Peter Host, CFRE
President
Development Director—Alaska Public Media
phost@alaskapublicmedia.org
Peter is the Development Director for Alaska Public Media. Before entering fundraising, his primary background was in children’s behavioral health, having risen in the field from direct service provider to a Director of a remote branch of a statewide organization. He attained an Associate’s in Accounting while serving the organization in this capacity. He is a recipient of the Foraker Certificate in Nonprofit Management, a Veritus Scholar, and a CFRE.
Over the past nine years, Peter has participated as Secretary of the Mat-Su Agency Partnership Board, Member-at-Large of the Anchorage Waldorf Board of Trustees, and Policy Committee Co-Chair for R.O.C.K. (Raising Our Children with Kindness) Mat-Su, and as the Grants Chair and VP of the Winterberry Charter Council at his children's school.
In the past, Peter has led the Membership Committee and the Education Committee for AFP Alaska Chapter. He believes that lacking great skill and expertise does not excuse him from the responsibility of service above self, and that humility, dedication and curiosity have been his most helpful tools in supporting his community to the best of his ability.
Peter is a voracious consumer of audiobooks and podcasts and suggests the books The Kingkiller Chronicles as well as anything by NK Jemisin, and podcasts More Perfect, Revisionist History, and Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend. Peter is the father of two beautiful little girls, Sophia (14) and Violet (11), and the husband of another rare beauty, Alicia (age not provided ;^).
“I hope you’re proud of yourself for the times you’ve said ‘yes,’ when all it meant was extra work for you and was seemingly helpful only to someone else.” – Mister Rogers
KaLynn Coffey, CFRE
President-Elect
Development Officer for Scholarships—University of Alaska Anchorage
kc@alaska.edu
KaLynn is the Senior Development Officer for Scholarships at the University of Alaska Anchorage and previously worked as a donor relations officer for the University of Alaska Fairbanks. With a total of 18 years at the University of Alaska, she has work in many aspects of development from gift manager, to drafting fund agreements, planning donor events, and fundraising. An alumna of UAF, KaLynn will now earn a bachelor’s degree in communication with a minor in digital journalism. KaLynn is honored to also serve as a board member with Katie’s Handprint.
Originally from Seattle, Washington, KaLynn’s first years in Alaska were living remotely while working in Cordova, Alaska, and at salmon hatcheries around Prince William Sound. KaLynn has made Alaska her home for the last 30 years.
Melissa Webber Williams, CFRE
Immediate Past President
Senior Director of Development—Camp Fire Alaska
mwebber@campfireak.org
Melissa currently serves as the Director of Development at Camp Fire Alaska. After graduating from California State University, Sacramento, with a BA in Communication Studies, Melissa made the move from California to Alaska in 2014, to serve for one year as an AmeriCorps VISTA at Food Bank of Alaska. It was in that year of service that she discovered her passion went beyond general communications, into the field of Development and Donor Relations. When her year of service came to an end, Melissa, to the surprise of most who knew her, chose to stay in Alaska and continue following her passion, connecting people to causes they care most about.
Melissa grew up in California, experiencing the best of the ocean and the mountains. She prefers the mountains and loves the Alaska summers. Some if her favorite things include getting cozy with a good book and a cup of tea, going to brunch with friends, watching movies, kittens, family time, traveling, and spending time with her husband Tyrel.
Matt Morse
Treasurer
Senior Operations Officer—Providence
matthew.morse@providence.org
Jennifer Motes
Secretary
Senior Development Officer—UAA College of Health
jomotes@alaska.edu
Jennifer currently serves as the Senior Development Officer for the UAA College of Health. She has over 30 years of experience in non-profit development and administration. She has worked for the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind (FL), the College of Saint Elizabeth (NJ), United Cerebral Palsy (FL), The American Boychoir School (NJ), Relevant Radio, the Long Center for the Performing Arts (TX), Seedling Foundation(TX), and several private, independent K-12 schools, among others. She also operates a professional development consulting business. Motes is an avid volunteer, and has served on the board of the Association of Fund Raising Professionals (AFP) Greater Austin Chapter. In 2016, Motes relocated to Haines, Alaska to experience a more agrarian lifestyle, living off-grid in a remote location, only accessible by boat or float plane. She relocated to Anchorage in 2020, with her husband, Nathanael, who is a sport fishing guide. Motes was born in California, and grew up in Louisiana and Texas.
