“The Smartest People in the Business”
JAKE BLUMBERG describes himself as being obsessed with fundraising and believes that a successful strategy, campaign, and message can expand the impact of the nonprofits and schools doing incredible work in our communities. He has helped lead record-breaking and history-making fundraising efforts—and is fully invested in helping Minnesota earn the title “The State of Giving.” GiveMN has helped raise over $400 million for Minnesota nonprofits and schools, and Jake has led six successive record-breaking “Give to the Max” campaigns since 2016.
Jake was named executive director of GiveMN in 2015 and has a background that spans leadership roles in nonprofits, politics, and higher education. As the senior director of development and community engagement at Open Arms of Minnesota, Jake launched multiple online giving campaigns that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. As co-finance director of Minnesotans United, he helped lead a multimillion-dollar campaign in Minnesota to win the freedom to marry for same sex couples. And in Washington D.C., Jake concurrently attained a master’s degree in political management from The George Washington University while working as a speech writer and associate director of development for The George Washington University Law School.
Jake is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Minnesota, University of St. Thomas, and Hamline University, where he teaches courses on fundraising strategy and leadership development. He is also currently the chair of the Tubman Board of Directors, an agency dedicated to helping people navigate their journeys to safety, hope and healing.
KELLY FOSTER WARDER (she/her) currently serves as the Executive Artistic Director at Artistry Theater & Visual Arts, with the primary responsibility of steering the organization through a major transition and strategic re-visioning process.
Kelli brings a vast array of experience and talent. She has performed as an artist, taught students in performing arts, and served as an arts administrator in the Twin Cities for over 20 years. Her work as a choreographer and director has been seen on stages across the Twin Cities and the country including Theater Latté Da, The Ordway, Children's Theater Company, The 5th Avenue in Seattle, Washington, Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota, Florida and the ZACH Theatre in Austin, Texas. Kelli has worked internationally as a director and choreographer in both La Paz, Bolivia and Panama City, Panama.
Leadership experience includes working with the Hennepin Theater Trust as Director of Education growing the Spotlight Education program to record levels, producing unique and successful fundraising events and representing the region with the Broadway League.
Kelli also worked at the Ordway where she was Director of Education and Producing Associate leading a team that oversaw 40,000 students, and she also worked directly with theatricals on Ordway Originals. As Associate Artistic Director/Director of Impact at Theater Latté Da in Minneapolis, she has been a strong voice in artistic planning, deepening the company’s community engagement, and advancing initiatives in inclusion, diversity, equity and access (IDEA).
As an IDEA consultant Kelli has supported many organizations and individuals to move forward and create meaningful systemic change. She has worked with organizations such as Chanhassen Dinner Theaters, National Opera conference, Broadway League, Artistry, Arts Midwest and more.
HEATH RIDDLES SANCHEZ has more than twenty years of experience in senior executive leadership, fund development, strategic planning, and communications in business sectors such as urban parks management, government, the arts, entertainment and non-profit.
Over the course of his career, Heath has overseen fundraising efforts in excess of $100,000,000. He has placed editorial coverage with the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the New York Times Magazine, CNN and USA Today, as well as television stations and daily newspapers in all major Texas markets.
At the Long Center for the Performing Arts, Heath lead in-house public relations efforts for the “Jimmy Kimmel Live” SXSW tapings as well as visiting dignitaries such as Hillary Rodham Clinton and President Barack Obama.
Heath cut is teeth professionally as a television news producer in Austin, TX and Oklahoma City, OK, where he covered a wide range of stories including the Oklahoma City bombing.
He holds a degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma, and he studied French language and literature at the University of Blaise Pascal in Clermont-Ferrand, France.
BEATRICE THOMAS is the multi-disciplinary artist, cultural strategist, social justice drag queen and creative producer behind Authentic Arts and Media. Whether through creative production, consulting or equity, diversity, and inclusion workshops, Mx. Thomas' focus is on uplifting and centering queer, transgender, and POC voices, with special attention to creating queer-inclusive programming.
