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WHO WE ARE
Our Distinctives
Your organization’s “true north” is what brings you together. From your board to staff to volunteers and donors, all eyes should be focused on your vision and mission.
At CG&A, we’ll come alongside you to ensure every aspect of your organization is aligned with and in full service of your mission.
We practice what we preach. Every consultant at CG&A has ongoing, first-hand experience within the nonprofit sector in leadership, development, and administration.
We also value transparency and honesty in our relationships with clients. From us, you will get the good, the bad, and the ugly of maintaining and sustaining a nonprofit organization.
In our partnership with you, one of our major goals is to see your donors locking arms with your organization in a shared vision. We understand money is not a necessary evil of your mission. Rather, we’ve seen the work of relational development through fundraising—when done well—actually result in an increase of the donor’s heart for the mission.
With over 120 years of combined industry experience, we help organizations re-envision their fundraising activity as ministry, which is the bedrock of Canaan Group & Associates.
Our Team
Every consultant at Canaan Group & Associates actively holds roles in leadership, fundraising, and administration at nonprofit organizations.
We deeply understand how nonprofits should be run because we still do it, which drives our commitment to transparency in our client relationships. Through ongoing engagement in missions of our own as Executive Directors, Development Directors, and Operations Specialists, our team is fully equipped with the know-how and dedication needed to grow capacity for your mission.
Along with your personal account representative, you’ll have access to the full CG&A team. We look forward to coming alongside you in your mission!
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Troy Duble
Partner & President
Troy Duble is the President of Canaan Group & Associates. He brings over 30 years of experience in nonprofit leadership and fundraising development: over 28 of which have been with Covenant College, where he serves as special counsel to the VP for Development.
His personal experience running businesses, working with Covenant College’s board, and serving on other boards equips Troy to confidently help organizations grow their fundraising efforts. Troy specializes in major donor programs, board training, building development teams, capital and annual campaigns, nonprofit operations and management, and communications.
Troy serves as a Ruling Elder at Grace Community Trenton (PCA) and lives in Lookout Mountain, Georgia. He and his wife Sarah have 6 children, 5 on earth.
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Jason Coffey
Senior Consultant
Jason Coffey brings 14 years of experience in fundraising, nonprofit management, board training, and fundraising communications. He also enjoys running a few real estate small businesses.
A native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Jason received his bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, majoring in Finance and Accounting from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. From 2012-2017, Jason served as Development Director for Christian Businessmen’s Connection (CBMC). While there, the organization grew from a $5 million ministry to a $10 million ministry. This included increasing the annual fund from $1.8 million to $3.5 million and raising project funding totaling $5.2 million during Jason’s 5 years there. Additionally, he brings 15 years of prior sales management expertise and small business ownership.
Jason is a trained facilitator for Journeys of Generosity through Generous Giving and he holds a Certificate in Fundraising Management from the IUPUI Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.
Jason serves as a Ruling Elder at Covenant Presbyterian Church (PCA) and lives in Chattanooga, TN. He and his wife, Catherine, have four children.
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Matthew Bryant
Senior Consultant
Matthew Bryant brings over 20 years of experience in the areas of fundraising, church relations, enrollment, and nonprofit communications and marketing. He currently serves as the Director of Fundraising for the Tennessee Valley Presbytery Church Planting Movement. Having spent most of his career in K-12 and Higher Education settings, he previously served as Senior Vice President of Development at Reformed Theological Seminary and as Vice President of Advancement at Chattanooga Christian School.
Prior to CCS, Matthew served for 14 years on staff at Covenant College, working in a variety of roles related to admissions, church relations, communications, and financial aid. Also active in the community, Matthew is a past President of the Pachyderm Club in Chattanooga and a past Chairman of the Hamilton County Republican Party. He is an Eagle Scout and loves the outdoors and Atlanta Braves baseball.
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Matthew joined Canaan Group and Associates in 2012 and has served a variety of clients from schools to churches, para church ministries, and other nonprofit organizations. His work across a wide spectrum of education as well as nonprofits brings expertise in fundraising, organizational team building, development assessment, admissions and recruitment, search services, and communications.
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Matthew received his Bachelor’s degree from Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, GA (2000) and his M.Ed. from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN (2009). He and his wife Jocelyn were married in 2005 and have four children. Both native Chattanoogans, they live in Lookout Mountain and attend Rock Creek Fellowship (PCA).
