Her Super-Power Is Her Ability To Develop High Functioning Boards.

"Penny marries years of experience in not-for-profit leadership with a rare combination of humor, forthrightness, and creativity that allows her to bring out the best in boards and teams. She has a way of taking high level strategy and presenting it so that progress feels measurable instead of nebulous, and easy instead of emotionally overwhelming. Her super-power is her ability to develop high functioning boards and problem-solve roadblocks to help organizations achieve the results they want."

DR. TRICIA GROFF (PHD) Executive Coach for High Achievers; Integrating Psychology and Business

A Passionate Development Professional Who Cares.

"Penny is a passionate development professional who cares deeply about advancing the success of the non-profit sector. Her Philanthropy212 podcasts provide a platform for industry professionals to share insight, expertise, and solutions about the challenges development professionals face."

Andrea Davidson Vice President, Philanthropy

Deep Insight And Passion

"Penny brings years of experience, deep insight and passion for the work to Fund Development. Her Philanthropy212 podcasts provide a welcomed platform for nonprofit colleagues to share knowledge and explore fundraising challenges for the sector. Penny understands the imperative of philanthropic partnerships towards driving transformational change."

Tamar Copeland Strategic Philanthropy Professional

Thoughtful Approach

"Penny is an effective nonprofit leadership consultant who cares about people and community. Her thoughtful approach to philanthropy is heartfelt and beneficial to the organizations she works with."

Derek B. Groves, MSOM, CFRE President July 3, 2020, Derek B. worked with Penny but at different companies

Authentically Connecting People

"For Penny, philanthropy is about authentically connecting people who chose to make the world a better place, and she succeeds every day! Her passion is partnering with organizations to help make their donors’ values come to life through board leadership, planning and sincere communications. If you are looking for someone who can guide your organization to the highest level of sincere philanthropy, then look no further."

Lance Secretan CEO and Founder of The Secretan Center Inc.

Highly Engaged

"I give Penny my highest recommendation. She and I served together on the board of the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners. This is a prestigious group that leads a large professional organization. By the very fact that Penny was nominated for and selected to serve on this board demonstrates that her peers recognize her as a thought leader in the field of charitable gift planning. We served together on the board for three years. During meetings Penny was highly engaged with thoughtful comments. Her expertise both in board governance and the field of gift planning were evident in her board service. Besides her professional accomplishments, Penny is a genuinely nice person. That made our professional interactions all the more enjoyable."

Kent Weimer Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy® Director Trusts, Estates & Gift Planning, Parkland Foundation. Chair, National Association of Charitable Gift Planners

She Really Understands How To Get Your Foundation Board Members Involved And Invested.

"Penny is incredibly smart about how to build smart relationships in particular for hospitals and health care foundations. She really understands how to get your foundation board members involved and invested and working together to achieve the overall organization’s goals in the most efficient manner. She also does great trainings for board members and foundation staff about how to improve your philanthropic efforts."

John Corcoran We help B2B businesses connect to their ‘Dream 100’ clients and get referrals, using a podcast | ex- White House

One Of Those Fundraisers Who Really Understands What It Takes To Be Successful

"Penny is an enthusiastic advocate for all aspects of fundraising. She is constantly looking for new and innovative ways to engage constituents. Penny understands that relationship building is key to the process, while building trust with staff and donors. Penny brings an infectious sense of energy to all situations, and is one of those fundraisers who really understands what it takes to be successful."

Paul Kaminski Executive Director at Long Beach City College Foundation

Innovative Philanthropy“

"Talk to Penny to find out what to know about innovative philanthropy. Her Podcast Philanthropy212 puts her in the middle of everything new. But more importantly, everything effective."

Gina Bria Anthropologist, CEO, Hydration Foundation; HyFo Lab, LLC, co-author of QUENCH: 5 Days to Hydration; TEDxtalk: Grow Water

She Has A Real Talent As Well For Crafting Thoughtful And Compelling Marketing Campaigns.

"Penny is truly committed to her work and her clients/donors. She brings a deep and wide level of experience to the table to help people think differently and embrace change so they can grow. She has a real talent as well for crafting thoughtful and compelling marketing campaigns. I highly recommend Penny to help you expand your fundraising program."

Joseph Tumolo, CAP® CEO at Gift Planning Development, LLC

Sincere Philanthropy.

"For Penny, philanthropy is about authentically connecting people who chose to make the world a better place. Her passion is partnering with organizations to help make their donors’ values come to life. If you are looking for someone who can guide your development programs to the highest level of sincere philanthropy, then look no further."

Lance Secretan - Advisors to Leaders, Founder & CEO, The Secretan Center Inc.

"I had the pleasure of working with Penny Cowden over the course of about two years. Penny was effective in so many ways. First, she communicated in a positive manner with me and all of her contacts. Second, she brought a vision to bear that was customized to fit the community and, in so doing, was able to target her efforts effectively. Third, she has an innate sense of people’s impact and was instrumental in connecting key constituents. In the world of philanthropy, you can not find a more impactful and supportive person than Penny Cowden."

