The Rebuilt Parish Podcast

In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson and Tom Corcoran sit down with Frank Kelly III of Kelly Benefits for a conversation about faith, business, leadership, and evangelization in everyday life. Frank shares how his faith moved from his head to his heart during his college lacrosse years, how the Holy Spirit led him back home to Baltimore and into the family business, and...

In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson and Tom Corcoran sit down with Natalie Marts, a Chick-fil-A owner/operator and parish leader at Church of the Nativity. Natalie shares her story of entrepreneurship, faith, leadership, and stewardship, from buying her first business at 19 years old to leading a thriving Chick-fil-A team in Towson, Maryland. Together, they explore wha...

Young adults are searching for truth, belonging, and something deeper than what the culture is offering. In this episode, Melissa Wilkinson welcomes Rachel Herbeck from Renewal Ministries for a conversation about reaching Gen Z and young adults with the Gospel. Rachel shares what she is seeing in the next generation, why many young people are becoming more open to the Church, and how parishes can...

What happens when a parish team comes to the Rebuilt Conference, takes time to dream together, and then chooses to act on what God is stirring? In this episode, Melissa Wilkinson talks with Chris Kozlowski from St. Isidore Parish in Michigan about how his parish and family of parishes came to the Rebuilt Conference in 2025, invited Tom Corcoran and David Makela to lead a strategic offsite, and eve...

What happens when parish leaders step away from the daily pressures of ministry and gather together with other pastors, staff, and volunteers who understand the mission and the challenges of parish life? In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson sits down with Rebuilt’s own Colleen Droney to talk all things Rebuilt Conference 2027. Colleen shares behind-the-scenes insights f...

What if one Gospel encounter could reshape the way your parish thinks about discipleship, generosity, and eternal life? In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson sits down with Tom Corcoran to talk about his upcoming book, Jesus, the Rich Young Man and the Meaning of Life. Tom shares the story behind the book, why this particular passage has stayed with him for years, and ho...

What does real renewal in the Church actually require right now? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Tim Glemkowski of Amazing Parish alongside Tom Corcoran for a conversation rooted in both experience and conviction. Tim shares the heart behind his recent white paper Rebuild My Church: A Call for Renewal and reflects on what he’s seeing across parishes today. Together, they explore why renewa...

What does it look like when a parish moves from vision to action? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Fr. Gregory Reichlen to unpack the story behind St. John the Apostle’s recent capital campaign. Just days after their commitment weekend, Fr. Greg shares how years of intentional culture change, rooted in mission and stewardship, led to a moment of extraordinary provision. What makes this conv...

What happens when someone truly discovers who they are in Christ? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Johnnette Williams of Women of Grace for a conversation filled with joy, honesty, and deep spiritual wisdom. Alongside Tom Corcoran, they reflect on Johnnette’s powerful story of conversion, the heart behind her ministry, and what she’s learned from walking with thousands of women over the yea...

What if a capital campaign was not just about raising money but raising faith? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Daniel Miller, Director of Next Gen at Church of the Nativity, to reflect on the heart behind the Wonder Campaign. This is an 18 million dollar effort rooted not just in facilities, but in forming the next generation of disciples. Daniel shares how the campaign began, the spiritua...

What does parish renewal really look like when you’re living it day by day? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Fr. James Mallon, founder of Divine Renovation, alongside Tom Corcoran. Together, they reflect on their shared history, the early days of parish renewal, and the sense of being “kindred spirits” in a mission to help the Church rediscover evangelization. But this conversation goes dee...

What does real parish transformation actually look like and how does it begin? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Maria Pulitano, Head of Parish Transformation at Rebuilt, to unpack what happens when a parish becomes truly mission-focused. Drawing from her experience walking alongside pastors and teams across the country, Maria shares how coaching helps parishes move from maintenance into mom...

