Advancing Our Church

Today’s Podcast

The Catholic Charities’ response to COVID-19 lands them on the frontlines standing shoulder to shoulder with volunteers and those who are most in need. Join Changing Our World‘s Jim Friend for an interview with Sr. Donna Markham OP, Ph.D., President, and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, Deacon Tom Roberts, President, and CEO of Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada and Michael Grace, President, and CEO of Catholic Charities of Forth Worth, Texas.

In the spirit of Holy Week, this episode focuses on charity and the impact of the COVID-19 Crisis on the most vulnerable in our society. These are unsung heroes who selflessly devote their time to feeding families, providing affordable housing, working with immigrant families and much more. Learn how many senior citizens, those who are unemployed, and many others are finding themselves needing the charitable assistance of Catholic Charities for the first time. Sr. Donna discusses some of the creative ways that she is witnessing a missionary spirit among her agencies and the response of the corporate industry. We also hear how two prominent businessmen left the corporate world and took a role to lead their local Catholic Charities agency. Finally, learn more about how you can get involved and help.

FORGING FORWARD

Don’t miss Changing Our World: The Podcast this spring for continuing coverage of the webinar series FORGING FORWARD, a virtual philanthropic conference designed to bring you nonprofit experts from around the country who are leading through the COVID-19 crisis.

Please sign up for the live FORGING FORWARD virtual conference.

Today’s Podcast

How do you stay connected with college students when everyone is learning at home for the semester? What are the creative ways in which colleges can remain connected to students? On Today’s show, Changing Our World‘s Jim Friend meets with members of the senior team at the St. Thomas More Chapel at Yale University who are doing just that. Jim is joined by Fr. Ryan Lerner, Chaplain, Joseph Connolly, Executive Director, Sr. Jenn Schaaf, OP, Assistant Chaplain, and Robin J. McShane, Director of Communications.

The St. Thomas More Chapel and Center

Today, Saint Thomas More Chapel (renovated in 2008) and Thomas E. Golden, Jr. Center (built-in 2006) are award-winning, magnificent spaces that exemplify our ministry’s commitment to excellence. More than just a beautiful building, The Thomas E. Golden, Jr. Center is a statement that Catholic life has come of age on Yale’s campus. The center, designed by world-renowned architect and former Dean of Yale School of Architecture, Cesar Pelli of Pelli Clarke Pelli, is located across from the Pierson gateway.

Today, of the 65% of the new students who returned their religious information cards back to the Yale Chaplain’s Office, an average of 29% self-identified as being Catholic, making Catholicism the single largest religious denomination on Yale’s campus.

FORGING FORWARD

Don’t miss Changing Our World: The Podcast this spring for continuing coverage of the webinar series FORGING FORWARD, a virtual philanthropic conference designed to bring you nonprofit experts from around the country who are leading through the COVID-19 crisis.

Please sign up for the live FORGING FORWARD virtual conference.

Today’s Episode

What can parishioners do in the face of such uncertainty? Changing Our World‘s Jim Friend talks with Dave Baranowski, Director of Stewardship Education for the Archdiocese of St. Louis about ways that parishioners can stay in touch with each other through creative means. Some of these include prayer chains, drive-in Rosary services, online Masses and much more. Join us for this informative conversation.

About Dave Baranowski

David Baranowski is a frequent speaker at the International Catholic Stewardship Conference. Dave experienced a unique conversion experience which sparked his change in career back in 2007 when Baranowski attended a retreat where the director encouraged participants to listen to God’s guidance — something he said he hadn’t earnestly done before. The experience convinced him to deepen his faith and focus on Christ. For more of Dave Baranowski, please listen to Episode 22: Supercharging Parish Stewardship.

