Gineen Douglas is the Executive Director of Community Giving at the Sunnybrook Foundation, where she leads a diverse portfolio including Annual Giving, Monthly Giving, mid-level personal solicitation, and Patient Gratitude. Prior to joining Sunnybrook, Gineen spent more than eight years at the Heart & Stroke Foundation in senior leadership roles, including Vice President, Direct Marketing and Gaming, where she oversaw large-scale annual, direct, donor acquisition, and lottery programs. She brings deep expertise in driving purpose-led donor growth and building high-impact fundraising strategies, shaped by a strong foundation in consumer marketing leadership.

Jason has worked in the non-profit sector for over 14 years. He has a strong background in annual, mid-level and tribute giving. He loves the challenge of fundraising through direct response channels. Jason has been a member of the Education Committee for AFP Toronto Congress since 2017. Jason has spoken at several international fundraising conferences including DMANP Chicago in 2018. 

Kara Warr is the Director of Digital Media, Direct Response at the American Diabetes Association, where she leads strategic initiatives to drive engagement, fundraising, and awareness through high-impact digital campaigns. With over a decade of experience in digital marketing, Kara specializes in the donor journey, digital acquisition, retention, and integrated media strategy.

Before joining the American Diabetes Association, Kara built a strong foundation in digital strategy through her agency work in both the nonprofit and commercial sectors. She is passionate about using digital tools to amplify impact and has a deep understanding of the evolving digital landscape and a commitment to driving results through thoughtful, audience-centric approaches.

Kimberley Blease is a dynamic leader and strategic innovator with almost 40 years of experience in corporate and not-for-profit sectors. Renowned for her original thinking in building high-value donor relationships, Kimberley is a seasoned fundraiser and marketer focused on delivering lifetime value and authentic donor engagement.

As EVP, Strategic Growth & Innovation at Blakely Inc., Kimberley leads with vision—driving the creation of new products and solutions, facilitating transformative workshops, and spearheading Blakely’s thought leadership platform.  She provides high-impact strategic consulting that fuels growth and change across the sector.

Kimberley is also a leadership coach, skilled moderator, and sought-after public speaker. Her engaging style and deep sector knowledge make her a trusted voice on topics including high-value giving, legacy/planned giving, and emerging trends in philanthropy.

Rachel has over 17 years industry experience in helping charities build retention through long term strategies and donor experience. At Blakely, as Director of Strategic Solutions, Rachel develops insight-based solutions, value propositions and journeys to enhance income and deepen donor experience.  

Rachel’s background in Direct Marketing and tenacious interest in insight, behavioural economics and psychology gives her a powerful toolbox to problem solve and create solutions based on more than assumption and best practice. Rachel has been instrumental in leading proposition development and affinity research for many clients and is excited to use these insights to build a better experience for your supporters. 

Like just about everyone in the sector, Ronen fell into fundraising by accident. But it turned out to be a stroke of good luck! He remembers that very first fundraising role as opening his eyes to the beautiful, data-driven puzzle of integrated fundraising.

Ronen oversees Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC) Integrated Marketing & Fundraising department. His team interacts with donors at all touchpoints along their journey, from initial awareness of NCC to their first gift and, ultimately, to becoming a monthly donor or leaving a bequest. Ronen’s previous experience includes both charity and agency work, managing direct marketing departments for the former, and overseeing campaigns across all channels at the latter, including face-to-face, outbound telephone, direct mail, planned giving, and digital.

In his own words, he loves the work because “It is complex and fun. Messy and full of opportunities to experiment. A data-driven playground that is only limited by our imaginations and the stories we tell donors.” Somewhere within the numbers lies a perfect spot for every organization, where spending is optimized and donors feel engaged. It is the search for this personal fundraising utopia that drives Ronen.

When Ronen is not analyzing results or developing fundraising campaigns, he is probably throwing himself around a tennis court or baseball diamond with reckless abandon. Or cooking something tasty.

Kate Maxcy has eight years of nonprofit healthcare communications and marketing experience. In her current role she’s had the opportunity to hone her digital fundraising and mass marketing skills by managing the Foundation email and SMS marketing strategy, as well as the Foundation’s online fundraising program (online donation forms, events, peer-to-peer support). She enjoys working across teams to develop and implement integrated digital campaign strategies, as well as digging into marketing and constituent behavior data in order to continuously improve campaign performance. 

