Brian M. Sagrestano,
Managing Director
brian@giftplanningdevelopment.com
Brian M. Sagrestano, JD, CFRE, received an A.B. cum laude from Cornell University and a J.D. cum laude from Notre Dame Law School. The son of a sole-practitioner CPA, his interest in the complexities of the tax code was “encouraged” at a very young age. Brian worked for the family business throughout his formative years and then “as-needed” until it was sold in 2001. His service as a law clerk in the Hunterdon County Superior Court and Surrogate Court cemented his interest in estate planning and probate. He spent several years practicing law with two New Jersey law firms, with an emphasis on tax and estate planning. Brian’s client-centered philosophy ultimately drew him into gift planning full-time, where he led the gift planning efforts for the University of Pennsylvania, Middlebury College and Meridian Health Affiliated Foundations, following major gift and gift planning positions at Clarkson University and Hamilton College. After many years of providing pro-bono gift planning consulting services, Brian and his wife Christine formed Gift Planning Development in 2007.
Brian is a nationally recognized speaker, with over 125 speaking engagements in the last ten years. A recent attendee to one of his sessions wrote in her evaluation, “I wanted to take a moment to let you know how informative I found Mr. Sagrestano to be. This was one of the best workshops I have attended regarding Planned Giving. I look forward to the next one. The prospect of starting a formalized planned giving program can seem daunting but Mr. Sagrestano’s presentation brought a fresh approach that allows any organization to start the program without high priced staffing. I thoroughly enjoyed his presentation and will incorporate many of his modules when presenting our program to our Board.”
Brian is active with the National Committee on Planned Giving, the Gift Planning Council of New Jersey and the Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia. A strategic thinker, he specializes in developing integrated, donor-centered gift planning programs, either from the ground up or enhancing existing programs, and then overseeing implementation of the needed elements. His work at the University of Pennsylvania has received national attention for its innovative and collaborative approach with other areas of development.
When not working, Brian enjoys spending time with his wife and three daughters, singing in a barbershop chorus, refinishing furniture and watching baseball.
Professional Involvements
National Committee on Planned Giving
Board Member Elect, 2008-2010.
Member, 1998-Present.
Gift Planner Profile Advisory Task Force, 2007.
Assembly of Delegates, 2006 & 2007.
Conference Committee, 2006.
Gift Planning Council of New Jersey
Board Member, 2003-Present.
Member, 2003-Present.
Annual Conference Co-Chair, 2007 & 2008.
Annual Conference Sponsorship Chair, 2004-Present.
Co-Chair, Leave a Legacy New Jersey, 2003-2005.
Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia
Board Member, 2007-Present.
Member, 2004-Present.
Education Committee Mentorship Chair, 2007-Present.
Leave a Legacy Committee, 2004-Present.
Other Involvements
Member, Philadelphia Estate Planning Council, 2004-Present.
Member, CASE, 1998-2003, 2004-Present.
Member, Estate and Financial Planning Council of Central New Jersey, 2003-2005.
Member, AHP, 2003-2005.
Member, Planned Giving Group of New England, 1999-2003.
Mentoring Committee, Planned Giving Group of New England, 1999-2003.
Member, Upper Valley Planned Giving Council, 2001-2003.
Coordinator, Middlebury Planned Giving Officers Conference, 2001-2003.
Board of Directors, Intl. Philanthropic Foundation of Middlebury College, 2001-2003.
Recently Conducted Training Sessions and Seminars
National Conference on Planned Giving, Donor-Centered Gift Planning Marketing, 2007.
Quaker Fundraising Conference, Preparing Donors to Work with Advisors, 2007.
Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia, Working with Advisors Panel, 2007.
AFP New Jersey, 2007, Building an Integrated Gift Planning Program, 2007.
Gift Planning Council of New Jersey Nuts and Bolts, 2007.
CASE District I & II Regional Conference, 2007.
AFP of Eastern Pennsylvania Philanthropy Day, 2006.
Planned Giving Council of Upstate New York, 2006.
AFP New Jersey Conference on Philanthropy, 2006.
Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia Annual Conference, 2006.
Gift Planning Council of New Jersey Annual Conference, 2006.
Vanguard Institutional Investment Group, 2006.
University of Pennsylvania Law School Alumni Weekend, 2006.
Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia Annual Conference Roundtables, 2004-2005.
University of Pennsylvania Quarterly Gift Planning Training Seminars, 2004-2007.
University of Pennsylvania Homecoming Seminar, 2005.
CentraState Medical Center Campaign Committee Training, 2005.
20th Annual Parents Program Conference, 2005.
Estate and Financial Planning Council of Central New Jersey, 2004.
Meridian Health Affiliated Foundations, Estate Planning Seminars, 2004.
