Session 68- Cancelled
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Session 66
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Superior
How to Cultivate the Gifts That Keep on Giving: Managing Sustaining Gifts

Speaker: Kimberly Bruining
Manager of Development and Stewardship
Diocese of Joliet, Illinois

Moderator: Deacon Greg Vogt
Parish Support Manager
Archdiocese of Chicago, Illinois

In this session, you will learn more about recurring giving and giving electronically: what they are, how to educate donors and how to implement these into direct mail and online giving platforms to cultivate donors to make this commitment. You will learn how both can help your diocese to secure future gifts, increase a donor’s level of giving, and help your fulfillment rate increase. Lastly, we will touch on how to thank your recurring givers.

Ms. Kimberly Bruining

Kimberly Bruining joined the Diocese of Joliet in 2014 and serves as manager of development and stewardship. She directs the day-to-day efforts of the annual appeal and various other initiatives which secure revenue to support the mission and ministries of the diocese.

After growing up in the suburbs of Chicago and attending an all-girl’s Catholic high school, Ms. Bruining graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a bachelor’s degree in advertising and marketing. She has been married to her husband, Bob, for 23 years. They reside in Lockport, Illinois with their three children and are members of Saint Dennis Parish. Their children are alumni of Saint Dennis Catholic School.

Ms. Bruining’s strong roots in her Catholic faith and over two decades of experience in advertising, marketing, design and copywriting have made her transition into the development sector seamless. As a fundraiser, she has been involved in school campaigns, parish capital campaigns and diocesan appeals, raising over $27 million for Catholic causes.

Session 65
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Ontario
Cómo Conducir una Exitosa Campaña Capital/Conducting a Successful Parish Capital Campaign

Speaker: Jose Piñones
Director de Donaciones
Arquidiócesis de Chicago, Illinois

Moderator: Hiram Diaz Belardo
Director de Desarrollo
Arquidiócesis de San Juan, Puerto Rico

¿Su parroquia necesita recaudar fondos para un proyecto capital pero no tiene los medios o recursos para contratar una empresa de consultoría de recaudación de fondos? Venga a aprender algunos pasos prácticos que puede tomar para ayudar a su parroquia a recaudar fondos para una calefacción, techo o bancas nuevas. Hemos escuchado que todas nuestras parroquias son diferentes. Es verdad. Este enfoque flexible se puede personalizar a cualquier parroquia de cualquier tamaño y necesidad, grande o pequeña.

Does your parish need to raise funds for a capital project but you don’t have the means or resources to hire a fundraising consulting firm? Come learn some practical steps you can take to help your parish raise funds for a boiler, roof, or new pews. We have heard that all our parishes are different. That’s true. This flexible approach can be customized to any size parish and any size need, large or small.

Mr. Jose Piñones

Originally from Dallas, Texas, Jose Piñones graduated with a degree in marketing from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas. For five years he served as the development director for St. Mary’s and St. John Paul the Great Campus Ministries in the Diocese of Tyler. He moved to Chicago in 2014 to embark on the historic To Teach Who Christ Is Campaign, raising $432 million. During that time, he conducted over 950 personal solicitations in English and Spanish. He continues to be an advocate for the Hispanic Catholic community in the Archdiocese of Chicago. Mr. Piñones was named director of giving for the Archdiocese of Chicago in May 2019. In this capacity, he leads a team of major gift officers and a team of parish support managers while managing his own portfolio.

Mr. Piñones dedicates his free time volunteering for nonprofits. He has raised money for The Big Shoulders Fund and Latinos Progresando. In his personal time, he enjoys spending time with friends and keeping up with current world events. He is an avid Dallas Cowboys fan and loves visiting Puerto Rico.

Sr. José Piñones

Originario de Dallas, Texas, el Sr. Piñones se graduó con un título en mercadotecnia de la Universidad Estatal Stephen F. Austin en Nacogdoches, Texas. Sirvió durante cinco años como director de desarrollo en los ministerios de los recintos universitarios de St. Mary y St. John Paul the Great en la Diócesis de Tyler. Se mudó a Chicago en el 2014 para embarcarse en la histórica campaña Enseñar Quién es Cristo, recaudando $432 millones. Durante ese tiempo, realizó más de 950 solicitudes personales en inglés y español. Él es un abogado constante de la comunidad católica hispana en la Arquidiócesis de Chicago. El Sr. Piñones fue nombrado director of donaciones para la Arquidiócesis de Chicago en mayo de 2019. En esta responsabilidad, él dirige un equipo de oficiales de donaciones importantes y un equipo de administradores de apoyo parroquial mientras administra su propio catálogo.

