San Diego Philanthropy Awards to Honor Local Leaders
Local non-profit operators can learn from the fundraising strategies of award-winning leaders recognized this November.
Updated on Oct. 21, 2026 in Philanthropy
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The Association of Fundraising Professionals San Diego Chapter will recognize eight individuals and three organizations at its National Philanthropy Day event on November 13, 2026. The ceremony, held at the Manchester Grand Hyatt, celebrates notable contributions to local and regional community support efforts.
Why it matters
National Philanthropy Day highlights the critical role of individual and organizational fundraising in sustaining non-profit operations across the region. Recognizing these leaders provides operational benchmarks for other local entities seeking to improve their own development and engagement strategies.
The upcoming ceremony expects 1,000 guests, highlighting the scale of donor networks in San Diego. Honorees include professionals who have managed campaigns as large as $210 million versus those focused on smaller, targeted initiatives like the $35,000 raised for Casa de Amistad.
The players
Association of Fundraising Professionals San Diego Chapter
A professional association that provides resources and recognition for non-profit fundraising leaders in the local area.
David Hanses
The executive director of development for the Scripps Institution of Oceanography who previously led a $210 million museum campaign.
Chris Zheng
A senior at The Bishop's School and robotics captain who raised over $35,000 for local non-profit Casa de Amistad.
The details
The event honors distinct approaches to resource development, ranging from large-scale institutional endowment campaigns to youth-led community fundraising. Award recipients are selected for their success in mobilizing donor capital, evidenced by work such as raising $97 million for museum projects or leading youth engineering programs. These efforts demonstrate how varying operational scales and strategies—from executive-led capital campaigns to grassroots student projects—effectively drive charitable revenue.
Timeline
February 25, 2025: Date of the David Hanses Day proclamation.
2026: Year Chris Zheng received the FIRST Leadership Award.
November 13, 2026: Date of the National Philanthropy Day event.
Market Landscape
The awards follow the industry-standard framework of National Philanthropy Day, which serves as a recurring marker for donor engagement and non-profit performance. This event continues the local precedent of spotlighting development talent that bridges institutional scale with community-based impact.
Operators should monitor the development strategies highlighted at the event to identify successful donor engagement models. Tracking the fundraising growth of local non-profits can help businesses align their own charitable contributions with high-performing, well-vetted organizations.
The takeaway
The event underscores that effective fundraising relies on a mix of long-term institutional endowment planning and targeted, grassroots donor mobilization. Operators should review their organization's annual development metrics against the diverse strategies utilized by this year's recognized professionals.
Further reading
For broader trends in regional donation management, see San Diego Philanthropy.
Source note: This article includes information reported by San Diego Union-Tribune.
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