washington DC. She holds an MA in Theatre and a BA in English from Villanova. Her previous fundraising positions include Playwrights Horizons (Manager of Individual Giving), Columbia University Medical Center (Director of Development), and St. Basil Academy (Director of Development). As a former theater performer, Leigh Ann enjoys the opportunity to guest lecture and participate on panels; she has presented on various topics within major gift fundraising and volunteer management.
Tynetta Brown
Before joining Philanthropy Delaware, Tynetta served as the Director of Development and Marketing/Communications for the WRK Group (The Warehouse, REACH Riverside Development Corporation and Kingswood Community Center) and prior to the WRK Group, she was employed at United Way of Delaware as the Director of Community Impact as well as the Associate Director of Health. She also served as staff liaison on the Public Policy Committee, as an Ally to their PRIDE Council Affinity Group, which focused on LGBTQ+ youth, adult health, and workplace equity.
Ms. Brown has over 24 years of experience in the public health, corporate, and pharmaceutical sectors with demonstrated skills in strategic sponsorship development, relationship management, social marketing, and management of non-profit and government programs. Additionally, she has expertise in public policy and advocacy that emphasized health and economic equity.
Awards and honors include Board Leadership Award recipient from the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition, Delaware Today magazine’s 2017 Women in Business Award, and recognition by the Association of Black Cardiologists with the Commitment to Diversity and the Elimination of Health Care Disparities Award.
Mariah Casias
Mariah Casias is Vice President of Learning and Evaluation at Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia. Mariah comes to Philanthropy Network from the Center for High Impact Philanthropy (CHIP) at the University of Pennsylvania. As Social Impact Fellow, she managed the delivery and development of CHIP’s education programs and provided strategic support for communications and marketing. Previously Mariah served as Program Manager for the Barry & Marie Lipman Family Prize at Wharton, where she implemented the selection process for the annual global social impact prize and managed the work and leadership development training of the Lipman Prize Fellows. Prior to joining Penn, Mariah worked in grantwriting and major gifts for the Science History Institute in Philadelphia and as an AmeriCorps VISTA at the United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey. She is a graduate of Haverford College and received a master’s degree in Nonprofit Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania.
Mark Chilutti
Mark Chilutti has raised over $35 million to improve the quality of life of individuals with disabilities during his 20+ year career at Magee Rehab Hospital in Philadelphia. His specialties are major and planned giving, and finding creative ways to help donors make an impact at this 83 bed specialty hospital.
He became a CFRE in 2006 and has recertified every 3 years since then. Mark is a distinguished public speaker and a frequent presenter for his local AFP Chapter, at AFP ICON and Spotlight Sessions, and AFP Global webinars. He became an Eagle Scout at the age of 14 and is still a top volunteer on all levels with the Boy Scouts of America. He is also a former wheelchair tennis player living with a spinal cord injury since 1996.
James Copes
James first started working with Tolsma Productions over a decade ago and has been its president since 2022. Helping organizations distill their objectives, and find the essence and soul behind their stories is not just one of his foremost strengths–but also something in which he takes great pleasure and pride. James has directed and produced effective and award-winning productions for nonprofit organizations across the country, helping to support causes from housing equity, to LGBTQ+ rights to animal shelters. James also works with communications and development professionals to help them improve their own in-house production chops through Tolsma Productions’ teaching and consulting efforts. Always interested in sharing knowledge, James has presented on virtual events and video production for the Association of Fundraising Professionals. A graduate of St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, James lives in North Philly with his husband and two dogs.
Jeremy Davies
Jeremy Davies has been with iWave for the past 15 years, and loves his current role as a Client Success Manager. Working with hundreds of nonprofits around the globe, Jeremy has helped countless organizations in reaching their fundraising goals by assisting them with identifying new major gift prospects and funding opportunities found in iWave. He grew up as part of a military family travelling the world and loves attending conferences to meet his clients in person. Jeremy and his wife Kellie live in Stratford Prince Edward Island with their son Grayson and beloved dog Allie.
