Cirque Lodge Foundation · Hiring analysis

MGO 2 Candidate Report

A clear first screen of 48 resumes for the Major Gifts Officer search — separating true development roots from sales, events, and operations-adjacent branches.

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Executive read

The added resumes changed the field. The strongest first-pass profile is now Catrina Spears, followed by Alvaro Gonzalez, Charles Bordeleau, Manny Maez, and Simon McFall.

Strongest fit
Catrina

Most direct individual philanthropy / major donor signal.

Best proof point
$2.5M

Alvaro’s reported fundraising through development/outreach work.

Verify closely
Manny

Strong language and mission fit; confirm real gift-closing history.

First slate
8 calls

Enough to compare true development vs transferable sales profiles.

Shortlist

The top ten candidates to consider first, with the watch-outs that should guide screening.

1

Catrina Spears

Strong

Current/recent individual philanthropy; major donors/Tocqueville Society; development roles; Salesforce/Blackbaud/GiveSmart; local Utah County

  • Current/recent individual philanthropy experience at United Way of Utah County.
  • Works with community leaders, major donors, Tocqueville Society members, donor retention, annual campaign, and sponsorship engagement.
  • Prior development roles include Basin PBS and Spectrum of Solutions.
  • Verify portfolio ownership, direct asks, and largest gift.
Watch: Clarify personal portfolio ownership, direct asks, largest gift; current role may be recent
2

Alvaro Gonzalez

Strong

Director of Development/Outreach; raised $2.5M; donor base +40%; donor relations/grants/campaigns/events; CRM experience

  • Director of Development and Outreach at Sonoma Valley Community Health Center.
  • Raised over $2.5M through direct/indirect efforts and increased active donor base by 40%.
  • Development strategy, donor relations, grants, partnerships, campaigns, events, and stewardship.
  • Clarify major gifts vs grants/events and relocation/travel.
Watch: Break down major gifts vs grants/events; confirm relocation/travel and recovery mission fit
3

Charles André Bordeleau

Strong

Senior nonprofit development executive; major gifts, sponsorships, grants, donor pipelines, stewardship, board work

  • Senior nonprofit fundraising/development background.
  • Executive Director of Development roles with Parkinson’s Quebec, Quebec Cancer Foundation, and Little Brothers.
  • Resume names major gifts, corporate sponsorships, foundation grants, donor pipelines, stewardship, and board partnership.
  • Needs dates, metrics, largest gifts, and compensation alignment.
Watch: Needs metrics/dates/largest gifts; may want executive scope or above-range comp
4

Manny Maez

Strong/Verify

Major gifts/donor portfolio/moves/HNW/stewardship/CRM language; strong recovery/veteran mission alignment

  • Resume is explicitly built around major gifts, donor portfolio, moves management, HNW relationships, stewardship, CRM, and revenue tracking.
  • Strong recovery/veteran mission alignment.
  • Relationship-development and major-account language from real estate/referral partner work.
  • Verify actual philanthropic solicitation vs tailored sales language.
Watch: Must verify actual philanthropic gift closing vs tailored sales language
5

Simon McFall

Strong/Possible

High-value partnerships; $500K PUMA contract/sponsorship; athletics/education fundraising support; donor/major gift language

  • 8+ years cultivating high-value partnerships and engaging major donors in education/athletics.
  • Negotiated a $500,000 PUMA contract/sponsorship.
  • Athletic Director role includes institutional partnerships, external partner liaison work, community engagement, and fundraising support.
  • Clarify sponsorship/contract vs philanthropic gift and actual donor portfolio.
Watch: Need clarify sponsorship vs philanthropic gifts and actual donor portfolio/CRM
6

Derek Deppe

Strong/Possible

25+ yrs sales; grew dealer network 15 to 132 and sales $800K to $7M; CRM/account relationships

  • 25+ yrs sales; grew dealer network 15 to 132 and sales $800K to $7M; CRM/account relationships
  • Concern: Commercial sales not nonprofit major gifts; fundraising terms may be keywording
Watch: Commercial sales not nonprofit major gifts; fundraising terms may be keywording
7

Ian Hall

Possible

Nonprofit business development; generated $300K sponsorships/donations/events; partnerships/investors; sales/account background