On Today’s Show:

With public Masses canceled this past weekend, how are we engaging parishioners during the COVID-19 crisis? Many parishes and dioceses around the country are engaging in creative means to stay close to their parishioners despite social distancing. On today’s show, Jim Friend hosts a roundtable of Changing Our World‘s expert consultants on the topic of communications. Our panel includes:

Thomas Farrell, Senior Managing Director

Mary Beth Martin, Esq., Senior Managing Director

Shawn Trahan, Senior Managing Director

Mike Hutchenson, Managing Director

This will be the first in our series of podcasts that we will bring you on the topic of best practices during the COVID-19 crisis. Also, watch the Changing Our World: The Podcast for a continuing weekly webinar series called FORGING FORWARD. A new, weekly series designed to bring you experts from around the country who are managing through this crisis.

Our Panelists:

Shawn Trahan: Shawn has more than 20 years of experience working within the nonprofit sector, including planning/directing major capital campaigns, fundraising feasibility studies, development audits/assessments, volunteer coaching, and board development and serving as interim development director. 

Thomas Farrell: Since 1985 Tom has directed or given oversight to approximately 1,000 individual parish fundraising initiatives and to three dozen major diocesan development programs. These endeavors have taken place in a combined 100 archdioceses and dioceses and across 35 different states. Tom has also provided counsel on several Catholic education campaigns as well as appeals for other religious organizations.

Mary Beth Martin: Mary Beth brings more than twenty-five years’ experience helping nonprofit organizations design and build strategic fundraising plans, grow major gifts programs, develop fundraising capacity, and execute capital campaigns and other funding initiatives.

Michael Hutchinson: Michael has worked in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors for more than 15 years.  Throughout his career, Michael has supported organizations in realizing their vision and has proven himself as a leader skilled in ...

Today’s Show:

How do we engage young people in conversations about their faith and the Church? Christina Lamas is the Executive Director of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry (NFCYM). On today’s show, Christina shares a personal story about how she engages young people in this important conversation. Christina also shares about the very successful National Catholic Youth Conference hosted by NFCYM in November 2019, which included over 20,000 attendees and the support she receives from her board and Archbishop Nelson Perez, the Episcopal Moderator. Learn more about how Youth Ministry is growing nationwide on today’s show.

About Christina Lamas:

Christina Lamas made her way into the field of Youth Ministry after 10 years of volunteering at her home parish. She went on to serve as Associate Director and Division Coordinator of Youth Ministry in the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Lamas has presented to national and international audiences. Currently, she is serving as Executive Director of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry and brings with her more than 20 years of experience in catechesis and youth ministry.

Special Announcements:

Read Five Ways to Engage Young Adults in the Catholic Church by Jim Friend, Managing Director at Changing Our World. There has never been a more critical time to engage and recapture the hearts of our young people in the community of the Catholic Church.

Listen to this week’s CW Podcast: Providing Perspective to the Economic and Philanthropic Impact of COVID-19. Changing Our World’s Gavan Mooney, President, and Chief Client Officer, and Dr. Susan Raymond, Ph.D., Senior Advisor, discuss current and historical context on the market, the implications for your Q1 philanthropic results and key takeaways for nonprofits seeking to be proactive during this crisis. #choronavirus

Today’s Podcast:

Moving from Crisis to Co-Responsibility has been at the heart of the mission of the Leadership Roundtable for the past 15 years. On today’s show, Changing Our World‘s, Jim Friend speaks with Kerry Robinson. Kerry is the Founding Executive Director and the Global Ambassador for the Leadership Roundtable.

Kerry and Jim speak about the recent Summit held by the Leadership Roundtable which addressed topics such as governance, transparency, accountability and increasing the involvement of young adults in the Church. Kerry shares some of the key takeaways from the Summit and the important next steps.

About Kerry Robinson:

Kerry Alys Robinson is the founding executive director and global ambassador of Leadership Roundtable, dedicated to promoting excellence and best practices in the management, finances and human resource development of the Catholic Church by harnessing the managerial expertise and financial acumen of senior-level lay executives. 

Kerry is a trustee of the

Raskob Foundation for Catholic Activities and a member of FADICA (Foundations

and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities).