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Dan Nielson
Senior Consultant
Dan Nielson brings 15 years of nonprofit fundraising consulting experience in a broad range of fields, including churches, schools, ministries, healthcare, and professional societies and foundations. This experience includes capital campaign management, feasibility studies, case development, strategic fundraising planning, leadership training, and annual fundraising programs.
Dan holds a bachelor's degree from Covenant College, and a Master's of Science in Education degree from Baylor University. His family attends Christ Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Wheaton, IL where he serves as a deacon, and in music, children's, and men's ministries.
Dan grew up in Wheaton, IL, and has spent a number of years in the Chattanooga area as well as in central Texas, before returning to the Chicago area, where he resides with his wife, Lyndee, their two daughters, 9 and 7, and one son, 3.
Marc Erickson
Consultant
Marc specializes in the area of planned giving and estate design and planning. He is a Certified Financial Planner® and currently serves as the Executive Director of the Covenant College Foundation and Vice President of Development for Covenant College.
He is a member of the Chattanooga Estate Planning Council and the National Association of Estate Planners. He holds designations as a Registered Health Underwriter (RHU) and Registered Employee Benefits Consultant (REBC). He previously spent 17 years in the insurance industry managing an $850,000 book of business; helping business owners, CFOs, and other decision makers make strategic decisions regarding their employee benefits.
Marc serves as a Ruling Elder at Lookout Mountain Presbyterian Church (PCA) and lives in Lookout Mountain, GA. He and his wife Greta have three children.
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Carol Ann Ferguson
Consultant
Carol Ann Ferguson currently serves as the Executive Director of Choices Chattanooga, a pregnancy resource center in Chattanooga, TN. She came from a background in nonprofit operations but had little experience in fundraising and development. With CG&A’s help, Carol Ann developed a passion for calling on donors as she implemented the recommended major donor strategies. Through her efforts, Choices increased revenue by 61% in the four years under her leadership. She has also gained experience in board training, strategic planning, system metrics, and nonprofit management.
At CG&A, she witnessed guidance from Godly people who truly cared and wanted to see God's love permeate our nation and world. Her passion to provide this care and equip other nonprofits led her to join the CG&A team in January 2021.
Carol Ann and her husband, Teron, were married in 2016 and reside in Chattanooga, TN where they attend New City Fellowship.
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John Bates
Consultant
John Bates holds over 20 years in the field of development operations. He currently serves as a Development Officer at Serge.
As a Certified Fundraising Manager through the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI, John understands the process of developing a vision, putting in place the processes, and managing the outcomes along the way. John is also certified administrator for PDPWorks, through which he has served numerous organizations by coming alongside their employees and aiding them in discovering their natural abilities, the environment in which they work, and guiding them on a path of personal growth.
John enjoys teaching Entrepreneurship at a collegiate level, and is the Founder and CEO of Bulwark Ventures. He and his wife Donna have two grown children and currently live in White Pine, TN.
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Mark Erickson
Office Manager
Mark Erickson has been a part of the Canaan Group & Associates team for five years, where he does a little bit of everything within the administrative realm. Along with all things operations, he specializes in digital fundraising and communications.
Mark has a passion to recognize and highlight God’s ongoing Kingdom work in all aspects of life—in the workplace and beyond. He serves CG&A clients through curriculum development, system and tool implementation, report writing, data analysis, and ongoing research.
Mark, his wife Sarah, and their one son live in Trenton, GA and are members at Grace Community Trenton, where he serves as the worship leader. He is not related to the other Marc Erickson, it’s just a small world.
Lydia Berglar
Associate & Content Assistant
Lydia Berglar began helping the Canaan Group & Associates team with proofreading in 2019 and has since aided in other content creation, such as case statements and quarterly newsletters. After earning her BA in English at Covenant College, she worked in the college's Office of Development where she witnessed what relational fundraising looks like in action. In the Office of Development and later in the Office of Marketing & Communications, she learned how important sharing stories, truthful information, and testimonies is to nonprofit work.
Lydia is a reporter for the local newspaper in her home of Trenton, GA where she is a member at Grace Community Trenton. Also a writer for Tennessee Valley Presbytery, she enjoys learning from many other faithful followers of Christ and sharing good news through the presbytery's newsletter and blog.