Cindy Vegetabile
VP Membership and Engagement
Individual and Corporate Giving Manager—Anchorage Museum
cvegetabile@anchoragemuseum.org
Cindy is the Individual and Corporate Giving Manager at Anchorage Museum. Before landing in Alaska, she studied Energy and Sustainability at Penn State and spent 10 years traveling and working with nonprofits across the globe.
Cindy lives in Anchorage with her two pups Bobo and Max and loves any and all outdoor activities – particularly mountain biking, backpacking and Nordic skiing.
Nancy Anderson
VP Education
Development Director—Alaska SeaLife Center
nancya@alaskasealife.org
Nancy is the Development Director at the Alaska SeaLife Center. She and her family moved to Seward in 1992. Nancy spent 10 years working for the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District as the School Secretary at Seward Elementary. In 2005, she was hired by the Alaska SeaLife Center as the Executive Assistant. This position introduced her to work in the non-profit sector. In addition to other traditional assistant duties, she began building her own set of relationships with the organizations that interacted with the Center. She also assisted the development and events departments with various fundraising activities.
In 2014, Nancy transitioned into the Center's development lead position, and the role of fundraising and relationship building began full-time. It has been a rewarding change of duties as she has leveraged her knowledge and passion for the Center and its mission into a more finely-tuned, successful program. As Senior Development Manager, Nancy understands the value of a team dynamic, and often promotes everyone on staff at the Alaska SeaLife Center, as well as ASLC Board members, as part of “Team Development.”
Celeste Earley
VP External Affairs
Philanthropy Officer—The Alaska Community Foundation
celestecielearley@gmail.com
Celeste was born elsewhere, but grew up under the midnight sun and is fortunate to call Alaska home. A UAA Alumna, Celeste uses her BA in History and minor in Women’s Studies to delve deep into the issues of today to understand the world around us. During her time at UAA, she served on many student clubs, including Phi Alpha Theta, the History Honors Society, while working full-time at the Anchorage Museum. In 2020, Celeste dived into fundraising at Catholic Social Services, connecting with donors and sharing stories of impact.
As the Philanthropy Officer for The Alaska Community Foundation, Celeste hopes to bring philanthropy to the next generation and build a more giving and inclusive community. Celeste brings her experience of running events, big and small, as well as grassroots fundraising to achieve lasting relationships with donors.
Telling stories and making people laugh is one of her favorite pastimes as well as getting outside to enjoy the vast beauty of Alaska with family and friends. You can find her volunteering, running on Anchorage’s best trails, or spending quality time with her 7 siblings.
Rachel McPherson
VP I.D.E.A.
VP of Development—Alaska Humanities Forum
rmcpherson@akhf.org
Rachael grew up in Fairbanks, then attended The University of Montana where she received a bachelors in Journalism. After some time working in TV news, she decided it wasn’t for her and moved to Laramie, Wyoming where she received a Masters of Public Administration.
Returning to Alaska she started working in development and has been with Girls Scouts of Alaska and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Rachael spent 5 years working with Planned Parenthood in Alaska, raising funds and community support with major donors and events in Anchorage and across Alaska. Rachael believes philanthropy is about connections and creating stronger communities and is so excited to see what can be achieved.
Rachael and her spouse, Iain, have 2 young kids and family throughout Alaska and can’t imagine living anywhere else.
Jason Manalli
Program Chair
Development Director—Set Fre Alaska, Inc.
jason.m@setfreealaska.org
Jason currently serves as the Development Director for Set Free Alaska, a faith based treatment center with services in the Matanuska Valley and Kenai Peninsula communities. Before entering the dual role of fundraising and marketing, his primary background was in management, sales, and customer service as well as serving as the managing owner of his family’s restaurant in Soldotna, Alaska. His professional experience, entrepreneurial spirit and personal testimony of freedom make him the ideal candidate in his role at Set Free as he shares the stories of freedom for the captives of substance abuse and mental health challenges.
Jason holds a B.S.B.A in Management from Western New England College in Springfield, MA and his passion to see all of his fellow Alaskans “experience God’s love, lasting freedom and abundant life” continually moves him forward.
He enjoys quiet time at home, fun with friends, reading books, watching movies, strong black coffee and traveling. His greatest joys in life is loving his wife of 15 years and their 2 amazing children and seeing those who are lost come to know the love of Christ.
