Our own Jen Filla has just published her first book!

By Bill Faucett.

Titled Prospect Research for Fundraisers: The Essential Handbook, and co-written with Helen Brown, it is part of the comprehensive and highly-regarded Wiley/AFP Fund Development book series. The book is filled with examples, case studies, interviews, and stories. In fact, AFP Suncoast Chapter members, Debbie Sokolov and Jim Williams are among those quoted. Other AFP Floridians in the book are Sue Seiter, Carol Butera, Suzanne Nixon and Laura Breeze.

Written especially for front-line fundraisers, Prospect Research for Fundraisers presents a practical understanding of prospect research, prospect management, and fundraising analytics, demonstrating how research can be used to raise more money. This unique book is structured around the fundraising cycle and illustrates myriad current and ever-changing prospect research tools and techniques available to boost an organization’s fundraising effectiveness.

There are lots of ways for you to become engaged in the topic and in Jen’s book.  Be sure to visit the companion website www.Research4Fundraisers.com or purchase your copy online from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.  And if you are attending one of the following conferences, stop by and say hello to Jen:

• AFP International Conference on Fundraising, San Diego CA, April 8-9, 2013
• Ohio Prospect Research Network Conference, Columbus OH, May 2-3, 2013
• Planet Philanthropy, Sarasota FL, June 10-11, 2013

She’ll be speaking, selling books, autographing them, and making the AFP Suncoast Chapter proud!

An Author in Our Midst: Bill Faucett in the Membership Spotlight

I bet you didn’t know that one of our AFP Suncoast members was a five-time published author, did you? Bill F. Faucett, Ph.D., CFRE, Director of Endowment and Planned Giving at the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Performing Arts just published his fifth book in May and I had the privilege of interviewing him!

Filla: The Northeastern University Press just published a biography you wrote entitled George Whitefield Chadwick: The Life and Music of the Pride of New England. Why did you choose Chadwick?

Faucett: I was a musicology student when I first heard his Second Symphony, and I’ve been a fan ever since.  Chadwick was one of the leaders of a group of composers in New England that flourished from about the end of the Civil War until World War I.  Although mostly forgotten today, his music is really outstanding–personal, beautiful, and expertly crafted.

Filla: I understand this isn’t the first book you’ve written. How many have you written and how did you get started?

Faucett: This is my fifth book, and my fourth (and last!) on the topic of Chadwick.  Writing has always been a hobby and a passion, and my love of music and history comes together to provide something to write about.
My wife likes it because it’s less expensive than golf!

Filla: Does fundraising for the David A. Straz Jr. Center for the Performing Arts give you inspiration for your writing?

Faucett: It really does!  Many of the artists on our stages have gone through quite a bit to get to where they are, and most of them have very compelling stories.  Chadwick was not unlike them.  He struggled to make
a name for himself in a place and an era that was not only extremely tumultuous, but had little understanding of what it took to compose symphonies in America.  He persevered and ended up making a crucial impact on our artistic landscape.

Thanks for sharing Bill!

Click here to order your copy online!