Moving Beyond a Graduate School

Cathy Loerzel · Vice President of Advancement

A Momentous Year

My co-workers have pointed out that one of my catch phrases is “After such-and-such is completed, we should take a week off.” I do not think my catch phrase is a result of me or my team being easily fatigued, but rather due to the momentous nature of 2011. In the spring, we orchestrated the launch of The Allender Center and began developing its first offering, an Advanced Counseling Certificate for professional therapists. On top of that, I started the personal adventure of marriage. It was a spring I will never forget.

Partnerships

The work of the Advancement Team included much more than The Allender Center this year. We saw our current Partner’s commitment to our mission strengthened by our development efforts. New partnerships were created through our work with the Board of Trustees, the Seattle Advisory Council, and our Alumni, as well as Allender Conferences. By June 30th we exceeded our fundraising goal and entered fiscal Year 2012 energized and with a renewed commitment to our work.

Inhabit Conference

The 2011 year also marked the beginning of our efforts to bring transformational training to pastors, church planters, and innovators. In partnership with Parish Collective, we hosted the Inhabit Conference, a premiere gathering of church practitioners for the purpose of practicing the way of Jesus in one’s particular location. With over 350 people in attendance, the Inhabit Conference was our largest in-house conference to date. We look forward to hosting Inhabit again in 2012 and expect more attendees who are looking for ways to intersect church and neighborhoods.

New Certificate Program

Out of this partnership, we’ve begun developing a new certificate offering – Leadership in the New Parish: Church Innovation and Revitalization. This unique offering will equip church leaders to birth faith communities that embody love of God and love of neighbor through commitment to their geographic location/neighborhood.

Murdock Grant

To support the development of our Certificate Programs we submitted a grant request to the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust. While we did not receive the full amount requested, we were generously granted $300,000. This seed money, coupled with donations and tuition will allow us to offer much needed training to non-degree seeking people.

Cathy Loerzel

Director of Development