Julie Fink, MS, CFRE
Julie Fink is a seventeen-year veteran in nonprofit with experience in healthcare and social services. She currently is the Director of Development for Jefferson Health Foundation New Jersey. She serves as president of her local AFP chapter and a board member of a national animal assisted canine therapy nonprofit. She holds her bachelors in communications from Rider University, her masters in nonprofit management and philanthropy from Bay Path University and is a certified fundraising executive (CFRE).
Julie Gackenbach
Julia Gackenbach has spent over a decade working locally and globally with nonprofits. This has sharpened her skills to raise funds, care for donors and communicate impact. Her experience tied in with her desire to create community through a mission gives her unique passion to work with all types of organizations. Julia now uses that enthusiasm and expertise to lead communication strategies from DonorPerfect to industry practitioners.
Jax Gitzes, MA
Fundraising professional with more than seven years of experience working to further the missions of area nonprofits. Her specialty is grant writing and management. She recently joined Big Brothers Big Sisters, Independence in Philadelphia as their new Grants Manager. Previously, she has served as Institutional Relations Manager for Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance (MANNA) in Philadelphia, and Development Officer for Pro Bono Net, Inc. in New York. In her off time, Jax loves to crochet and play tabletop RPGs with her friends.
Ken Gosier
Ken Gosier, Associate Director, joins CCS with 2 years of experience working in higher education. Most recently, Ken interned with the Alumni Engagement office, in the Division of University Advancement at Rowan University. While there, Ken conducted and synthesized research on an annual alumni day of service initiative, assisted with the planning and execution of the 2022 Day of Giving campaign and regularly supported the student alumni association.
Ken completed his master’s program at Rowan University, where he graduated with a degree in Higher Education Administration. He studied first-generation alumni from Rowan University and their giving behaviors and perceptions toward their alma mater for his thesis. Ken received his bachelor's degree in Political Science at Morgan State University.
Egypt Graham, MBA, DES
With more than 2 decades in the industry, Egypt Graham has established herself as a well sought-after planner with a knack for problem solving and getting the job done. She founded Planning 2 Perfection in 2007 after observing a critical gap between event production and business strategy.
Egypt recognized that even the most beautiful, well executed events needed to be in alignment with the mission of the sponsoring company or organization and making sure that happens is one of her main goals.
Planning 2 Perfection not only focuses on creating outstanding events, but positively impacting the bottom line of clients to ensure they gain a tangible return on their investment as a direct result of working with P2P.
With notable clients such as The Malcom Jenkins Foundation, PECO, The Philadelphia Tribune and United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey in the Planning 2 Perfection portfolio, the results speak for themselves.
Egypt holds a BS in Business Marketing from West Chester University, and an MBA in Management and Leadership from Rosemont College. As an adjunct Marketing and Entrepreneurship professor at St. Joseph’s University, she ignites passion in budding planners and provides real time experiences for her students. She also serves as board member of Valley Youth House, Vice President of Professional Women’s Roundtable member of the 12 days of Christmas Philadelphia Chapter and member of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women.
Kelly Grattan
As a member of the Schultz & Williams consulting team, Kelly Grattan, Vice President, has worked with many social justice and community service organizations, cultural institutions, and independent schools.
Kelly has more than 22 years of development experience with a variety of nonprofits, including the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Gesu School, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Susquehanna University, and Cabrini University. In her work at these organizations, she oversaw the operational aspects of the development function—database administration, donor stewardship, and prospect research—before moving into major gifts and chief development officer roles.
In addition to her work at S&W, Kelly was an instructor of master’s-level courses in philanthropy at Central Michigan University (CMU). She has also served as lead faculty and subject matter expert for leadership at Northcentral University (NCU), designing online course curricula for the master’s and doctoral business and organizational leadership programs, including development of the nonprofit management specialization. At NCU, she was also an instructor of master’s and doctoral business, public administration, nonprofit management, and organizational leadership courses.
Kelly is currently serving on the board of directors for the Association of Fundraising Professionals-Greater Philadelphia Chapter (AFP-GPC) in the roles of Vice President of External Affairs and President Elect. She also holds a certificate in nonprofit management from The Nonprofit Center at La Salle University’s School of Business and a Blackbaud certification in Raiser’s Edge. Kelly has been a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) since 2016 and a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® (CAP®) from The American College of Financial Services since 2022.