Middlebury Planned Giving Officers Conference, 2001-2003.
Middlebury College, Seminars on the Impact of the 2001 Tax Law Changes, 2002.
Christine L. Sagrestano,
Director of Client Services
christine@giftplanningdevelopment.com
Christine L. Sagrestano received a B.S. from Cornell University with a combined degree specializing in Communications, Education and Sociology. She started her career in the non-profit sector as a training evaluation coordinator for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, based in South Bend, Indiana at the University of Notre Dame. Christine developed a strong background in human resources and search while working for Nissan Motor Corporation as a human resources administrator. Later, she served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Flood Search of New Jersey, Inc.
Together with Brian, Christine formed Gift Planning Development in 2007 to bring an innovative approach to gift planning executive search. While most search firms focus exclusively on calling contacts in the industry to try and fill development positions, Gift Planning Development’s proprietary Gift Planning Match service includes a complete assessment of the organization and its gift planning capacity, the search and hire, an implementation plan and finally six months of ongoing consulting in support of the new hire. This approach maximizes the benefits of the search process and ensures the gift planning effort will succeed.
When not working with clients, Christine is known for spending hours in her kitchen creating candies and desserts from scratch. She also enjoys reading and spending time with her husband and three daughters.
Caleb Rick,
Of Counsel
crick@northcommon.com
Caleb Rick's expertise in planned and major gift fundraising; capital and endowment campaign planning and board development and training comes from over twenty years of service to the non-profit sector, including the last ten as managing director of North Common Associates. As someone with great passion for his work, Caleb enjoys counseling nonprofit organizations working to secure their future resource needs. He believes in helping nonprofits create a "culture of philanthropy," where every member of an organization contributes to the resource development of the group's mission.
While serving as the national Director of Planned Giving and Charitable Gift Counsel for the 750,000 member Sierra Club, Caleb directed a multi-million dollar planned giving program and provided counsel and training to staff, board members, and leadership volunteers. Caleb has also directed planned and annual giving programs for the University of California - San Francisco; the UC Medical Center; Dartmouth Medical School and Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. A former board member of the Northern California Planned Giving Council and the Upper Valley Planned Giving Council, Caleb has also served on the Conference Committee for the National Committee on Planned Giving.
He is a current member of the New England Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, the Vermont Alliance of Nonprofit Organizations, the Northern California Planned Giving Council and the Upper Valley Planned Giving Council.
Caleb is a graduate of Middlebury College; holds a Juris Doctorate degree from Vermont Law School; a Certificate from the Coro Foundation's City Focus Program and is a member of the California Bar Association. He is a frequent speaker and writer on planned giving, endowments and resource development.
Among Caleb's many interests, he likes to renovate old houses, collect railroad and local history artifacts, read, and serves as his college class secretary. Caleb also participates in a wide variety of community activities, is a former elected member of the Chelsea School Board, served as the Vice President of the Chelsea Historical Society and for several years was the Superintendent of Admissions and Parking for the Tunbridge World's Fair.
Trish Rick,
Of Counsel
trick@northcommon.com
Trish Rick is a much sought-after counselor and mentor in fundraising information systems, non-profit administration and operations and donor cultivation and stewardship. Development Directors, Foundation Leaders, nonprofit CEOs and fundraising volunteers regularly turn to Trish for her expertise and advice on advancement services, the use and management of development databases (including conversions), and for her extensive knowledge of The Raiser's Edge software. Her personalized training and assessments put organizations on the right path for setting up efficient workflow processes, allowing staff to spend more time on their group's mission.
Through her work as a consultant for the last ten years with North Common Associates, Trish understands the culture of nonprofits and brings a depth of judgment and expertise that can only be achieved after years of hard-earned experience. As Director of Development, for Thetford Academy, Trish started the development program for Vermont's oldest secondary school, and staffed their first capital campaign. For the University of California, San Francisco, she directed all aspects of University Development and Alumni relations support systems including administrative information systems, gift and private grant administration and alumni and donor stewardship. She hired, trained and managed a diverse staff of 20 people in four program areas and oversaw the acceptance, receipt and acknowledgement of well over $100 million in annual private support.
At the University of Hartford, Trish worked as the Associate Registrar, and Coordinator of Student Information Services. Here, she facilitated conversion to a comprehensive, integrated student information systems; worked extensively with campus administrative leaders to develop campus-wide information management policies and procedures. As the founder of the Vermont Raiser's Edge Users Group, she frequently makes presentations at conferences and meetings on using the software to its fullest.
When she's not serving clients, Trish loves spending time cooking and gardening. She has been active in her local community having served as a member and Chair of the Chelsea Library Board of Trustees, as a member and Chair of the Board of the Orange County Parent Child Center, and as a volunteer with the Friends of Chelsea School.