Kerry has served as a trustee

on the national boards of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps; Education for Parish

Service Foundation; the Gregorian University Foundation; the National Catholic

AIDS Network; the Institute for Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry at Boston

College; the Center of Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA); the Center

for the Study of Church Management at Villanova University; Busted Halo: Paulist

Young Adult Ministries; America Media; FADICA (Foundations and Donors

Interested in Catholic Activities); and the National Pastoral Life Center. From

1995 to 2010 she served on the national committee for the U.S. Catholic

Conference of Bishops’ Catholic Campaign for Human Development. She has served

on the advisory boards of Voices of Faith, a global platform in the heart of

the Vatican to celebrate the contribution of women to the Church and world; the

Initiative of Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University;

Catholic Women Preach, an online resource for ordained, religious and lay

leaders responsible for excellence in preaching; and the Get in Touch

Foundation, an international breast health advocacy organization. In addition

to the Raskob Foundation for Catholic Activities, Kerry currently serves on the

boards of Saint Thomas More Catholic Chapel and Center at Yale University, the

Hartford Bishops Foundation, Albertus Magnus College, the International

Business Leadership Advisory Council (an initiative of the Secretariat for the

Economy in Rome), the International Catholic Migration Commission and the

International Festival of Arts and Ideas.

She is the prize winning author

of Imagining

Abundance: Fundraising, Philanthropy and a Spiritual Call to Service

and is the founding editor of The Catholic Funding Guide: A Directory of

Resources for Catholic Activities first published by FADICA in 1998 and

now in its 8th edition. She has been an advisor to grantmaking

foundations,

Today’s Podcast:

How should a pastor go about asking his parishioners for a gift? What will help a pastor feel comfortable? How should a pastor frame that conversation? On today’s show, Michael Hutchinson, Managing Director for Changing Our World joins Jim Friend, as they talk about “Making the Ask” for a parish campaign.

At some point during their vocation, every pastor will be charged with asking for money. Sometimes these conversations are around a diocesan appeal, a parish campaign or an increased offertory program. Asking for money presents parishioners another opportunity to live out their faith. We hope you enjoy this conversation.

About Michael Hutchinson:

Michael has worked in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors for more than 15 years.  Throughout his career, Michael has supported organizations in realizing their vision and has proven himself as a leader skilled in: aligning operations and human capital talent and investments to maximize impact; syncing strategies with market trends to realize growth; and, generating revenue and resources by developing relationships, programs and campaigns.

During his tenure at Changing Our World, Michael has provided counsel to clients including: CARE; amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research; The Salvation Army; Covenant House; and, numerous secondary and higher education institutions and Catholic Archdiocesan and Diocesan campaigns. For more information about Michael, please visit Changing Our World’s website.

Today’s Show

How does someone go from being non-Catholic to leading one of the largest Catholic Youth Ministry efforts in the United States and around the world? Today, Changing Our World’s Jim Friend interviews the CEO of Life Teen International, Mr. Randy Raus.

Randy has been with Life Teen International for over 23 years, serving and leading this important ministry which is centered on the experience of liturgy. He began his ministry with a conversion experience which he shares with us on today’s show. Randy also shares his thoughts on how to engage young people in the life of the Church today. He also explains how Life Teen impacts teens all over the world.

What They Do

Through powerful Eucharistic encounters and engaging catechesis, their Edge (middle school) and Life Teen (high school) teens are immersed in a dynamically Catholic parish culture. With the parish as their true home, teens are then further strengthened by Summer Camps, Events, Resources, and Digital (web and social media) evangelization. Their goal is not only to equip parishes worldwide with timely, high-quality resources to train Catechists and “reach” today’s teens but also to create an environment where Catholic teenagers feel supported and engaged the other 167 hours a week, outside of Sunday Mass.

Today’s Show

Changing Our World‘s Jim Friend and Tom Farrell visit the Diocese of San Jose and speak with Joe Naylor, Chief Development Officer. Joe talks about the first couple of years in his new role in the diocese including some of the new initiatives he has introduced. Some examples include a Fundraising Bootcamp for pastors and a Diocesan Legacy Society.