Kristin George
National Philanthropy Day Chair
Executive Director—American Heart Association
Kristin.george@heart.org
Charissa Habeger
Scholarship Chair
Director, Anchorage—American Cancer Society
charissa.habeger@cancer.org
Charissa is the Director of Anchorage for the American Cancer Society. She has been with the organization and in Alaska since 2015. Her work in the field of cancer philanthropy has spanned over a dozen years and across international borders. She lives in Anchorage with her husband and young son, and is grateful to continue doing the work that means so much to her here in the Last Frontier.
Angela Merkle
External Communications Chair
Development Manager—American Cancer Society
angela.merkle@cancer.org
Angela, herself a lifelong Alaskan, and has grown up in the Last Frontier, graduating from Bartlett High School. She has been the Development Manager for all of the Alaska American Cancer Society’s breast cancer initiatives as well as the Fairbanks Relay for Life for the past two years. Her fundraising experience dates back to 2010 with the American Cancer Society. After being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and utilizing some of the free services ACS has to offer, she new she wanted to give back to this organization and has been honored to turn her volunteerism into her dream career.
She currently serves as the Miss Anchorage Scholarship Program Co-Director working with young ladies to assist them with furthering their education. She was also the Executive Director for Alaska Miss Amazing for eight years, providing opportunities for girls and women with special disabilities to grow self-esteem and confidence.
She resides in Anchorage with her husband and seven fur animals, and lives two houses down from her parents in the neighborhood she grew up in. Angela is the current Mrs. Alaska American 2022, as well as former Fur Rendezvous Princess 2019, and Ms. Alaska United States 2016. In her spare time she enjoys reading, travelling, and giving back to her community!
Morgan Dulian
Statewide Engagement Chair
Director of Development—University of Alaska Fairbanks
madulian@alaska.edu
Morgan has been with the University of Alaska Fairbanks since 2015 and currently leads their development strategy by serving as the director of development. As a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE), Morgan has raised more than $85 million over the course of 15 years for higher education, arts organizations and local nonprofits. Morgan takes pride in working shoulder-to-shoulder with benefactors, as well as inspiring and supporting growth from the teams she leads. She believes in the power of philanthropy to transform lives.
In May 2022, Morgan was recognized for her contributions to Alaska by being honored as a Top 40 Under 40 recipient from the Alaska Journal of Commerce. She also serves as a director for the Rotary Club of Fairbanks, is the statewide engagement chair for AFP Alaska board of directors, is on the leadership committee for the 100+ Golden Heart Women Who Care, and is vice-president of the Fairbanks Montessori School board of directors.
Morgan holds an undergraduate degree in Communication and Business (2005) from the University of Colorado Boulder and a master's in Nonprofit Management (2012) from Regis University.
Morgan enjoys an active Alaskan life with her husband and three young kids. She also enjoys knitting and tending to her garden. The Dulian family resides in the Goldstream Valley north of Fairbanks.
David Shakagook̲ Russell-Jensen
I.D.E.A. Chair
Development Director—Sealaska Heritage Institute
david.russell-jensen@sealaska.com
David is the Development Officer at Sealaska Heritage Institute, an Alaska Native nonprofit based in Juneau. David is an alum of the University of Alaska and began his career in fundraising at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage, followed by time in the University of Alaska Southeast Development & Alumni Relations Office. He enjoys sharing Alaska Native culture with others, traveling, cooking and sharing food, and spending time outdoors.
Susan Metcalf
Education Chair
Manager of Individual Giving—Alaska Public Media
smetcalf@alaskapublic.org
Lynne Johnson, CFRE
Membership At Large Member
Director of Development and Alumni Relations—University of Alaska Southeast
lejohnson@alaska.edu
Lynne was born in New York City but moved to Alaska in 1980. She spent her first summer in Nome and then went on to Fairbanks where she attended the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Lynne began her professional work with fundraising at the University of Alaska Foundation in July 1989.
Her fundraising experience also includes positions as Campaign Director of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Nikiski Pool Foundation (including a $3 million capital campaign) and Executive Director of the Kenai Peninsula United Way. She has been at the University of Alaska Southeast, serving as Director of Development and Alumni Relations, since January 2000. She has been a CFRE since 1991.
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