Robbe Healey
Robbe A. Healey, MBA, NHA, ACFRE, FAFP, Founding Member of Aurora Philanthropic Consulting, brings more than four decades of diverse experience, insight, and success to philanthropic fundraising consulting, strategic planning, board governance and non-profit organization management. Highly regarded and sought after, she has worked with more than 150 organizations.
A sector leader, she Chaired the Board of Directors of AFP (Association of Fundraising Professionals) Global and the AFP Global Ethics Committee. Recognized for her expertise, AFP Greater Philadelphia Chapter named her the 2001 Fundraising Executive of the Year, AFP Global awarded her the 2013 Barbara Marion Award for Outstanding Leadership and named her a 2021 AFP Global Distinguished Fellow (FAPF). A member and past chair of the AFP Ethics Committee, she is currently CO-Chair of The AFP Code of Ethic Review Task Force. LeadingAge tapped her to help establish the LeadingAge Philanthropy Network and Co-Chair the LeadingAge Philanthropy Cabinet.
Her academic and professional qualifications include a BS in Education from Northeastern University, MBA from Villanova University, where she is an adjunct member of the Master of Public Administration faculty, ACFRE (Advanced Certified Fund Raising Executive), Pennsylvania Nursing Home Administrators License (NHA), AFP Master Trainer, and CASE (Council for the Advancement and Support of Education) Faculty Star.
Committed to community service, she is a member and Past President of the Rotary Club of Greater West Chester Sunrise, Past President and current Secretary of the Greater West Chester Sunrise Rotary Foundation Board, Chair of the Westminster Presbyterian Church Endowment Fund Board, and Board member and Secretary of the Housing Partnership of Chester County. You will find her serving with the “Natural Lands Force of Nature” team every chance she gets.
Elizabeth Hefner
With a decade of fundraising experience, Elizabeth has raised $14 Million as she seeks to be a thought leader focusing on engaging communities in conversations to create change and dignity. Elizabeth became a CFRE in November 2020, an accomplishment made possible by the 2019 M. Jane Williams Professional Development Award from AFP-GPC and Shultz & William.
Currently, Elizabeth serves as the Director of Advancement at Sunday Breakfast Rescue Mission, where she oversees all fundraising, communications, and marketing activities. Sunday Breakfast Rescue Mission, founded in 1878, is committed to serving Philadelphia's hungry, homeless, and hurting people every day.
Elizabeth began serving on the AFP-GPC Board in January 2020, and she currently serves AFP-GPC as Co-Vice President of External Affairs and Co-Chair of the Program Committee.
Jeremy Hidalgo
Jeremy serves as a Project Manager on the Development team at Schultz & Williams. He is responsible for liaising between client and firm leadership, coordinating a range of campaign and technical services, ensuring high-quality deliverables on deadline, and executing development and data operations.
Jeremy’s passion for policy and advocacy led him to the nonprofit sector. Since joining the firm, his excitement to help S&W clients realize and achieve their goals remains high.
Prior to joining S&W, Jeremy worked with several nonprofits in education, healthcare services, and sports and recreation. He regularly volunteers with arts and environmental organizations in the Greater Philadelphia area. He continues to support organizations in variety of capacities including communication, data and policy analysis, development, and operations.
Annette Jeffrey
As Vice President of Development and Communications, Annette Jeffrey leads a talented team of fundraising and communications professionals seeking to grow financial resources for Project HOME. In this role, Jeffrey works closely with Project HOME’s philanthropic partners and oversees the annual and capital gifts campaigns, major and institutional gift cultivation, donor events, volunteer and in-kind gifts programs, and external communications.
Jeffrey has over 20 years of development experience providing leadership of major gifts programs at United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, Oberlin College, and the Philadelphia Orchestra and Academy of Music.
Annette graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music with Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Vocal Performance and Opera Theater.
Valerie Johnson, MBA, CFRE
Valerie Johnson, MBA, CFRE joined Pathways to Housing PA as Director of Institutional Advancement in 2018, and was promoted to VP of Advancement and Special Projects in 2021. Prior to that, Valerie was the Director of Advancement for Council for Relationships and also worked as a fundraiser for Valley Youth House and the American Association for Cancer Research.
