AFFILIATED PROFESSIONALS

Alex is a veteran gift planner and attorney with experience at 4 nonprofit organizations in Pennsylvania and New York. Alex is a past board member and Treasurer of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners and served as chair of its Leadership Institute. She is a President Emeritus, mentor and speaker for the Philanthropic Planning Group of Greater New York a member of the Estate Planning Council of Nassau County (NY) and on the Planned Giving Today Editorial Board. Alex enjoys lecturing across the United States on topics relating to the art and science of charitable giving, including “Black Belt Gift Planning” and “Zen and the Art of Fundraising”—the latter building on her three published books on that subject. Alex earned a BA from The Pennsylvania State University, Phi Beta Kappa a JD from Georgetown University Law Center and an LLM in Estate Planning from the University of Miami School of Law. In addition to writing books, Alex assists Georgetown Law with interviews is a career coach for Penn State has coached junior soccer and earned a black belt in Shotokan karate.

Founded in 2017, Norton Philanthropic Counsel is a full-service fundraising consulting firm located in Indianapolis and dedicated to its mission of blending the art and science of philanthropy to provide solutions that focus on client success. Melanie’s unique and broad-based background in both business and fundraising allows NPC to specialize in a variety of strategic, campaign, and advancement consulting services. Prior to the launch of NPC, Melanie was most recently the vice president for development and alumni engagement at DePauw University, leading the University to more than $320 million of a successful $383 million comprehensive campaign and surpassing the original goal some 2 ½ years in advance of the campaign’s end. Her career has included positions in higher ed fundraising, fundraising consulting, and banking (trust and retail). Melanie is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) and proud member of the Association of Philanthropic Counsel. She is also a member of and past national chairman of the board for the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners, a board member for The Cabaret Theater in Indianapolis, and has served in several board leadership and volunteer roles for a variety of nonprofit organizations. Melanie speaks regularly across the nation on a variety of topics involving philanthropic work and planning.

Cathy is the Founder and President of ThinkGiving. She is a fundraising executive with 25-years experience, specializing in major gifts and gift planning in healthcare and higher education for organizations such as Baylor Scott & White Health, Texas Health Resources, Cook Children’s Health System, and Texas Christian University. She is President of ThinkGiving, a planned giving firm based in Fort Worth, TX. Cathy serves as a member of the board of directors for the American Council on Charitable Gift Annuities, is a past-chair of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners (CGP) and served as the 2015 Chair of the National Conference on Philanthropic Planning. Cathy is a member of the “Rollover Rangers” formally named the Charitable IRA Initiative. Cathy is a member of the American Institute for Philanthropic Studies faculty which administers the Certified Specialist in Planned Giving designation program. In 2015, Cathy was honored by the Fort Worth Metro Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals with The Ben Franklin Award for the Outstanding Professional Fundraising Executive. Cathy received her MBA from Texas Christian University and a Bachelor of Science from North Dakota State University. Cathy is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP®), Certified Specialist in Planned Giving (CSPG), and a Fellow in Charitable Estate Planning (FCEP).