  • Nonprofit business development; generated $300K sponsorships/donations/events; partnerships/investors; sales/account background
  • Concern: Fundraising may be sponsorship/events more than individual major gifts
Watch: Fundraising may be sponsorship/events more than individual major gifts
8

Cameron Gibbons

Possible

Regional sales/account management; CRM; outside reps; business development; client retention

  • Regional sales/account management; CRM; outside reps; business development; client retention
  • Concern: Commercial sales only; no donor/fundraising evidence
Watch: Commercial sales only; no donor/fundraising evidence
9

Bridger Hall

Possible

Enterprise account management; 20 clients; $6M annual contracts; retained $2.1M revenue

  • Enterprise account management; 20 clients; $6M annual contracts; retained $2.1M revenue
  • Concern: No fundraising/donor experience; mission/philanthropy translation unproven
Watch: No fundraising/donor experience; mission/philanthropy translation unproven
10

Jack Allen

Possible

Strong closer; $1.8M+ annual sales; top sales performer; recovery/behavioral health exposure

  • Strong closer; $1.8M+ annual sales; top sales performer; recovery/behavioral health exposure
  • Concern: High-volume retail sales not long-cycle major gifts; no fundraising evidence
Watch: High-volume retail sales not long-cycle major gifts; no fundraising evidence

The call should test one thing.

Can this person actually own relationships, ask for money, follow up, document moves, and close gifts — or are they simply warm, organized, and good with people? For this hire, that distinction matters.

Tell me about the largest gift, sponsorship, or revenue commitment you personally closed.
Were you the relationship owner, or were you supporting someone else?
What did your portfolio or pipeline look like — number of relationships, stages, and revenue goal?
How do you prepare for an in-person ask?
How do you follow up after someone says they need time?
What CRM or tracking system have you used, and how disciplined are you about documenting moves?
What draws you specifically to recovery, treatment access, and scholarship funding?
What compensation range would you need for this to be a serious possibility?

Full candidate matrix

Filter by tier or search by candidate name. Low-fit candidates are included so the whole folder is accounted for.