Valerie is a Certified Fundraising Executive and holds a Bachelor's degree in Marketing and an MBA from Drexel University. A member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals since 2012, Valerie currently serves on their Board of Directors as Vice President of Education and Professional Development. Valerie co-hosts a monthly podcast, Beyond Philanthropy, alongside Monique Curry-Mims.
So Jung
So is part of Schultz & Williams’ strategic planning team and serves as a day-to-day consultant for a variety of strategic planning engagements in Philadelphia and across the country. Her responsibilities include conducting research and interviews, leading and facilitating meetings and workshops that guide nonprofit organizations to reach their strategic goal areas for the next 3-5 years, and developing recommendations and detailed action-plans as final deliverables to clients.
Before joining S&W, So worked for a nonprofit that serves vulnerable immigrant seniors in five different counties in Pennsylvania. There, she was part of multiple departments, including development, social services, and communications. So is also an advisory board member at a nonprofit that focuses on distributing children’s books to low-income schools in West Philadelphia. Before moving to Philadelphia, So worked as a researcher at Cornell University for five years developing questionnaires and programming surveys, as well as collecting and analyzing local and national data via interviews and focus groups for final reports that were used for key organizations. So has a master's of science in social policy from the University of Pennsylvania.
Sarah Ohanesian
A Chief Marketing Officer turned Productivity Coach, Speaker & Trainer – Sarah Ohanesian is on a mission to fight burnout and increase happiness at work. Through her programs, she helps people clarify their thoughts, organize their work, and take meaningful action. Because when you are efficient with what you need to do you have more time and energy for what you want to do and the people you love. Sarah is the founder of SO Productive and a co-host of The Heroic Council podcast.
Sophia Peake, MPA
Sophia Peake is a strategic, global thinker, fundraiser, and mobilizer with a reputation for building and sustaining relationships with various partners and stakeholders. She has honed her skills in increasing revenues for large organizations and grassroots campaigns in the Philadelphia region. She is a passionate advocate for equity in the social justice, education, and public policy sectors and is committed to raising the visibility of women of color to shift perceptions about their leadership capabilities in development, fundraising, and philanthropy.
Chris Polito
Chris Polito, Senior Vice President, brings 16 years experience in designing, implementing, and managing key philanthropic initiatives for nonprofit organizations in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions and Canada.
Since joining CCS in 2006, Chris has partnered on more than 50 strategic resource development initiatives and capital campaigns that have raised collectively over $500 million. Chris is an expert in feasibility and planning studies and development assessments and annual appeals. He has implemented leadership and major gifts fundraising for numerous clients in faith-based, healthcare, human and social services, and primary and secondary education sectors.
As a leader on the Philadelphia team, Chris has advised Saints Peter and Paul Parish & School, Roman Catholic High School, St. Hubert Catholic School for Girls, BLOCS, Kean University, United Way Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, Elwyn, Make-A-Wish Philadelphia, Delaware & Susquehanna Valley, and World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia. In 2020, Chris was recognized as a top 40 Under 40 Leader by The Philadelphia Business Journal. He recently finished a three-year term as the President of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Southern New Jersey and joined the AFP Greater Philadelphia Chapter Board in February of 2022.
He has been invited to speak at national and international industry conferences hosted by Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools (ADVIS), AFP Eastern Pennsylvania, Greater Philadelphia, Greater Toronto and Southern New Jersey Chapters, New Jersey Association of Independent Schools (NJAIS), and the Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia.
Currently residing in Mount Laurel, NJ with his wife and daughter, Chris grew up in Colts Neck, New Jersey, went to Red Bank Catholic High School, and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Catholic University of America in Washington D.C.
Michael A. Ticzon
Michael has worked in the nonprofit sector for a decade, from large, affiliate-model charities to small, grassroots organizations. His last role was at WOAR - Philadelphia Center Against Sexual Violence, Philadelphia's only rape crisis center, as their Director of Development & Community Engagement. He was responsible for all development activities, reporting to the Executive Director and close planning with the Board of Directors, and managing a small team.
