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Kevin B. Melvin has been on staff at Mayo Clinic since 1991. He serves as legal counsel dedicated to the Department of Development, where he manages and advises on legal issues impacting charitable activities at Mayo Clinic. In addition, Mr. Melvin serves as associate chair of gift planning for the Department of Development, where he manages the Office of Gift Planning team responsible for working with benefactors on planned giving, which comprised 34 percent of Mayo Clinic’s $3 billion campaign.

Mr. Melvin received his J.D. from Mitchell Hamline School of Law and has been a licensed attorney since 2006. He also earned a Master of Arts degree in management from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. He is a member of the Olmsted County Bar Association and Minnesota State Bar Association and is past president of the Rochester Estate Planning Council.

Mr. Melvin’s volunteer activities include Wills for Heroes, Rochester A Better Chance and LegalCORPS Business Law Clinic. He and his wife have two young children.

Jessie J. Pridie, MA is a gift planning administrator in the Department of Development at Mayo Clinic. As a gift planning administrator, Mrs. Pridie helps benefactors achieve their philanthropic goals by identifying strategic, creative and tax-advantaged gift solutions. She also serves as a consultant and educator on complex gift arrangements, coordinates planned giving communications and serves as co-chair of The Mayo Legacy. As a senior member of the team, Mrs. Pridie provides oversight and analytics for the gift planning program in an effort to maximize efficiency and prepare for long-term growth.

Mrs. Pridie joined Mayo Clinic in 2008 and moved into the Office of Gift Planning in October 2013. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and theology at the University of Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and completed her Master of Arts in philanthropy and development at Saint Mary’s University in Winona, Minnesota.

Originally from the Dakotas, Jessie and her husband, Jake, now live in Rochester along with their sons, Guy Todd and Gunnar Pax.

Bethel M. Ruest, M.B.A., is assistant director of gift planning in the Department of Development at Mayo Clinic. She serves as a senior advisor in the Office of Gift Planning to identify and create strategic tax-advantaged gifts for benefactors so they may achieve their philanthropic goals. Ms. Ruest has broad expertise in real estate, farm assets, charitable trusts, gift annuities, estate commitments and noncash assets.

Ms. Ruest joined Mayo Clinic in 1996 and has served as a senior gift administrator and finance analyst. Prior to joining Mayo Clinic, she worked in accounting management and investment roles in Wisconsin.

Ms. Ruest earned her Master of Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater and a Bachelor of Science in accounting and finance from the University of Wisconsin–Stout.

Ms. Ruest is a licensed real estate agent. She volunteers as a board member for the Minnesota Planned Giving Council and serves on the Conference and Leave a Legacy Minnesota committees.

Wendy J. Frost is Assistant Director of Gift Planning in the Department of Development at Mayo Clinic. As a member of the Office of Gift Planning, Ms. Frost has the privilege of helping people achieve their philanthropic goals by identifying strategic, creative and tax-advantaged gift solutions.

A Minnesota native, Ms. Frost earned the Bachelor of Science degree in business administration, magna cum laude, from the University of North Dakota. She joined Mayo Clinic in 2002 and has served in a number of positions, including financial representative, patient relations specialist and development associate.

In her role as Assistant Director of Gift Planning, Ms. Frost offers gift expertise in such areas as bequests, beneficiary designations, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, donor advised funds, charitable IRA rollovers and gifting real estate. She strives to understand the unique life story and the values that are important to each person and provides benefactors the highest level of service and dedication in a warm and caring manner.

Ms. Frost is committed to working with benefactors and their professional advisors to ensure they find the charitable arrangements that best meet their wishes and needs.

Jessica (Jess) L. Nelson LeMay, M.S., is a gift planning coordinator in the Department of Development. As a gift planning coordinator, Ms. Nelson LeMay manages the programmatic aspects of The Mayo Legacy and works with grateful benefactors to determine the best fit for their philanthropic giving.

Ms. Nelson LeMay began her career with Mayo Clinic in 2000 and has been with the Department of Development since 2007. She moved into the Office of Gift Planning in June 2017.

