Managing Director Beverly Brooks Thompson Receives Louisiana’s Esprit de Femme Award

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Beverly Brooks Thompson headshot

Beverly Brooks Thompson, PhD, CFRE

Managing Director

The LSU Women’s Center will recognize the outstanding achievements of the 2020 Esprit de Femme honorees at 8 a.m. on Thursday, April 30, at the eighth annual Esprit de Femme Sunrise Celebration and the 25th anniversary of the LSU Women’s Center. This year’s awards ceremony will be held at Boudreaux’s Banquet Hall in Baton Rouge. All proceeds will support the mission and initiatives of the LSU Women’s Center.

Established in 2009, the Esprit de Femme award is an annual acknowledgement of a person who has made exceptional efforts toward the advancement of women in Louisiana. This award honors individuals who elevate the status of women in the community through their contributions to the arts, education, healthcare, business and industry, charity and civic engagement.

This year also marks the fifth year that the Esprit de Femme Student Leadership Award will be given. This award will honor and recognize LSU students who exemplify the ideals and principles of the Esprit de Femme Award. Esprit de Femme Student Award recipients will receive financial support to further their academic pursuits. The award recipients will be selected in February and will be recognized at the Sunrise Celebration.

“We are excited about all of our honorees and look forward to the opportunity to recognize their phenomenal contributions at the eighth annual Esprit de Femme Sunrise Celebration,” said Summer Steib, LSU Women’s Center director. “These women and men have made lasting impacts on the lives of countless women in our state and blazed trails for other women. Our 2020 honorees represent diverse backgrounds and accomplishments — our honorees are leaders and trail-blazers in government, the arts, the business sector, nonprofits, academics, and civic engagement.”’

In 2020, the Esprit de Femme award will be presented to eight deserving recipients. The recipients are Kia Bickham, Morgan Lamandre, Michelle A. Massé, Karen Stagg, Alma C. Stewart, Beverly Brooks Thompson, Iam Christian Tucker and Erin Monroe Wesley. The 2020 Men Who Champion Women honoree is Roderic F. Teamer Sr.

Kia Bickham
Bickham is a strategic community engagement specialist. She served as political director for Gov. John Bel Edwards’ successful reelection campaign and is currently serving as the political director for the Mike Bloomberg presidential campaign in Louisiana. She has held numerous positions in state government and has been recognized as a 40 Under 40 honoree.

Morgan Lamandre
Lamandre is the legal director of Sexual Trauma Awareness & Response, a local nonprofit sexual assault center. She has served on various task forces to address sexual assault in Louisiana and has drafted and testified in support of several bills that address sexual violence before the Louisiana Legislature.

Michelle A. Massé
Massé is the founding director of Women’s and Gender Studies at LSU, president of the Women’s Caucus for the Modern Languages and represents higher education on the Governor’s Commission on Women’s Policy and Research Commission. Her scholarship focuses upon the many intersections among gender, psychoanalysis, and fiction, and she has received many grants for furthering research in these areas.

Karen Stagg
Stagg has served as the executive director of Connections For Life for 13 years. Connections is a non-profit, prison reentry program for formerly incarcerated women. Stagg is an LSU graduate and spent her first career as a healthcare operation executive. She serves on several boards supporting reentry for women.

Alma C. Stewart
Stewart is the founder and president of the Louisiana Center for Health Equity, a nonprofit organization she established in 2010 to address disparities in health and health care, with a focus on wellness and community health. She is a registered nurse, former career state civil servant, an entrepreneur, and avid advocate.

Beverly Brooks Thompson
Thompson is the managing director for Cater Global – an international fundraising advising and philanthropic management consulting firm. She is a published academic and practitioner in the field of philanthropic leadership. Thompson was the director for Forever LSU: The Campaign for Louisiana State University, raising more than $798 million

Iam Christian Tucker
Tucker is the president and CEO of Integrated Logistical Support Inc., or ILSI Engineering. ILSI Engineering is a 100 percent female, minority owned, civil engineering firm. Tucker is a passionate advocate for New Orleans and its people. She is a member of the non-partisan advocacy group African American Women of Purpose and Power

Erin Monroe Wesley
Wesley is the southeast vice president of government and public affairs at Cox Communications, overseeing governmental and public affairs efforts in Louisiana, Florida and Georgia. Prior to joining Cox, she served as special counsel for Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards.

Roderic F. Teamer Sr
Teamer is the director of diversity programs and business development at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana. He is also a member of LSU’s National Diversity Advisory Board. He is active in supporting civic and community organizations in both the Baton Rouge and New Orleans communities.

