A letter from the President

Dear CBN-MC Community,

It is my pleasure to be sharing our third quarterly newsletter of 2021. The summer is behind us and as we make progress toward more normal operations and activities, the new school year has begun. Despite all the challenges and uncertainties of the past 18+ months, the CBN-MC remains thankful and grateful to those throughout our community who are helping us fulfill our mission of supporting Catholic education.

As we all know, the CBN-MC is an organization of people who seek to live out the values of our faith in the marketplace. It is both a premier networking organization and a mission-based not-for-profit. Our goal is to give back to our community by funding need-and merit-based scholarships as well as direct grants to over 30 schools serving the Archdiocese of Washington. 

We have also worked hard to maintain our schedule of events and were pleased to host a virtual roundtable discussion in August with several school principals, including Mary Penny (St. Elizabeth’s), Stephen Lamont (St. Martin’s ), and Ted Ewanciw (St. Bernadette’s) where we learned how our catholic school leaders were preparing to return in the fall and how they stayed open through much of the pandemic. More recently, we were able to gather in-person to hear from Bill Bowman and Peter Pin of Arete Consulting on a virtue-based approach to transforming corporate culture and improving financial performance. It was so nice to be back together and enjoy the friendship, fellowship, and camaraderie that are hallmarks of our activities.

In the coming months, we will host two special events where we will recognizing extraordinary volunteers, business and community leaders and celebrating the pillars of catholic education.

22^nd Annual Youth Coaches Hall of Fame-- Friday, October 15^th

2021 CBN-MC Annual Gala-- Friday, November 12^th

Thanks to those who have joined and/or renewed their membership in the CBN-MC for 2021. For everyone else, I continue to ask you to visit our website www.cbnmc.com and consider renewing or joining. It’s a small but impactful investment. Together, we can make a difference. If you become a member today you will not have to pay again until January, 2023.

Finally, as we work to meet the challenges of our time, I ask everyone to remember the importance of values such as Do the Right Thing. It is a simple concept, but despite its simplicity, when done, it is powerful.  It is not always easy, but try and remember that what unites us is stronger that what divides us.

Let us work each and every day to keep the faith by helping ourselves, each other and our families.  Stay safe and healthy.

God Bless,

Geoff J. Gonella

President, CBN-MC

We are so exciting to honor our 2021 winners at the Annual Gala on November12th- reserve your table today.

Business Person of the Year

Kevin Virostek, Ernst & Young

Community Leader of the Year

Courtney Clark Pastrick, A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation

Paul Zurkowski Founder’s Award

Peter Hodgson, CohnReznick

Sponsor Spotlight

A family-owned and operated company, the John C. Grimberg Co. has served the Mid-Atlantic region providing complete general and mechanical contractor services to federal, state, and private offices since its founding in 1951.

Please visit our website for more information www.grimberg.com

Palm Facility Services provides support services for Commercial Office Buildings, Multifamily Housing and Schools. Our focus is to support the mission of our clients… Net Operating Income performance improvement, Asset Value Enhancement, Occupant Health and Safety. Our services range from janitorial to engineering and entire facility management. We are one of the few Green Seal Certified companies in the United States. Please visit our website for more information  www.PalmFS.com

MEET THE BOARD

ANA CHAPA

I am passionate about CBN-MC because it is focused on creating synergy in our local community. It convenes a group of people together to support one another int heir business ventures while also standing up for and supporting Catholic Education in our community. Whenever I am considering possible business relationships I know that reaching out to fellow CBN members means collaborating with honest, value centered business professionals who, like me, are committed to fostering the next generation of young professionals and community leaders through Catholic education.

I have been attending CBN-MC events and monthly breakfasts for nearly 7 years and have been on the board for over 3 years (I believe you might need to check my board tenure).

I attended Incarnate Word High School in San Antonio, Texas, an all-women's school. After having attended big Texas public schools for the first 8 years of my schooling I found Incarnate Word to be a place where I was encouraged to discern who God was truly calling me to be and to use the gifts God had given me to build a better community. While at Incarnate Word I built incredible friendships, was a four year varsity athlete, participated in countless clubs and extracurricular activities and was able to serve as a leader both in Student Government and Youth Ministry. Later as an adult I had the opportunity to return to my alma mater and serve as the Director of Youth Ministry.

I continue to strive to use my gifts in service to our community as the VP of Organizational Growth at Don Bosco Cristo Rey where I focus on linking local business professionals with our students in an effort to create the strongest community possible for today and our futures. The students at Don Bosco Cristo Rey are talented and motivated young men and women of color who are excited about diversifying the talent pipeline for hundreds of companies int eh DC area. All they need is opportunities, access, mentorship and leaders who believe in them as leaders.

Check out your full 2021 CBN Board.

Upcoming Events

Please see our website for the most up-to-date event information.

www.cbnmc.com