What does it look like when a parish begins to move from maintenance to momentum? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Fr. Paul MacNeil of St. Alexander Parish in Fonthill, Ontario, to reflect on what happened when he stepped into a parish facing financial strain, low attendance, and limited engagement. Rather than settling into maintenance mode, Fr. Paul leaned into coaching and began making i...

What actually changes when a parish moves from trying different ideas… to truly aligning everything around mission? In this episode, Melissa sits down with Gail Rayos, who has experienced parish renewal from both sides. After years serving as a pastoral associate at St. Mary Magdalen in Florida, Gail walked through Rebuilt coaching with her parish. Now, she’s helping other parishes do the same as...

What does parish renewal actually look like when it moves from ideas into real parish life? In this special replay from the 2025 Rebuilt Conference, Melissa Wilkinson sits down with a panel of parish leaders who have spent years putting the Rebuilt model into practice. Together, they share honest stories from the field, including what their parishes were facing before coaching, the hesitations and...

What happens when prayer stops being something we “fit in,” and becomes the place we start? In this conversation, Fr. John Riccardo (Acts XXIX) joins Melissa Wilkinson and Tom Corcoran to talk about the renewal God wants to do in parishes, leaders, and teams, beginning with surrender and a restored dependence on the Holy Spirit. Fr. John shares his unexpected call to priesthood, the “call within a...

Every parish wants to reach more people, but where do you begin? In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson sits down with Fr. John Sullivan, pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish in Chatham, Massachusetts, to talk about how defining a clear target audience can transform the way a parish approaches ministry. You may have heard of “Timonium Tim,” the persona developed at Church of th...

What does it look like when a diocese truly walks alongside parishes in renewal? In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson talks with Edward Herrera and Julie St. Croix from the Institute for Evangelization at the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Together, they share how their Emmaus Teams accompany pastors and parish leaders through prayer, trust, leadership development, staff cul...

How does a parish actually grow wider? In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson welcomes back Ed Bradley to take a deep dive into the Grow Wider Anchor - what it means, where parishes often get stuck, and how to start making measurable progress. If your parish wants to bring people back to church, reach young families, and build a culture of invitation, this conversation wi...

What happens when three parishes merge, cultures blend, Mass schedules shift, and emotions run high? On this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson sits down with Fr. Andres Mendoza, pastor of Saint Benedict of Núrcia in Wallingford, Connecticut. With multiple worship sites, a parish school, and a richly diverse community. Fr. Mendoza has navigated complex transitions with one cl...

When a message series really takes hold, it does more than shape a homily. It begins to shape hearts, conversations, and culture. In this episode, Father Benoît St-Onge shares a simple but powerful conviction: you have to step inside the message series yourself. When leaders allow the Word of God to first speak into their own lives, it naturally finds its way into the life of the parish. Father Be...

In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson is joined by Colleen Droney, a longtime leader at Church of the Nativity and a key member of the Rebuilt Parish team, for a practical and deeply encouraging conversation about making prayer the center of parish and staff culture. Colleen shares how prayer has shaped her leadership across both parish and ministry settings, why prayer...

In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Tom Corcoran returns to the studio with Melissa Wilkinson to reflect on how God has been opening unexpected doors through Rebuilt Parish. Their conversation centers on Rebuilt’s growing partnership with YouVersion, the global reach of the Bible App, and what it looks like to move forward in faith while trusting God with the results. Tom shares a leade...

In this episode of the Rebuilt Parish Podcast, Melissa Wilkinson sits down with Father Joel Wilson, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Maple Shade, New Jersey. After nearly five years in Rebuilt coaching, Father Joel shares the honest story of leading a parish through significant financial debt, the painful decision to close a longtime parish school, and the renewal that followed. Together, t...

Ron Huntley from Huntley Leadership returns to the Rebuilt Parish podcast to share the heart behind his new book, The Road to Renewal. Ron and Melissa talk about why renewal stories matter right now, why the problems facing the Church are often the same across the world, and what it takes to build leadership teams that actually move a parish forward. You will hear practical frameworks, honest behi...