2022 40 Under 40 Winners

Leonard has raised $4.01 million to date from individuals, corporations and events in support of SickKids’ fundraising priorities.

He secured over $2.5 million to date in new cash commitments and managed a portfolio of 180 donors to cultivate, steward and solicit gifts of over $50,000.

Leonard is a founding board director of Childhood Cancer Canada, providing guidance to the CEO on fundraising and working to obtain charitable status for the organization. 

He is a regular conference presenter, including at AHP, AFP, and Woodmark Group events, and chaired the AFP Greater Toronto Area Fundraising Day event in 2022.

Prior to joining SickKids as a Major Gifts officer, I was a project manager for various international development programs focused on building pediatric healthcare capacity in South Africa and Qatar. When the opportunity to fundraise for SickKids' international initiatives came up, it felt like a natural transition into healthcare philanthropy.

I joined our Foundation when we launched the largest campaign in Canadian healthcare history. The idea of redeveloping the Hospital campus, investing in Canada's largest child health research centre and partnering with institutions to ensure all children regardless of where they live have the same access to care are easy causes to get behind. I've learned so much about healthcare philanthropy and this campaign has only reinforced my passion for this work.

On May 25, 2020, we watched in horror as George Floyd was murdered. I became very interested in advancing equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in philanthropy. Since then, I've become co-chair of the Foundation's EDI committee, chaired a conference focused on EDI in fundraising and raised funds for our Hospital's EDI priorities. 

I've become passionate about incorporating equity, diversity and inclusion principles into healthcare philanthropy and  diversifying our sector. Toronto is one of the most diverse cities in the world and it's important that the work we do as fundraising professionals benefit and reflect the diversity of the various communities we serve.

When you're building a donor portfolio, always remember: ask for advice, you get money; ask for money, you get advice. Asking donor prospects for advice is a great way to cultivate and engage them.