AFFILIATED PROFESSIONALS

Alex is a veteran gift planner and attorney with experience at 4 nonprofit organizations in Pennsylvania and New York. She is currently Assistant Vice President, Gift Planning at Northwell Foundation in New York.

Alex is a board member of the American Council on Gift Annuities and a past board member and treasurer of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners where she served as chair of its Leadership Institute. She is a President Emeritus of the Philanthropic Planning Group of Greater New York, a member of the Estate Planning Council of Nassau County, and serves on the editorial advisory boards of Trusts & Estates and Planned Giving Today.

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 and is an ambassador on Arizona State University’s Family Council.

Melanie J. Norton is passionate about philanthropy and the nonprofits that enhance our world. As an accomplished professional and leader, she fueled her drive to make a meaningful impact on the sector by founding Norton Philanthropic Counsel (NPC) in 2017.

Prior to launching NPC, Melanie was the vice president for development and alumni engagement at DePauw University. She was the chief fundraising strategist and led a division of nearly 40 full-time development and alumni professionals to more than $320 million of a record-setting $383 million comprehensive campaign, bypassing the original goal 2 years before the campaign’s end.

Melanie previously consulted with JGA, where she advised on all phases of philanthropic work including feasibility studies, assessments, campaigns and fundraising counsel, and strategic planning.

Melanie is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), with an MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University and a BA from Franklin College. Career highlights include serving as the 2016 Chairman of the Board for the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners (NACGP) – the premier organization serving thousands of individuals across the nation whose work involves charitable gift planning – where she led the organization through a hallmark name change and rebranding effort during her time as Chair.

Melanie presents at conferences across the nation on various topics involving philanthropic work and planning. NPC is a proud member of the Association of Philanthropic Counsel.

Cathy R. Sheffield, MBA, CSPG, CAP®, CFRE is Senior Director of Gift Planning at Belmont University in Nashville, where she leads the Office of Gift Planning and advances donor-centered legacy giving as part of Belmont’s strategic $700M campaign. A nationally recognized charitable gift planning leader with 25+ years of experience across higher education and healthcare, Cathy is known for building high-performing programs that pair technical excellence with warm, personalized stewardship. She is also the founder and CEO of ThinkGiving, a charitable gift planning advisory firm serving nonprofits and generous families.

Cathy serves on the American Council on Gift Annuities Board of Directors, is past President of the AFP Fort Worth Metro Chapter and the Lone Star Council of Charitable Gift Planners. Cathy was the 2017 Board Chair of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners and the 2015 Chair of the National Conference on Gift Planning. Her honors include the AFP Benjamin Franklin Award for Outstanding Professional Fundraising Executive and being named a Forty Under Forty by the Fort Worth Business Press. She serves or has served on numerous nonprofit boards, including Jerusalem Institute for Justice, NewDay Services for Children and Families, Camp John Marc, and Cook Children’s Camp Sanguinity. Cathy earned her MBA from Texas Christian University (TCU) and her B.S. from North Dakota State University (NDSU).