Marlo Turner, CFRE, will join Marie Selby Botanical Gardens as Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer
SARASOTA, Fla., December 16, 2021 – Marie Selby Botanical Gardens announced today that veteran fundraising and development professional Marlo Turner, CFRE, will join the staff of Selby Gardens in January as Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer.
Turner comes to Selby Gardens from Tidewell Foundation, where she has served as Vice President of Development since September 2020. Prior to that role, she successfully served as Senior Vice President of Philanthropy at Community Foundation of Sarasota County for nearly five years.
“As Selby Gardens embarks on its exciting future, we are thrilled to welcome Marlo to this vital leadership role with our organization,” said Jennifer Rominiecki, president and CEO of Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. “Her experience and knowledge of the community are invaluable.”
Turner brings nearly 25 years of experience in philanthropic development to Selby Gardens. At the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, she helped the organization grow to more than $400 million in assets and earn prestigious rankings as a national leader in community impact and donor satisfaction. She also has a proven track record of success in capital campaigns and donor engagement at major cultural and educational institutions.
Turner joins Selby Gardens at an exciting and dynamic time, Rominiecki noted, with the realization of the transformational Master Plan for the Downtown Sarasota campus underway. “Marlo will get to work immediately assisting philanthropists who wish to invest in the bright future of Selby Gardens,” she said. “Many of our donors already know Marlo well, and those who haven’t yet met her are going to love her.”
Turner is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) and holds a certificate in fund raising management from Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. She also earned a certificate in executive management and leadership from Oklahoma State University’s (OSU) Spears School of Business. She received her bachelor’s degree in hotel and restaurant administration from OSU.
About Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens provides 45 acres of bayfront sanctuaries connecting people with air plants of the world, native nature, and our regional history. Established by forward-thinking women of their time, Selby Gardens is composed of the 15-acre Downtown Sarasota campus and the 30-acre Historic Spanish Point campus in the Osprey area of Sarasota County, Florida. The Downtown Campus on Sarasota Bay is the only botanical garden in the world dedicated to the display and study of epiphytic orchids, bromeliads, gesneriads and ferns, and other tropical plants. There is a significant focus on botany, horticulture, education, historical preservation, and the environment. The Historic Spanish Point Campus is located less than 10 miles south along Little Sarasota Bay. One of the largest preserves showcasing native Florida plants that is interpreted for and open to the public, it celebrates an archaeological record that encompasses approximately 5,000 years of Florida history. Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is a Smithsonian Affiliate and is also accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. For more information visit www.selby.org.