#CandidateTierShort readMain concern
1 Catrina Spears Strong Current/recent individual philanthropy; major donors/Tocqueville Society; development roles; Salesforce/Blackbaud/GiveSmart; local Utah County Clarify personal portfolio ownership, direct asks, largest gift; current role may be recent
2 Alvaro Gonzalez Strong Director of Development/Outreach; raised $2.5M; donor base +40%; donor relations/grants/campaigns/events; CRM experience Break down major gifts vs grants/events; confirm relocation/travel and recovery mission fit
3 Charles André Bordeleau Strong Senior nonprofit development executive; major gifts, sponsorships, grants, donor pipelines, stewardship, board work Needs metrics/dates/largest gifts; may want executive scope or above-range comp
4 Manny Maez Strong/Verify Major gifts/donor portfolio/moves/HNW/stewardship/CRM language; strong recovery/veteran mission alignment Must verify actual philanthropic gift closing vs tailored sales language
5 Simon McFall Strong/Possible High-value partnerships; $500K PUMA contract/sponsorship; athletics/education fundraising support; donor/major gift language Need clarify sponsorship vs philanthropic gifts and actual donor portfolio/CRM
6 Derek Deppe Strong/Possible 25+ yrs sales; grew dealer network 15 to 132 and sales $800K to $7M; CRM/account relationships Commercial sales not nonprofit major gifts; fundraising terms may be keywording
7 Ian Hall Possible Nonprofit business development; generated $300K sponsorships/donations/events; partnerships/investors; sales/account background Fundraising may be sponsorship/events more than individual major gifts
8 Cameron Gibbons Possible Regional sales/account management; CRM; outside reps; business development; client retention Commercial sales only; no donor/fundraising evidence
9 Bridger Hall Possible Enterprise account management; 20 clients; $6M annual contracts; retained $2.1M revenue No fundraising/donor experience; mission/philanthropy translation unproven
10 Jack Allen Possible Strong closer; $1.8M+ annual sales; top sales performer; recovery/behavioral health exposure High-volume retail sales not long-cycle major gifts; no fundraising evidence
11 Charmaine Griffin Possible High-touch executive/VIP/investor events; stewardship/event environment fit Events/operations not frontline revenue; no portfolio/asks shown
12 Karie Odell Possible Created/sold/executed event sponsorships; 20+ yrs events/management Sponsorship/events adjacent, not individual major gifts
13 Michelle Clark Possible Experiential marketing, partnerships, 70-event travel program across US/Canada No donor portfolio or gift solicitation evidence
14 Clarence 'BJ' Lund Possible Credit union/dealer relationship sales; HubSpot/B2B pipeline; volunteer fundraising chair; veteran-support advisor No professional major gifts; volunteer fundraising unquantified
15 Courtney Weeks Possible Advancement-adjacent donor stewardship, board engagement, partnership cultivation, executive comms Support/stewardship more than direct ask/closing; recent experience
16 Jarond Suman Possible Storytelling/comms/events; resume lists donor engagement, major gifts, CRM, board collaboration Fundraising language not substantiated by roles/results
17 John Yelland Possible Comms/marketing/nonprofit public affairs; sponsorship/vendor/stakeholder adjacency More messaging than revenue ownership; no donor portfolio
18 Blake Foard Possible AFSP board fundraising initiatives; events company; mental health adjacency Likely volunteer/adjacent fundraising not professional MGO
19 Walter Sachun Salazar Possible Law/family office/governance/financing; sophisticated stakeholder conversations No fundraising; grad school availability unclear
20 Jenny Tanner Possible Senior credit union culture/comms leader; stakeholder/senior leadership work; MBA Internal comms/culture not external revenue or direct asks
21 Jacqueline Cascante Early possible/support Development assistant/marketing; CRM donor/sponsor data; development internship Too junior; support role not MGO
22 Braden McCoy Low/Possible Healthcare ops/business development; clinic growth from 3 to 48; vendor/finance relationships No fundraising/donor work
23 Jayson Reed Low Real estate/process engineering; applied for fundraiser; salary expectation $90K No fundraising evidence and comp mismatch
24 Allison Medina-Latham Low Admissions/retail/customer service leadership No donor/fundraising evidence
25 Brynn Ross Low Early-career communication/service and some solar sales Too junior; no fundraising/development
26 Buck Garrett Low Education/admin/community-service leadership No donor/major gifts/campaign experience
27 Bryan Egelston Low Behavioral health patient advocate; recovery mission adjacency No revenue/fundraising experience
28 David Peñaloza Low Recovery tech plus some sales; bilingual; military/guard Early-career/unfocused; no MGO evidence
29 Darrin Mitchell Low Equipment sales/service and small business ownership No philanthropy or HNW relationship evidence
30 Eva Allred Low Service sales/upselling; rapport and objection handling Entry-level/service; no major-gift readiness
31 Francesca Mecoli Low Education/humanities/teaching and communication No fundraising/sales/donor experience
32 Gerardo Cilia Low Operations/construction/facilities/customer service No fundraising/sales/donor evidence
33 Holly Williams Low Retail/customer service/entrepreneurial ops No development/major gifts evidence
34 Hunter Harris Low Construction/ops/project management; CRM/forecasting in ops context No donor/fundraising/HNW evidence
35 Irene Summers Low Education/program leadership and RTC school context No fundraising/sales/revenue ownership
36 Jacinda Stumph Low RN/behavioral health/clinical mission adjacency Clinical/care resume, not revenue/fundraising
37 Jake Shangold Low Entry-level customer service/AA communications Not MGO level; no fundraising
38 James Spangler Low Early-career sales/appointment setting; local High school grad 2026; no nonprofit/HNW/fundraising
39 Jared Tarin Low Operations/member services; some older sales and SugarCRM No donor/fundraising/major gifts evidence
40 Jennica Evans Low Recovery psych tech and patient/family experience Mission-adjacent but no fundraising/revenue
41 Kaleigh Spooner Low Academic/teaching/research/writing No fundraising/sales/donor relations
42 Kennette Harger Low Call-center/operations leadership and client relationships No development/donor work or mission alignment
43 Marlon Vazquez Ramos Low Manufacturing/security/quality supervision Not aligned with frontline fundraising
44 Michael Herring Low Youth/behavioral work plus sales keywords Too entry-level; no major asks
45 Sarah Butts Low Admin/coordination/hospitality operations No donor/revenue development evidence
46 Sarah Farmer Low Customer service/admin/event check-in No fundraising/sales pipeline evidence
47 Susan Howard Low Logistics/transport/small business sales/customer service No nonprofit fundraising or donor work
48 Yessica Aguayo Low Retail/operations; bilingual No fundraising and employment gap