Luke Vander Linden, Neighbor

Luke has worked in public service and in the non-profit world for over 17 years.  Currently, he is a partner and Vice President at Carl Bloom Associates, a White Plains-based fundraising agency that manages individual giving programs in support of organizations as diverse as public broadcasters, libraries, advocacy groups, museums, international relief organizations, religious and service organizations and hospitals. Clients have inlcuded Save the Children, Oxfam, North Shore Animal League, Environmental Defense, Catholic Charities CYO of San Francisco and Clare (Ireland) County Council/The Cliffs of Moher.

In addition, Luke also serves as the Secretary of The Hundred Year Association of New York an organization made up of 100+ year old businesses and organizations in the New York metro area that recognizes dedication to public service -- from career municipal employees to historic and venerable organizations.

Luke spent the first ten years of his career at Thirteen/WNET, New York’s flagship PBS station, rising from a member and viewer relations specialist to directing the quickly growing on-air and online fundraising department (for which he won two development awards from PBS).

A strong commitment to public service was instilled in Luke at an early age.  From shelving books at the public library starting in 7th grade to running his local municipal court’s Teen Court program to putting in hundreds of hours of community service his senior year of high school, Luke understood that strong communities are made of individuals who are willing to be involved and to work hard to keep their neighborhoods clean, safe and  happy.

Luke and his wife Britta — to whom he has been married for over 5 years — are members of and active in many Bedford organizations including the Bedford Hills Neighborhood Association, the Town of Bedford Republican Party, the Bedford Riding Lanes Association, Bedford 2020 and the Bedford Historical Society.  Luke serves on two of the town’s boards — Recreation and Parks and the Communications Advisory Committee.

While attending Fordham University, where he received a degree magna cum laude in Media Studies, Luke circumnavigated the globe as part of the Semester at Sea program, traveling to South America, Africa and Asia.  Upon returning to New York, Luke interned at the United Nations, compiling a history of the conflict in the Balkans, genocide in Rwanda and Uganda and researching a UN Parliamentary Assembly.  He also studied at the International Academy of Broadcasting in Switzerland. Luke is a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity and is currently the Vice Chairman of the DKE Club of New York, helping to manage a budget and investments of nearly $1,000,000.

Over the past decade and a half, Luke has served on a number of boards and committees including his former church’s pastoral council, a co-op board and a parade committee.  He’s a published editor and researcher and a former ballroom dancing instructor, actor and model.  Currently, Luke lectures on integrated marketing and fundraising at New York University’s School of Philanthropy.