Online registration for the Eighth Annual Esprit de Femme Sunrise Celebration will be available Wednesday, Feb 5, at www.lsufoundation.org/edf. Tickets, tables, sponsorships, and honoree recognitions can be secured through the registration portal.

The LSU Women’s Center is part of the LSU Office of Diversity and provides support, referral, and information to students, faculty and staff on issues and concerns related to women. The center also promotes the advancement of gender equity issues and wellbeing through its services, educational programs and advocacy efforts.

For additional information about the programs and initiatives of the Women’s Center, visit our website at, http://www.lsu.edu/diversity/womens_center/

Bob Carter Honored for Lifetime Service to the Profession

Bob Carter

(Arlington, Va.) Robert (Bob) Carter, CFRE, one of the world’s most respected and recognized voices in fundraising and philanthropy, is the recipient of the Chair’s Award for Outstanding Service presented by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP).

The Chair’s Award is given to individuals for exceptional service to AFP, the fundraising profession and the philanthropic community. Carter is the 18th recipient of the honor since its creation in 1982, and will receive the award on March 29, during the Opening General Session of AFP’s ICON 2020, the largest gathering of fundraising professionals in the world, in Baltimore, Md.

Carter has over four decades of experience in fundraising and philanthropy. He established his own fundraising firm, Bob Carter Companies, in 2011, which is now doing business as CARTER, and serves as chair of the firm. His clients, past and present, are a who’s who of global charities, including World Vision organizations in the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Germany, France, and Canada; EAA Doha, Qatar; the Academy of Motion Pictures Foundation; Flight 93 National Memorial; The Globe Theater in London; the National Geographic Society, Plan International, USA; and the Smithsonian Institutions in Washington, D.C.

Carter’s previous experience includes a 26-year career with Ketchum (at the time one of the largest firms in the fundraising field), including 15 years as president, and serving as senior advisor to Changing Our World and Omnicom Nonprofit Group. Prior to joining Ketchum in 1981, he served in a variety of fundraising and leadership positions for The Catholic University of America, The Johns Hopkins University and the Gilman School in Baltimore. After graduating from The Boys’ Latin School in Baltimore, he taught there and was the school’s first development director.

“This is an extraordinary honor for me to join others who have received this award,” said Carter. “It is humbling and compels me to recall all of those whom I worked along side over these years. It was my mentors and colleagues who gave me encouragement, counsel and confidence to take on the challenges of business and gathering support for some of the world’s most important causes. I am grateful to so many of them, and to AFP for convening all of us to share our values and successful way forward.”

Carter served as chair of AFP in 2013 and 2014 and encouraged AFP to expand its efforts outward beyond the fundraising profession. A strong proponent of government relations and public policy, Carter pushed for more AFP advocacy and grassroots lobbying on giving and fundraising issues. In addition, giving to the AFP Political Action Committee grew substantially under his leadership.

During his tenure, Carter also oversaw the implementation of important programs and initiatives such as the Growth in Giving Initiative, the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, and the first-ever Diversity and Inclusion Summit in Fundraising. AFP also dramatically expanded its online educational programs and launched its 2014 – 2016 Strategic Plan that included four key goals that are still priorities today, including Inclusion and Influence; Advocacy, Policy and Ethics; Relevant Quality Education; and Capacity to Invest in Opportunity.

“Bob is one of the most respected fundraisers in the world,” said Martha Schumacher, CFRE, ACFRE, MInstF, chair of AFP. “His strategic approach and visionary thinking are incredibly impressive, and his dedication to AFP and the social sector has been an inspiration to thousands of fundraisers for decades. It’s an honor to be able to recognize Bob’s many important contributions to civil society with this award.”

A graduate of Johns Hopkins University, Carter has published numerous articles in professional journals and has served as a lecturer and presenter for Columbia University’s Masters in Philanthropy Management program, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), and the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP).

Carter was appointed in 2019 by the World Health Organization (WHO) to serve on the board of directors of the new formed WHO Foundation in Geneva, Switzerland. He is past chair of the National Aquarium and the Boys’ Latin School in Baltimore and currently serves as chair-emeritus of both the Boys’ Latin School and The Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Fla.

Carter and his wife, Carol, live in Anna Maria, Fla. His sons, Travis and Trent, and their families live in Naples, Fla.