Joe previously has served as Vice President for Advancement and Communications for two different Provinces of the Society of Jesus. He also formerly served as Executive Director for the Providence St. Joseph Medical Center Foundation and Senior Director of Gift Planning for the Los Angeles Orthopedic Hospital Foundation. Joe brings great passion, expertise, and creativity to his work in the diocese.

The Diocese of San Jose, The Catholic Church in Santa Clara County

The Diocese of San Jose makes its home in a fertile valley surrounded by rolling hills and pine-covered mountains. Known from the 19th century as “the Valley of the Heart’s Delight, ” it has a history and legacy of abundance—orchards heavy with sweet fruit—apricots, prunes, cherries, and pears. Today, Santa Clara County identifies as Silicon Valley and serves as a global center for technology, innovation, and social media. Over the years, orchards have given way to industrial parks and crops of “dot-coms” have replaced the fruit. Santa Clara is Northern California’s most populous county with economic, cultural opportunities.

The diocese is comprised of 600,000 Catholics. This encompasses 54 parishes and missions, 26 elementary schools and 6 high schools, and 3 college and university campus ministries. The diocese serves the people of the valley in collaboration with scores of other organizations carrying out the same mission.

On Today’s Show

Changing Our World‘s Jim Friend visits the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco to talk with Rod Linhares, Director of Development and Florian Romero, Director of Stewardship.

Rod oversees fundraising for the Archdiocese where he has been a resident his whole life. Rod’s personal mission is to help everyone to understand the magnitude of services and ministries that are offered throughout the Archdiocese. Rod discusses the Annual Appeal, Planned Giving, the Archbishop’s Circle and a survey the Archdiocese just conducted to understand what parishioners love about their home parish. Rod brings great passion and expertise to his role.

Florian is a seasoned professional in fundraising but for many years now she has been focused on the spirituality of Stewardship. Florian works closely with parishes to help them understand Stewardship as a way of life and a culture change for parishes. Florian describes how Archbishop Cordileon is personally committed to the model of Stewardship and how this kind of transformation can take many years to solidify and bear fruit. Florian brings a spirit of generosity and God’s love to the parishes she serves.

Archbishop of San Francisco:Salvatore J. Cordileone

On March 23, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Bishop Cordileone as the fourth Bishop of Oakland. His Mass of Installation was celebrated on May 5, 2009, at the Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland. Three years later, on July 27, 2012, he was appointed the Archbishop of San Francisco and was installed on October 4, 2012, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption.

As the new Metropolitan Archbishop of the Province of San Francisco, Archbishop Cordileone received the pallium from Pope Francis in Rome on June 29, 2013. 

Archbishop Cordileone serves as Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth and is also a member of the Committee for Canonical Affairs and Church Governance. He was formerly chairman of the USCCB Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage and a member of the Committee on Religious Liberty.  The Archbishop serves on a number of boards, including the Governing Board of the International Theological Institute, to which he was appointed Vice-Grand Chancellor in October 2019.

Archdiocese of San Francisco*

* Established: July 29, 1853* Patrons: St Francis of Assisi (Feast Day: October 4) St. Patrick (Feast Day: March 17)* Present Territory: San Francisco, Marin, and San Mateo Counties* General Population: 1,912,500* Catholic Population: 498,812* Diocesan Priests: 226 (174 incardinated; 52 from other dioceses)* Permanent Deacons: 100 (17 living outside the Archdiocese)* Men Religious: 21* Women Religious: 527* Religious Order Priests: 149* Parishes: 88* Missions: 6* Chapels: 4* Byzantine: 1* National Shrine: 1* Cemeteries/Mausoleums: 8* Retreat Houses: 3* Preschools: 54 serving 2,391 students* Elementary Schools: 47 diocesan and parish serving 13,031 students* 7 private serving 2,046 students* High Schools (Diocesan): 4 serving 3,