Jim Shapiro - Founder
Jim Shapiro is the founder of The EDGE Group; a nonprofit fundraising consulting company based in Edmonds, Washington.  Prior to forming EDGE, Jim held the Vice President of Development position at CRISTA Ministries managing the fundraising operation for the $70m entity.  Jim was the youngest Vice President in the organization's 50 year history.  Jim is a graduate of Pacific Lutheran University.  He serves his community by coaching various youth sports including a paid position as the Head Football Coach for King's High School.  Jim is married and has two kids.

Shannon Barnes
Shannon is founder and owner of The EDGE Group of Southern California, Inc., an affiliate of The EDGE Group and The EDGE Fundraising Group, LLC of Washington State.  Before joining The Edge Group, Shannon spent fourteen years on senior staff at two nonprofit organizations.  He is a visionary leader with extensive experience in organizational strategy, leadership development, policy and procedures, staff management, problem resolution, branding, communications, donor communities, and the ability to organize complex relationships and work environments into highly productive and successful teams.  Personally, Shannon is an active musician, husband, and father of five.

Jeff Fransen
Jeff is a long-time resident of Snohomish County and has 20 years of experience in nonprofit, business and real estate development. Jeff is married and has three kids. He is a graduate of Washington State University with a master’s degree in Business Administration and has extensive experience in venture capital and finance. Prior to joining The EDGE Group, Jeff was the owner of Fransen Development Partners and was Vice President of an investment firm specializing in emerging growth companies. Jeff has a great deal of experience in development and fundraising in the non-profit sector; having worked with many school, church and community organizations.

Sonny Manning
Sonny has recently returned to the Northwest after more than 15-years in nonprofit fundraising working in New York, Boston, and Atlanta. He most recently served as a Fundraising Systems Consultant for Blackbaud, Inc. Prior to that he has served in primary fundraising positions for organizations in various nonprofit verticals, including Higher Education, Arts and Culture, Health and Social Service, as well as nonprofit Religious organizations and churches. He enjoys working with organizations on business process analysis, donor-database efficiency, annual giving strategies, major gifts, corporate/foundation grants, and Board development. Sonny holds a Master’s degree in Social Ethics from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and is enjoying living in Seattle with his wife Margaret.

Kevin Urie
During the first dot com boom, Kevin was at The Domain Group (now Merkle) working on direct response programs for CARE (Domain's largest client). After his time at Domain, Kevin landed at Destination Marketing where he has developed and implemented hundreds of successful marketing programs. As a Digital Strategist he has led various website design projects and online marketing campaigns. In an effort to educate and facilitate growth in the new social media marketplace (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), Kevin started the Seattle chapter of Social Media Club International.  In only a few months, this club has grown to be one of the largest in the world. Kevin is married and has two kids.

Business Model
The EDGE Group works in alliance with key strategic partners including;
UberDirect - direct communications and media
PWF Architecture - master planning, design, architectural work
Surge Consulting - grant research and fulfillment
DirectExcellence - direct mail processing
Stroop Communications - marketing