Carter Consultant Inspires Next Generation of Fundraisers

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Eileen Toohey uses a winding career path to inspire the next generation of fundraisers

Eileen Toohey headshotFrom software and mainframe sales to major gift fundraising to international consulting; that seems to be a completely linear career path, doesn’t it?

For Eileen Toohey, it was a professional journey that leveraged her talents and interests at every stage of her life. Eileen shared her story last month at the CASE Regional Advancement Professionals Roundtable in Baltimore, Maryland.

Now a managing director with Carter, a global nonprofit and fundraising consulting firm, Eileen is best known for an amazing 25-year career at a prominent independent school where she excelled at engaging and inspiring alumni to partner with their alma mater through transformational philanthropic gifts.

Despite her success, Eileen is the first to admit, she could not have predicted her future would be in philanthropy.

“Not many of us set out to work in the development field,” Eileen said, “I don’t feel like I chose the profession, but rather I am grateful it chose me.”

Eileen’s best advice for newcomers fundraising is if an opportunity doesn’t scare you, it probably isn’t worth doing. Sage wisdom she began to understand when making the jump from alumni relations to annual fund giving.

“An annual giving position is where you learn all about development.”

Eileen credits her experience in annual giving with allowing her to sharpen her skills and get a deeper understanding of fundraising mechanics.

“Recruit from within and not just in your own department.”

Drawing on her own experience, Eileen was smart enough to recognize most of us don’t start out in development. She recruited three secretaries to join her fund development team with tremendous success.

“Love what you do.”

Eileen said it is an honor to help people and organizations invest in what they believe in.
“You’ll never get what you don’t ask for.”

Eileen didn’t ask for this career but given the crowd’s response in Baltimore that afternoon, there are professionals, colleagues, donors, and organizations who are grateful development chose Eileen Toohey.

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Carter Represented at 2018 Planet Philanthropy

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Local Carter Partners Present at Statewide Philanthropy Conference

Sarasota, Fla – July 13, 2018 – Burnham – Turk – Lewis, Managing Director at Carter, was invited to speak June 18 at the annual Planet Philanthropy conference in Fort Lauderdale Beach. Brynne Anne Besio, Chief Executive Officer at the South Florida Museum in Bradenton, a Carter partner, joined Lewis in presenting an education session focused on “Making Your Organization’s Strategic Plan Key to Fundraising Success”.

“As a fundraising professional, I am committed to helping others inspire volunteers and philanthropists to support causes they care about,” said Lewis. “I’ve found Planet Philanthropy to be one of the best opportunities in the southeast for fundraisers who want to learn more, expand their skills and grow professionally.”

Hosted by the Florida Caucus of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, this year’s Planet Philanthropy attracted over 300 fundraising professionals. This was the second time Lewis and Besio teamed up to present on this topic. They also shared a podium at last year’s Florida Association of Museums conference.

“Strategic planning must drive and support an organization’s fundraising efforts,” Lewis said. “Often a Board of Directors will see a decline in fundraising and fail to recognize it as a systemic problem rooted in an outdated or poorly developed vision or structure.”

Besio experienced this firsthand in her leadership role with the South Florida Museum. Carter has supported the organization through significant transition over the past four years including a multi-million-dollar capital campaign, a new board governance strategy and a strengthened professional staff structure. Burnham-Turk, Lewis, Carter Managing Director; Bynne Anne Besio, Chief Executive Officer of South Florida Museum; and, Steve Higgins, Carter President at the 2018 Planet Philanthropy Conference in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

“Four years ago, our Board set a bold vision to grow the South Florida Museum’s impact in the region. We want to inspire learners of all ages to explore the connection between natural history, science and human life,” Besio said. “Carter has been with us every step of the way. We’ve both learned from our work together and I think it’s important to share this experience with other nonprofit organizations. A more effective nonprofit sector will result in a stronger, better Florida for all of us.”

The 2019 Planet Philanthropy conference will be held at the World Golf Village Renaissance in St. Augustine June 16-18.

ABOUT THE SOUTH FLORIDA MUSEUM
The South Florida Museum is the largest natural and cultural history museum on Florida’s Gulf Coast. It is also home to the Bishop Planetarium and Parker Manatee Rehabilitation Aquarium. Information on its current exhibits and programs can be found at www.southfloridamuseum.org.

ABOUT CARTER
Carter provides counsel to nonprofit organizations all over the world in the areas of fundraising, governance and organization planning. The company has offices in Sarasota and Vero Beach, along with 25 consultants living throughout North America and Mexico. To contact Carter, call 941-388-3414.

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