Marwan Sabbagh, MD, FAAN - Director Barrow Neurological Institute

"I had the extreme pleasure and opportunity to engage with Penny Cowden when she was working with a large, regional medical center in Colorado. As a film and video producer, I worked closely with Penny in the development of video showpieces for various projects. Penny is a fun, creative and driven professional, who knows the art of fundraising inside and out – and always has an innovative approach, new methods, new philosophies as well as an “outside the box” vision."

Michael Murphy - President PRODUCTION WEST LLC

"Penny Cowden embraces creativity and is strategic in her approach to building organizations in the not-for-profit world. She is forward thinking and empowers individuals and organizations to reach beyond their goals and dreams. Penny delights in restructuring philanthropic endeavors to enable them to achieve greatness."

Cindy Chambers - Founder/President The Tell Me Town Foundation

"Penny Cowden is a leader who is decisive and gets things done! She has the ability to make a plan and then implement the plan to completion. If you want to hire someone to help you plan for success and then help you implement the plan, you have found the person!"

Joan Fletcher – President Winning Ways, Inc.

"Penny and I worked side-by-side for 10 years. I know her well and have always admired her capacity for identifying an achievable plan of action and then assembling the appropriate resources for executing the plan. There are many, many development professionals who “talk” a good game but rarely deliver with measurable results. Penny’s track record is just the opposite. She has achieved remarkable and lasting successes that have literally changed the landscape of the not-for-profit with which she was associated. She’s a dynamic personality who has made a unique and lasting imprint on the fund development world over the past 20 years. Any organization working with Penny will find themselves in the enviable position of achieving unprecedented results."

Tom Bashwiner, FAHP - Retired NFP Chief Development Officer

“ If you ever have the good fortune to work with Penny Cowden, do it. And do it now before someone else seizes the opportunity. Penny is that rare breed of consultants that actually can do and does what she says she’s going to do – and then some. She unfailingly provides that extra degree of effort organizations need to propel a failing effort into a wildly successful one. Fiercely intelligent, fun, driven, loyal, passionate, effective – I could fill a Thesaurus with positive adjectives about her. But won’t post them here because it will only delay your decision to hire her now."

David Smith, Founder & Creative Leader, Immortology

"Working with Penny was an entire education in philanthropy. As a board chair, she not only led me through her own exceptional strategies, she also provided expert information on philanthropic philosophy and best practices. She will undoubtedly help advance your own financial and strategic objectives."

Teri Cavanagh - President, Cobb & Associates

"Penny Cowden delivers an ideal balance of compassionate heart and strategic purpose to her growth and development recommendations. She has an impeccable track record of impressive turnarounds and performance success that dramatically impact key business goals, particularly those with significant challenges. Her ability to develop a purposeful vision and practical solutions would benefit any organization looking to significantly improve developmental performance. A visionary who truly listens to understand, Penny is the kind of professional who looks at more than one angle of a situation (and always finds a win/win opportunity). I loved working with Penny would recommend her with confidence to any organization that wants to shine with donors and constituents."

Coiya Tompkins - Vice president/Partner Western Agency, Inc.

"Penny has years of experience building customized strategies that provide lasting solutions to your most vexing leadership challenges. She has a long record of producing outstanding results with boards and staffs of all types along with decades of experience in guiding governance to understanding and overcoming obstacles to success. She brings a full palette of tools and skills to take your programs to a much higher level. Boards like working with her because she listens and builds customized tactics to make you successful! She is the partner you’ll want to use again and again!"

Randy Kelley - Healthcare CEO

“As a physician trustee of our Foundation Board, I experienced first hand how Penny engaged board members through her visionary leadership. She created a sense of purpose in our board members and how we fit in as part of the team. She was always strategic, creative and innovative as she took us to the next level of success in our fundraising goals. Penny also raised the level of awareness and support of our foundation in the community and became a friend to board trustees, hospital staff and community members. Any organization wishing to increase its philanthropic success needs to look no further. Penny is the one to call."

Edward Puccio, MD, FACEP Medical Director and Chairman Department of Emergency Medicine Inova Loudoun Hospital

"As a SVP/Regional CEO for a $1 billion Catholic Health system, I was constantly looking for ways to improve our financial position. Penny opened my eyes to how philanthropy could make the difference we needed. With Penny’s insight into our donors and her understanding of our health system’s need for capital to fund important projects, our health system embarked on a new direction in fund raising. In fact, she pioneered an entirely new approach. Without Penny’s skills, passion and commitment, we would not have been successful in our endeavor. I highly recommend Penny for any organization needing to reassess their strategies and direction. Penny understands that results are the key measure of success and she will ensure that you achieve those results."

Mark McGourty - Managing Partner Avicenna Partners