St. Columba has partnered with Catholic Leadership Institute to become a “Next Generation Parish” during a 4-year program beginning this Advent. This initiative will be led by Mrs. Lucille Smith, the Catholic Leadership Institute’s Leadership Consultant assigned to our parish, of the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI), an organization based in Philadelphia, PA of former business executives all of whom are active Catholics. The Team used a systematic analysis presented by the CLI. This method has been adopted and used successfully by hundreds of parishes across the USA to develop their priority plans. Together, our parish family will unite in faith to forge a renewed path, bringing hope and Christ’s love into our community. We want to leverage the best of what we have to offer, while we develop a plan for St. Columba that will transform our future, and embrace Christ’s vision for missionary discipleship so our parish can thrive and be a place for others to grow together in faith. This is our personal invitation for each of you to become involved with developing the growth and vibrancy that you envision for our parish. Our parish point of contact for the Next Generation Parish Grant is Catherine Chayko.
Phase One: The Disciple Maker Survey ✅
The first step is completed, the exciting opportunity for our parishioners to assess our greatest opportunities and strengths. The Disciple Maker Index survey is an important tool that will help us do just that. Thanks to all who completed this survey!! The results of this survey can be seen at the bottom of this page.
Phase Two: The Envisioning Committee ✅
Following this survey, a team was assembled, called The Envisioning Team, composed of:
- Father Mowery
- Deacon Tom Conlin
- Zachary Haney-Support Representative from the Diocese of Harrisburg (Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries for the Diocese)
- Fr. Andrew St. Hilaire (and representatives from Christ the King)
- Cathy Chayko (parish point of contact for the Next Generation Parish Grant)
- Kevin Flynn
- Diane Hale
- Dana Hock
- Kim Honabach
- Roxann Humphrey
- Erin Marshman
- Bill Padner
- Keeyan Zimmerman
The second step is also completed, in which we have:
● Assessed our greatest opportunities and strengths
● Developed a plan to move into the future
● Cultivated a deeper missionary spirit within the community
Phase Three: Implementation
We are currently in this stage. We have two groups, the Unification Group led by Kim Honabach, and the Discipleship Group led by Jim Gregory. Thejr goals are described in the above document. Please contact either of them, or Cathy Chayko, if you would like to become involved.
Contacts:
Here are the summaries of the results of the Disciple Maker Index Survey taken in our parish, December, 2023.