I have completed designs for 44 different cachets for First Day Covers or Special Event Covers (example, Obama Inauguration) as of 3/17/2009. I was awarded the American First day Cover Society (AFDCS) 2007 "Rookie of the Year" national award for my first cachet, done for the 41c Polar Lights issue of October 2007. Current professional memberships include American First Day Cover Society, American Philatelic Society (APS), Mailer's Postmark Permit Club (MPP), American Society of Philatelic Pages and Panels (ASPPP), American Commemorative Panel Society (ACPS).

Design, print and market cacheted First Day Covers and Commemorative Panels - specialized items for stamp collectors. Worked in cooperative joint activity with Per-Andre Hoffmann, professional photographer, Manilla, Philippines, in the design, development, printing and sales of a special Commemorative Panel for the International Polar Year US stamp issue, for which Per-Andre's photo of Aurora Australis (southern lights) was used to create the 84 cent US postage stamp (and later the 41 cent US commemorative stamp for the Polar Lights issue of October 2007) that was part of a two-stamp Souvenir Sheet issued bu the US Postal Service in 2007. for further information about Per-Andre, see http://www.pahof.de/. For a copy of the IPY Commemorative Panel or samples of my first day cover designs, please send an email request to greatberr@aol.com - PLEASE use the "Subject" Request for Design Samples. Thank you.

Independent contractor to US department of Education, Pennsylvania Department of Education and other organizations. Completed Peer Reviews of competitive grant applications. Also worked as a private consultant to colleges and universities assisting with the planning, design, writing, and submission of competitive grant applications.

Was Counselor, Director of Financial Aid, Director of Resource Development, Dean of Development, VP of Development. Major successes: (1) Increased student financial aid from $800,000 to over $2.4 million per year (2) Commended by PHEAA (Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency) for running "exemplary model" college financial aid operation (3) Secured over $110 million in local, county, state and Federal grant funding, (4) Was consulted regularly by PA Dept of Education, Bureau of Vocational Education, to assist with design/evaluation of grant application forms and procedures manuals, (5) Wrote a manual for the US Dept of Education "Planning for Program Continuation Beyond the end of Federal Funding" and (6) Served as a Peer Reviewer of grant applications for Pennsylvania Department of Education and US Dept of Education, and as consultant to the Pennsylvania Dept of Health to obtain a $6 million Federal Grant on Lead Abatement, as well as a consultant to the US Dept of Energy.