ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, added two senior fundraisers to its development team.
Martin Hand was appointed chief development officer. Hand will lead ALSAC’s revenue-generation and development efforts, including fundraising and philanthropy, corporate partnerships, donor acquisition and retention strategies, planned giving, direct response campaigns and other revenue-driving programs.
Deborah “Deb” Garcia joined the executive leadership team as senior vice president of strategy. Garcia will oversee enterprise-wide strategy.
“Martin is a collaborative, people-focused leader who understands every aspect of our business. He has worked in deep partnership with our development team for years, and his expertise has been instrumental in driving growth and deepening donor connections,” ALSAC President and CEO Ike Anand said via a statement. “And Deb brings bold, strategic vision and global fundraising expertise. Together, they offer a powerful combination of strategic vision, operational excellence and innovative thinking to help guide ALSAC into the future, enabling St. Jude to impact more of the 400,000 children around the world who develop cancer each year.”
Hand, a 12-year ALSAC veteran, previously served as chief donor and operations officer. He has been instrumental in shaping donor engagement strategies and building high-touch cultivation programs that have helped ALSAC achieve record-breaking fundraising milestones and improving experiences for supporters to deepen their connection with the lifesaving mission of St. Jude, according to the announcement.
Hand spent more than two decades in customer service leadership positions at United Airlines and Continental Airlines prior to ALSAC. As senior vice president of Customer Experience at United, he oversaw the integration of reservations and boarding systems following the 2010 merger with Continental and launched formal training workshops aimed at fostering empathy, better customer interactions and improved communication.
A former management consultant, Garcia most recently was chief development officer at Doctors Without Borders US, leading a comprehensive development portfolio spanning mass marketing, major and planned giving, corporate partnerships, foundation funding and strategic philanthropy. Under her leadership, the organization realized nearly 20% revenue growth, scaling fundraising to approximately $800 million and setting a new benchmark for private philanthropy in humanitarian aid. She elevated the global brand and deployed an AI-driven modernization of fundraising and marketing efforts to drive effectiveness and efficiency.
