Lisa Barr, CAP® is Senior Director, Head of U.S. West at National Philanthropic Trust (NPT). NPT is the largest independent provider of donor-advised funds, and its mission is to provide philanthropic expertise to donors, foundations, and financial institutions, enabling them to realize their philanthropic aspirations. As Senior Director, Lisa cultivates relationships with financial advisors in throughout the West, providing consultative support to help clients achieve their philanthropic goals. She is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Prior to joining NPT, Lisa was the Director of Philanthropic Entrepreneurship at Silicon Valley Community Foundation. In her more than ten years of prior philanthropic experience, she also held executive director and fundraising roles at nonprofit arts organizations on the East Coast. Lisa is the Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Northern California Planned Giving Council. She earned a Master of Business Administration from Boston University Questrom School of Business and a Bachelor of Music from Vanderbilt University. Lisa holds the Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® designation and is a certified 21/64 philanthropic advisor.

Anjee Helstrup-Alvarez is the Executive Director of MACLA/Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana located in downtown San José, CA. She’s led transformative efforts at MACLA to build organizational capacity, secure a permanent facility, launch a youth digital media lab, and deepen engagement programs while ensuring artistic excellence and community relevance. Anjee’s areas of expertise include: creative placemaking, commissioning art work, program development, capacity building, economic and real estate development, fund development, and participatory evaluation. Anjee earned an MA in Visual Criticism from California College of the Arts and a BFA in pictorial arts from San José State University. She lives in downtown San José with her family and is a novice gardener and recovering karaoke performer.

Karen Kwan has more than 20 years of experience in nonprofit fundraising for arts organizations in Silicon Valley, and has raised over $25 millions for exhibitions, world-premiered theatre productions, arts education programs, and more. As the Director of Development for the Palo Alto Art Center Foundation, Karen manages fundraising and advocacy initiatives in support of making art accessible to all, and has successfully doubled the Foundation’s fundraising revenue to nearly $1.4 million since 2018. In collaboration with the Palo Alto Art Center Director, she launched a distinctive travel program in 2019, significantly enhancing donor stewardship and cultivation efforts.

Karen is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE). She currently serves as the immediate past president for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Silicon Valley Chapter and has held multiple leadership positions on the board since 2009. Karen is a Silicon Valley Business Journal 2014 Women of Influence Honoree; AFP Silicon Valley 2013 Chapter Service Award Recipient; and genARTS Silicon Valley 2013 Movers & Shakers Award Recipient. Karen holds a BA in Communications-Broadcast Journalism and Art History from Santa Clara University.