They are a pillar of Drag Queen Story Hour, having served as the board president of the national organization and the SF Bay Area Director. They serve on the national board of directors for the Association of Performing Arts Professionals and have been named a Kennedy Center Citizen Artist for 2020. Beatrice is also the producing artist and star of Black Benatar’s Black Magic Cabaret, a touring circus cabaret exploring cultural allyship and authenticity.
JOHN BACIU is a results-oriented Human Resources professional with 40+ years of human resources generalist and business partner experience. John worked 11-years as Vice President of Human Resources at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert, California and 30-years as Director of Human Resources Operation for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. John received his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the Ohio State University and has taken graduate-level coursework in counseling and negotiations and conflict management. In the past, John was credentialed as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and Certified Compensation Professional (CCP).
John has extensive experience in the principles and practices of human resources with extensive experience in staffing, compensation and benefits administration, and employee relations. John has successfully recruited and retained diverse staff in highly-competitive labor markets. John has strong working knowledge of California labor laws, Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action regulations, policies and procedures. John has strong analytical and problem-solving skills and is a team-player with strong management, leadership and motivational skills. John has expert knowledge in employment-based non-immigrant working visas and permanent residency.
ALAN De ZON was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and began his entertainment career at ten, learning piano and music basics, leading to weekend work through college playing in bars, restaurants and for private events. While finishing his BA at NYU (major in clinical psychology, minor in music) he found additional part-time work at the legendary Fillmore East concert venue, moving from security to stage work, learning that his future lay in entertainment and not in psychology.
When the Fillmore closed its doors in 1971, Alan (along with several Fillmore alumni) migrated to a new concert venue and promoter in New Jersey, progressing from Assistant Stage Manager to Director of Production for an expanding company which came to encompass operations in New York City, New Jersey, upstate NY, as well as national touring stints with our marquee management clients. In 1984, the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority created a position for him as in-house promoter; he left in 1987 to accept the position of Executive Director for the John Harms Center for the Arts in Englewood, NJ, operating today as Bergen PAC. With a very limited budget, he successfully headed all booking, promotion, fundraising and operations of this 1,300-seater.
MCA Music (Universal) recruited Alan in 1990 to lead the iconic Blossom Music Center (Cuyahoga Falls, OH) through its very successful initial years of private management, transitioning operations from its owner, The Cleveland Orchestra. In 1993, an exciting opportunity to build, open and operate the nation’s largest amphitheater brought relocation to Southern California. By 1996, consolidation in the music business led him to corporate positions in Philadelphia, NY/NJ/AZ/NM, California and eventually China.
While Alan had surveyed early opportunities in Asia for PACE Entertainment, progressive projects and SVP responsibilities materialized through SFX Entertainment, Clear Channel Entertainment, Ticketmaster, AEG and their subsidiaries. He functioned as promoter, arena developer, corporate leader, ticketing expert (2008 Beijing Olympics) and more, with offices in Shanghai and Beijing and business travel and deal making throughout China, Hong Kong and Macau. He returned to the US in 2010 and worked as an entertainment and arts consultant until joining the McCallum Theatre for the Performing Arts (Palm Desert, CA) as Vice-president of Theater Operations. Over the next ten years, as the venue’s only Senior Vice-President, he added departments/reports in Booking, Production, Box Office, Front of House, Maintenance, Operations, IT, security, budgeting and substantial participation in HR, Development and Education. Alan also functioned as in-house producer for many McCallum presentations and events and was dubbed “Covid Czar” during the pandemic, implementing capital upgrades, policies and operational procedures for events, office and cleaning protocols and adding/enforcing contractual language for artists, crews and vendors.
Alan recently returned to consulting and project management and is currently engaged in arts projects including private management of municipal venues, historic theater restoration and increasing the frequency and profitability of events in various US markets. He is extremely proud of the corps of industry alumni he helped in their careers and even more grateful for all of the mentoring he received along the way.
Last, but certainly not least, Alan has been married since 1978 to ballet teacher and choreographer Gail Adkinson-DeZon.