Kurtis Ledingham is a dedicated Digital Marketing Specialist with over five years of experience creating impactful online strategies. Holding a bachelor’s degree with a specialization in digital marketing, Kurtis has worked with a wide range of clients to deliver results through media campaigns, email marketing, website development, SEO, and landing page optimization.

Passionate about helping organizations unlock the full potential of their digital programs, Kurtis takes a data-driven approach to improving performance and engagement. With more than three years of experience in the non-profit sector, he has led numerous digital campaigns that amplify mission-driven initiatives and foster meaningful connections.

Lisa Smit specializes in shaping clear, intentional content strategies that help fundraising organizations connect more meaningfully with donors. With 14 years at Blakely, she brings a deep understanding of how strategic messaging and thoughtful content planning turn complex insight into cohesive, donor-focused storytelling across channels.

Her work sits at the intersection of strategy and creativity, helping organizations sharpen how they articulate value, purpose, and impact through content that is both emotionally resonant and strategically grounded. In addition to her client work, Lisa is responsible for Blakely’s marketing strategy, applying the same content-planning principles internally that she helps organizations adopt externally.

With a creative foundation rooted in fundraising communications, Lisa brings a thoughtful, execution-minded lens to content strategy that's focused on clarity, consistency, and long-term donor engagement.

Maeve Strathy is a fundraising and marketing leader, dedicated to building strong client relationships and effective account operations. 

As VP, Client Relationships at Blakely, she leads a team of Account Directors and Account Managers, ensuring clients receive exceptional support and strategic guidance. She thrives on developing talent, coaching her team, and making work both purposeful and enjoyable. 

Maeve began her career in educational advancement, specializing in telemarketing and mid-level giving. Now, she partners with Canadian and U.S. nonprofits, overseeing annual programs, onboarding clients, and leading large-scale projects, with a focus on building trust and long-term success. 

A sought-after speaker, Maeve presents internationally on topics including Matching Gifts, Leadership, and Innovation, helping fundraisers push their programs forward. 

Based in Toronto, she enjoys cooking, reading, and time with her four sisters and twelve niblings. A newfound running enthusiast, she’s completed multiple 5Ks and is training for her next challenge. 

Mallory Henig joined Conservation International in January 2018 and has been committed to building relationships with their supporters who are passionate about protecting nature for the benefit of all. Mallory oversees the direct mail program and directs the entire planned giving program from marketing to estate administration and being the liaison for the Future of Life Society. The Future of Life Society honors all those who have left a gift to Conservation International in their estate plans. From her experiences growing up in the woods and among farmland in rural New Jersey and Pennsylvania to visiting the Amazon Rainforest in Peru studying ecotourism and gold mining, Mallory has had a lifelong appreciation for nature.

Mike Quade is a fundraising strategist who brings insight and purpose to the development of audience‑led fundraising programs. As a Strategist at Blakely, he translates client objectives, market trends, and data-driven insights into actionable go‑to‑market strategies that drive strong annual program performance.

With a background in integrated direct marketing for the not‑for‑profit sector, Mike develops comprehensive fundraising plans grounded in analytics, audience behaviour, and channel integration. Driven by curiosity and a commitment to meaningful impact, Mike brings thoughtful analysis, strategic rigor, and a solutions‑focused mindset to every engagement.

Based in Woodstock, Mike can often be found on local trails with his family or exploring the many cozy bookshops and cafés across southwestern Ontario.

Miranda is an Account Director at Blakely specializing in email fundraising, where she helps organizations design and optimize programs that drive giving, retention, and long‑term donor engagement. She leads work across renewal, acquisition, cultivation journeys, events, and year‑end campaigns, with a deep focus on segmentation, testing, and intentional execution.

Known for turning performance data into clear, actionable direction, Miranda cuts through vanity metrics to focus on what truly moves donor behaviour over time. Her approach blends strategic insight with a practical, collaborative style that empowers teams to make smarter decisions and create more meaningful donor experiences.

Outside of work, she’s fueled by travel, creative projects, and meticulously curated LEGO builds, an energy that shows up in her love of structure, storytelling, and solving complex problems with both precision and imagination.

Nicole Kitson is a senior fundraising professional with over 20 years of experience in health care philanthropy, specializing in annual giving. As Senior Manager, Annual Giving at the Alberta Cancer Foundation, she leads mid-level, monthly, mail, and online fundraising programs, with a focus on integrated fundraising strategies and sustainable revenue growth. In her current role, Nicole has played a key role in growing and evolving the Alberta Cancer Foundation’s mid-level giving program by strengthening donor journeys, segmentation, and stewardship strategies.