Currently, Michael is a Senior Coordinator at Comcast NBCUniversal. As part of their Impact & Inclusion team focused on corporate social responsibility and diversity, equity, and inclusion, he coordinates employee engagement activities across Comcast's HQ campus for 9,000+ employees. Specifically, Michael supports the company's matching gift program and manages employee volunteering through nonprofit board service.
Michael lives in Philadelphia, remains connected to AFP-GPC, and serves as Vice President for the Spruce Foundation. He earned his Bachelor of Science from Catholic University of America and additional continuing education at Villanova University, La Salle University, and most recently a graduate of University of Pennsylvania's Executive Program in Digital Media for Social Impact. Michael has earned his CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) in 2019 and has proudly renewed it.
Richard Tolsma
Rich Tolsma founded Tolsma Productions in 1996 with a focus on storytelling for nonprofit organizations, and an objective-based approach designed to achieve results. He's been an active member of AFP for over 15 years and has served on the board of several organizations. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Susquehanna University in Music Education and a master’s degree in Educational Communications from Temple University. A dedicated musician, Rich currently performs with the the Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia.
Jeff Vogel
Jeff Vogel leads DonorPerfect’s Marketing and Business Development team with more than 20 years of experience in sales and marketing. Jeff volunteers and supports organizations that work in the areas of food security, public health, environment, and civil rights. A one-time Best of Philly food blogger and a long-suffering Temple Basketball fan, Jeff earned an MBA in Marketing and Strategic Management from Villanova School of Business, and lives in the Philadelphia area with his wife and three daughters.
Craig Weinrich
Craig Weinrich serves as the Director of Member Services at CNJG, where he helps to recruit, retain, and engage members. Additionally, he serves as the Salesforce database administrator, organizes most communications, wrote and designed the recent Salary and Benefits Report, and along with our webmaster, maintains the website.
Craig discovered the nonprofit sector through an intense desire to avoid working in the dining hall during his sophomore year at Dickinson College. Interning with the Eaken Piano Trio, artists-in-residence at Dickinson, introduced him to the many meaningful positions in the music industry that are not performance-oriented. From there, he served as Development Directors for the Delaware Symphony (promoted from Development Assistant) and Springfield (MA) Symphony Orchestras, where he could even be found clad in the costume of their newly-created penguin mascot! Craig then moved to the Nonprofit Coordinating Committee of New York, a membership association of nonprofits in the New York City area, serving as their Membership, Outreach and IT Director for nine years. While at NPCC, he earned a nonprofit management certificate from Baruch College through the United Way Nonprofit Leadership Institute. Prior to joining CNJG, Craig served as the Membership Director for the Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations. At each organization, Craig has served as the “accidental techie.”
Craig is happy to back in New Jersey for his third tenure. He grew up in Madison, lived in Bloomfield while working at NPCC, and now resides in Hamilton. He serving for a second time on Council at Living Waters Lutheran Church in Ringoes; graduated from Lead NJ in 2015 (go Green!); and in July, 2018, married Kacy O’Brien. In 2022, he was appointed to serve on the Governor’s Council on Volunteerism and Community Service.
Gregory Wilson
In his 20+ years of frontline fundraising and managing frontline fundraisers, Greg has served in various leadership positions, including Associate Vice President, Development for Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network, Director of Leadership Gifts and Planned Giving at Muhlenberg College, Senior Director of Individual Giving at East Stroudsburg University Foundation, Director of Development for Sisters of the Order of St. Basil the Great, and multiple assignments with the Boy Scouts of America.
While he’s held literally every position possible in fundraising, planned giving is Greg’s favorite area. In addition to scratching the donor visit and technical itches, there are two key reasons Greg thinks planned giving is critical, one relating to donors and the other, to organizations.
Greg is a certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), earned the Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP®) from the American College of Financial Services, a MS in nonprofit management from Eastern University, and a BA in history from Lebanon Valley College.
You’ve probably also seen Greg in various Planned Giving Marketing YouTube videos focused on practical planned giving fundraising advice or speaking in-person across Pennsylvania. He currently serves as Planned Giving Marketing’s Director of Client Success and as a Senior Consultant with Schultz & Williams.