Janet Gadeski , Editor

Janet Gadeski’s two decades of experience in fundraising and nonprofit management range from a modest public radio station to major symphony orchestras. The study of music drew her from her home town of Calgary to the United States, where she began her career as a church musician, music teacher and classical music announcer with a 3,000 watt (that’s a whopping 30 light bulbs) U.S. public radio station.

Her first taste of fundraising was more irritating than inspiring (“Just $100 more and we can return to our special broadcast.”). Seeking more sophisticated fund development skills, she earned an MBA and an MA in arts management from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. There during a student placement with the Dallas Symphony, she watched in awe as the orchestra’s simultaneous campaigns for its annual appeal, its endowment fund and a new hall surpassed their targets

After returning to Canada, she worked in fundraising with the Toronto Symphony and general management with a number of organizations including the Association of Canadian Choral Conductors, Amici (a chamber ensemble of Toronto Symphony musicians), the Music Educators National Conference and Metropolitan United Church. As Founding President and CEO of The United Church of Canada Foundation, she helped to create a national foundation for the denomination and created a low-cost, socially responsible investment program for its congregations.

Janet began writing for Canadian FundRaiser in 2003, focusing on endowment development, investment and marketing.