Mel and Pearl Shaw share strategies required to build a solid fundraising program from the ground up. A talented husband and wife team they founded Saad & Shaw - Comprehensive Fund Development Services. Together they work with diverse clients providing a unique brand of fundraising that combines marketing, corporate partnerships, and the best of business leadership with fundraising fundamentals. They share their approach through their weekly newspaper column, "FUNdraising Good Times," and their blog at fundraisinggoodtimes.com. They are also the authors of "The Fundraiser's Guide to Soliciting Gifts: Turning Prospects into Donors." MELVIN B. SHAW served as Vice President of Marketing for the United Negro College Fund, creating and producing the Lou Rawls Telethon, raising $4 million annually in corporate sponsorships and more than $500 million in annual gifts to date. He also served as Executive Director of the Texas Association of Developing Colleges, facilitating joint programs and fundraising. Mel holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Lane College in Tennessee; a Master's in Business Education from the University of Memphis; and was a fellow at Harvard University's Institute of Educational Management. In 1991 he received an honorary Doctor of Humanities degree from Lane College in recognition of his unique donor engagement and cause marketing programs and their impact on the fields of philanthropy and higher education. PEARL D. SHAW, CFRE, combines experience from the private and nonprofit sectors as she works with nonprofit organizations and institutions providing fund development research, strategies and planning services. Prior to launching Saad & Shaw Pearl founded and operated Phrased Write, providing nonprofits with proposal writing, executive coaching, and strategic fund development services including major gifts work. Pearl is a member of the Tennessee Education Lottery board, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and the marketing committee of the Women's Foundation for a Greater Memphis. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California at Berkeley, a Master's in Public Administration from California State University East Bay, and is a Certified Fundraising Executive. Learn more about Mel and Pearl at www.saadandshaw.com. Visit their blog www.FUNdraisingGoodTimes.com Follow them on twitter @saadshaw. Other books include: The Fundraiser's Guide to Soliciting Gifts