El Sr. Piñones dedica su tiempo libre como voluntario para organizaciones sin fines de lucro. Ha recaudado dinero para The Big Shoulders Fund y Latinos Progresando. En su tiempo personal, disfruta pasar tiempo con amigos y mantenerse al día con los eventos mundiales actuales. Es un ávido fanático de los Dallas Cowboys y le encanta visitar Puerto Rico.

Session 64
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Sheraton Ballroom III
Want to Know How to Convert First-Time Givers into Generous Givers?

Speaker: Steve McSwain
Senior Generosity Strategist
Generis, Inc.
Louisville, Kentucky

Moderator: Deacon Bob Beehner
Permanent Deacon
Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin

The most frequently missed moment of pastoral care in the life of a parishioner is that moment when a person makes a first-time financial gift to your church. When this spiritual moment occurs in the life of a parishioner, besides the bookkeeper, who knows when this happens? What process is in place in your parish, not simply to recognize the gift, but to help this parishioner become a life-long, committed parishioner for whom generosity has become a lifestyle? Learn how to help first-time givers become generous donors.

Mr. Steve McSwain

Steve McSwain has been serving Catholic and other Christian communities for nearly a half century. He is a leadership coach and a generosity strategist who works almost exclusively with Catholic parishes across America. He has conducted 200 generosity initiatives for annual giving and capital campaigns in parishes of all sizes. The congregations and parish schools he has served have raised in excess of a half billion dollars for Christian causes. Mr. McSwain is a senior generosity strategist at Generis, a fundraising company with generosity strategists and professional offi ces in more than a dozen states. As one of the largest fundraising fi rms in America, Generis has provided strategic fundraising counsel and leadership development to more than 15,000 congregations in its 30 years of ministry. The client churches Generis has served have collectively raised more than $17 billion. In addition to his service to local congregations, he is the author of three books and a frequent keynoter at Christian conferences across the country. He and his wife, Pam, make their home in Louisville, Kentucky and have four children and five grandchildren.

Session 63
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Chicago Ballroom VIII
Monkey Brains and Wedding Speeches: Why Small is Beautiful in Communications

Speaker: Ryan Kreager
Software Architect
J.S. Paluch Company
Franklin Park, Illinois

Moderator: Krysten McGee
Associate Director
Diocese of Joliet, Illinois

Have you ever heard of Dunbar’s Number? It’s the reason why small is beautiful in communications, and why social media often fails to create lasting community growth for parishes. This presentation will discuss how our brains are wired for small group communications, how best to leverage technology to match our God-given design, and why social media can be used judiciously to augment more effective methods.

Mr. Ryan Kreager

Ryan Kreager is a software architect at the J.S. Paluch Company. Following the 2017 acquisition by J.S. Paluch of OneParish, the parish app and cloud services company he co-founded, Mr. Kreager has continued to build and grow the OneParish platform, a suite of tools for parish life and health: The OneParish App, Custom Websites, Parish Relationship Management (PRM), Silbo – Parish Messaging, and eBulletins. He has worn several hats in his career – psychologist, programmer, salesperson, project manager, and founder.

Mr. Kreager earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, and a master’s degree in cognitive psychology & neuroscience from the University of Notre Dame.

Session 62
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Chicago Ballroom IX
Stewardship of Self: How We Can Become Better Stewards of Our Personal Lives

Speaker: Andrea Pannell
Episcopal Moderator of Development and Planning
Diocese of Columbus, Ohio

Moderator: Jennifer Clark
Director of Parish Life & Faith Formation
St. Hedwig Catholic Church
Los Alamitos, California

Stewardship of self acknowledges our inherent sense of Sabbath and recognizes self-love and self-development as components, but not its source and summit. It observes the need for gratitude and humility to lead Christian stewards into times of prayer, recreation, and rest. Jesus withdrew many times, not because he felt he deserved it; Jesus withdrew because of his love and desire to please His Father. As servant leaders, we must become good stewards of self to better serve our communities and lead our staff, committees, and volunteers.

Ms: Andrea Pannell

Andrea Pannell has worked in the field of development for more than 19 years and currently is the episcopal moderator for development and planning at the Diocese of Columbus and serves as a member of Bishop Robert J. Brennan’s Council. She is a speaker, retreat leader, and writer. Ms. Pannell has been with the Diocese of Columbus for more than 10 years. She oversees the annual appeal, stewardship education and development, parish feasibility studies and capital campaigns, and the diocesan census.

Ms. Pannell is also the chair of the Bishop’s Annual Golf Classic, and a board member of Black Catholic Ministries of Columbus, the Diocesan Hope Task Force and the diocesan-hosted Day of Self Care. She is a member of St. Dominic Church where she participates in the Bakhita Dance Ministry and Gospel Choir. She is a Dominican Sister of Peace Associate, leads the Associates Spirituality Commission and chairs the Martin de Porres Center planning board.