Ms. Nelson LeMay earned her Bachelor of Arts in business administration at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota, She completed her Master of Science in project management at Saint Mary's University in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Ms. Nelson LeMay and her husband, Todd, split their time between Rochester and St. Paul with their Vizsla puppy, Piper.

Brandon M. Stenseth, J.D., serves as Gift Planning Administrator in the Department of Development. He supports the Department of Development on gifts of real estate, charitable remainder trusts, charitable gift annuities and complex assets. Mr. Stenseth also leads the Gift Administration team within the Office of Gift Planning that handles administration of the Mayo Clinic trust and gift annuity programs. He began his career at Mayo Clinic in 2015 in the Legal Department, supporting the Department of Development on estate gifts and a variety of legal review matters.

Mr. Stenseth earned a Bachelor of Science in finance at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He earned his J.D. from Marquette University Law School and is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin. Mr. Stenseth is originally from Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Michael (Mike) Gozola has been on staff at Mayo Clinic since 2015. He serves as a legal specialist dedicated to the Department of Development, where he co-manages its estate resolution program and supports the general legal needs of the department, including gift planning and taxation, litigation, gift agreements, compliance, privacy and contracts.

Mike's primary objectives include providing the highest level of customer service to his clients and honoring the wishes of Mayo Clinic's benefactors through careful practice and protection of their wishes outlined in their estate gifts.

Mr. Gozola received his J.D. from the University of St. Thomas School of Law and has been a licensed attorney in the state of Minnesota since 2014. Mike resides in his hometown of Rochester, Minnesota.

Gregory N. Snider, J.D., CFP, is a gift planning officer in the Office of Gift Planning, Department of Development at Mayo Clinic. Mr. Snider has a strong focus on customer service and helping individuals achieve their philanthropic goals, objectives and passions by identifying strategic, creative and tax-advantaged gift solutions.

As a gift planning officer, Mr. Snider leverages his knowledge and experience in guiding benefactors to the gift strategies that best fit their unique situation. These strategies could include estate bequests, charitable gift annuities, charitable trusts, real estate and complex gifts, or simple beneficiary designations.

For more than 10 years Mr. Snider has helped high net worth clients achieve their financial, estate and philanthropic planning goals. Prior to joining Mayo Clinic, he had served as a financial advisor with Morgan Stanley and also as a financial planning analyst with Wells Fargo Private Bank.

Mr. Snider has an undergraduate degree in finance and business administration. He is a graduate of William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota, and is a licensed attorney. In addition, he is a certified financial planner and chartered financial consultant.

Mr. Snider is an active volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America and has been a classroom instructor for Community Education. He also volunteers with other local organizations and is a coach for youth football, basketball and lacrosse.

Eric P. Joranson, J.D., is the senior director of gift planning and legal advisor in the Department of Development at Mayo Clinic. In this role, he advises on tax and legal issues in the areas of advanced philanthropic planning, both domestically and internationally, with the goal of helping benefactors explore unique strategies to achieve their philanthropic goals.

Mr. Joranson has over 15 years of experience in law practice and philanthropic planning. He has extensive technical experience helping benefactors use complex assets to fund their philanthropy, including private stock, real estate, artwork, jewelry, farm equipment, restricted stock, cryptocurrency, international currencies, hedge fund and private equity interests, and other financial instruments. Additionally, Mr. Joranson has experience setting up type I supporting organizations, donor-advised funds, private foundations, fiscal sponsorships, split-interest gifts, crowdfunding platforms, and international grant-making vehicles.

Prior to joining Mayo Clinic in 2020, Mr. Joranson was the senior director of advanced strategies at National Philanthropic Trust, a donor-advised fund provider recognized as an industry leader in complex gift acceptance and international giving. He previously held charitable planning positions at The Saint Paul and Minnesota Foundation, Hamline University and the Boy Scouts of America. As an attorney, Mr. Joranson practiced in the areas of tax-exempt organizations, business transactions, taxation, litigation and nonprofit governance.

Mr. Joranson graduated from the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse with a B.A. in English and philosophy. He earned his juris doctor from Mitchell Hamline School of Law with a focus in taxation and trusts/estates.