May Breakfast Panel:

Major Gifts for Small Shops - A Panel Discussion

Moderator

Justine Craig-Meyer, Chief Development and Communications Officer

Justine Craig-Meyer has 19 years of nonprofit experience; ten in housing development. As a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), she oversees communication efforts for the organization and leads the development efforts to raise private funds that leverage DOORWAYS’ government funding. Prior to joining DOORWAYS in 2013, she served as Executive Director for Lemay Housing Partnership, Inc. (LHP) and CEO for @FundedMission, a nonprofit consulting business catering to nonprofits in Missouri and Nebraska with budgets less than $2M. Justine has several certifications from NeighborWorks, a certification in Economic Development from the St. Louis Economic Partnership and a BA in Political Science from Stephens College.  Justine serves on the Board of Hospitals for the City of Saint Louis and the Advisory Board for YouthBridge Community Foundation.

Panelists

Sophia Garner, Director of Development

Sophia Hinshelwood Garner joined COCA in 2013 as the Associate Director of Development – Grants, with the primary responsibility of managing all aspects of COCA’s public and private grant activity. In 2014, she transitioned to the role of Director of Development, with a more comprehensive focus of COCA’s fundraising efforts, including individual and institutional donors, special events, and COCA’s current Create our Future capital campaign.

Education and Background: After graduating from New World School of the Arts in Miami, Florida, Ms. Garner went on to earn her B.S. in Theatre and Communications from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and her M.F.A. in Performing Arts Management from the City University of New York-Brooklyn College (CUNY) in New York City. Prior to her arrival at COCA, Ms. Garner worked in grant-making, program management and development at: the Brooklyn Arts Council (Brooklyn, NY); New Dramatists (NYC, NY); Roundabout Theatre Company (NYC, NY); and the Center for Arts in Education at Boston Arts Academy, a public visual and performing arts high school in Boston, MA. She is in the 2017 class of Coro Women in Leadership through Focus St. Louis.  

Cynthia D. Danley, Director of Philanthropy

Cynthia D. Danley is Director of Philanthropy for Nurses for Newborns responsible for Corporate and Individual Giving, Planned Giving and the NFN Endowment. She has created corporate and individual giving programs for the organization significantly increasing the number of major gifts and new donors.

Cynthia possesses over 25 years of experience in the corporate and nonprofit sectors. She has a demonstrated track record of increasing revenue and building successful partnerships and strategic alliances both locally and nationally. Cynthia has garnered financial support for nonprofit organizations in excess of $100M.

Cynthia also serves on the advisory boards for Manasseh Ministry and Grace Hill Women’s Business Center (WBC) and is an instructor for the Workshop in Business Opportunities (WIBO) Program hosted by Grace Hill WBC dedicated to providing micro-business development for aspiring entrepreneurs in the community.

Cynthia attended Webster University obtaining a B.A., Human Resources; M.A., Nonprofit Management and Leadership; and an M.B.A.

Matt Neufeld, Managing Director

Matthew Neufeld, Managing Director, joined Metro Theater Company in 2009. His career includes a diverse background as arts manager, administrator, consultant, teaching artist, director, and actor. Prior to Metro Theater Company, he served as Assistant to the Managing Director and CenterStage Coordinator at Hartford Stage (CT), where he directly supported the board of directors and the ACT NOW! for the Future Capital and Endowment Campaign. Prior to Connecticut, Neufeld founded the Drawing Board Arts Project in NYC, where he served as Director of Marketing and Development and Resident Director. He was an associate for Skybetter and Associates, an arts administration consultancy for NYC dance companies, and served as Development Associate and Producer for WTE Theatre.  While in NYC, Neufeld and a small team of artists launched the inaugural and subsequent HOWL! Festival of the East Village Arts. Neufeld is a graduate of the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University and The Field’s Artist-Manager Partnerships Program. He is alumnus of the FOCUS St. Louis Leadership St. Louis program, the Jewish-Latino Work Group (STL) and the Millstone Fellows program at the Millstone Institute for Jewish Leadership.

David Lauber, Director of Advancement

David Lauber serves as the Director of Advancement for Wyman, a youth development organization that serves more than 3,000 teens in St. Louis, and more than 25,000 teens across the U.S.

In his role as director, Lauber is responsible for overseeing efforts to secure major and individual gifts and leading strategic events to generate sustainable funding and growth capital for the agency. In turn, this funding provides Wyman with support it needs to provide direct programming to youth in St. Louis. In addition, Lauber’s ability to build vital, mutually beneficial relationships with funders has enabled his department to generate funding to help Wyman develop innovative new solutions, in concert with corporate partners, which help teens thrive in learning, work and life.

Prior to his time at Wyman, Lauber guided fundraising efforts at a variety of St. Louis nonprofits. Lauber gained his Certified Fundraising Executive certificate in 2003; this designation serves as the industry standard for ensuring valid and reliable fundraising for philanthropic organizations worldwide.

Lauber spends his free time chasing two unruly pugs in Compton Heights, where he lives with his spouse Scott. Lauber is also a dedicated beekeeper.