2026 Conference Workshops
At the Table: Strategic Communication & Leadership in Ministry
Participants joined Bishop Wright and Canon Easton Davis for a conversation-style workshop exploring how communicators can—and must—be at the core of strategic decision-making. Through relatable stories and practical frameworks, they illustrated how their partnership strengthens leadership, enhances clarity in mission, and empowers communicators to wield influence in critical conversations. Their work together demonstrated that communications isn’t an afterthought—it’s integral to vision-casting, crisis handling, and shaping organizational culture.
AI Alchemy – How to Turn One Piece of Content into Multiple Pieces of Content
In this session, participants explored how churches can maximize their reach and save time by repurposing a single piece of content across multiple platforms. They learned practical strategies and AI-driven tools to transform sermons, blogs, and announcements into engaging social media posts, reels, newsletters, and more—without reinventing the wheel every week.
The workshop was led by Katie Allred, a leader in church communications, marketing strategy, and digital engagement. She is the founder of ChurchCommunications.com, a community and resource platform serving church leaders through website content, social media, podcasting, and educational resources.
Unlocking the Power of Story: Using Your History to Inspire Connection
Every congregation has stories that define who they are—but too often, those stories are hidden in boxes or fading memories. In this session, Canon Mike Orr of the Episcopal Church in Colorado and Martha Tye of HistoryIT shared how their partnership is making 150+ years of diocesan history accessible and impactful through a strategic digital archive. Participants learned how this initiative is deepening connection, strengthening identity, and fueling storytelling efforts. They left with practical guidance for starting their own preservation journey and creative ideas for using their legacy to communicate their mission more powerfully.
From Daydream to Doing: Start Your Church Comms Side Hustle
Participants reflected on how they are often already the go-to person for Canva graphics, clever copy, or last-minute social media posts—and considered how those everyday ministry skills can become a life-giving side hustle. This workshop helped those who are full-time in church work or juggling multiple part-time roles move from daydreaming to doing. Together, they tackled real barriers—like imposter syndrome, lack of time, and not knowing where to start—and explored mindset shifts, practical tools, and proven shortcuts.
Drawing on the wins (and missteps) of Josh Linman, founder of Common Good Creative, participants left with their own Side Hustle Starter Pack to help launch a freelance communications gig with more freedom and less frustration.
Leading from the Middle
Not every leader sits at the head of the table. In most churches, the real work of leadership happens in the middle—navigating between clergy, councils, staff, and volunteers. This workshop, presented by Ashley Graham-Wilcox, Program Director for Caffeinated Church, offered practical tools for communication and trust-building that strengthened influence from any seat. Participants left equipped to shape culture, spark collaboration, and practice authentic leadership, wherever they serve.
Shift Your Social Presence from Static to Inspiring
Social media has evolved, and your approach should, too. What connected with your current and potential audience a few years ago may fall flat today. In this session, Kelly Champagne, co-owner of Evoke, shared five practical shifts to refresh strategy, engage followers, and inspire action.
Together, participants explored how to:
Repurpose existing content to spark inspiration
Leverage Meta advertising to build community engagement
Decide when video is worth the investment
Know when to follow (or ignore) social trends
AI & the Great Commission: New Tools for Timeless Truths
Empowering Episcopal Leaders to Proclaim the Gospel in a Digital Age
Step into the future of evangelism. This dynamic workshop was designed for Episcopal leaders ready to harness the power of AI to share the Good News more effectively and creatively. Whether leading a parish, managing a ministry, or simply passionate about spreading the Gospel, participants were equipped with powerful yet accessible tools to amplify their message.
Participants learned how to:
Use AI to create engaging graphics, newsletters, and social media content
Clip and edit sermons, enhance live streams, and repurpose video for outreach
Generate content ideas, write compelling posts, and streamline communication
Discover both free and paid AI tools to elevate your church’s digital presence
Reclaim your time so you can focus more on mission, not just media
No tech degree was required—just a heart for the Gospel and a willingness to explore what’s possible when ancient truth meets modern tools.
This workshop was led by the Rev. Christian Anderson, Vicar of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Stuart, Florida.
Curiosity Killed the Conflict: Using curiosity and humility to foster unity across division
Leadership in a context where the congregation or community speaks, acts, votes, or holds priorities different from you often leads to burnout and harm for both leader and community. In this workshop, participants considered that reality and explored how, whether communicating in newsletters, sermons, announcement time, or on social media, God calls us to carefully attend to our words, tone, and intent—without watering down the message. Together, they reflected and practiced new patterns of communication.
This workshop was led by the Rev. Jennifer Shimota, Pastor of Coble's Lutheran Church in Julian, North Carolina.
The External Pivot: Communication Strategies that Turn Neighbors into Guests
Your church is doing great things, but if your marketing sounds like it was written by the church for the church, you’re unintentionally signaling to your neighbors that they aren't the primary audience.
In this session, participants moved beyond event planning to focus on strategic communication methods that lower the psychological hurdles for first-time visitors. Using a case study that drove 400+ RSVPs and led to a record-breaking Christmas Eve service, they analyzed how to differentiate internal vs. external messaging. The group explored the “External Pivot”—the shift from church-centric jargon to community-minded branding that builds immediate trust with seekers.
In this workshop, we deconstructed:
The Branding Barrier: Why geographical and experience-based titles (e.g., "The Downtown Christmas Experience") outperform church-branded titles in digital spaces.
The Digital Handshake: Using Eventbrite and Facebook not just for promotion, but as professional "lead-capture" tools that respect a visitor’s digital boundaries.
The Intentional Hand-Off: The communication architecture required to transition a community lead from a low-stakes event into a high-value invitation (like Christmas Eve).
The "Insider" Audit: Practical steps to identify and remove the "church-ese" that creates invisible walls for your neighbors.
This workshop was led by Kyle Bynum, Communications Specialist at Common Good Creative. With over a decade of experience helping mainline churches find the right words to reach their neighbors, he focuses on practical branding and communication methods that lower barriers for first-time guests while telling the story of each community. A graduate of Middle Georgia State University with a degree in Digital Media, Kyle brings a unique perspective on the modern seeker. When he isn’t supporting churches in their digital outreach, he serves as the Director of Music for an Episcopal parish in Atlanta.
Cohesive Design for a Fast-Moving Ministry
In today’s fast-paced ministry life, church staff and volunteers juggle a hundred roles—leaving little time to design everything from scratch. This workshop equipped church communicators and leaders with the confidence, tools, and templates to quickly produce cohesive, effective designs that reflect their church’s unique identity—both internally and externally. Designed for churches of all sizes and skill levels, the session blended strategy with hands-on practicality so participants could walk away with tools they could use right away—no design degree required.
This workshop was led by Amelia Simmons, Founder of Blaze Studio. With over a decade of experience in church branding and ministry communications, Amelia has helped dozens of churches and ministries bring clarity and creativity to their message.
Know Thy Neighbor, Love Thy Neighbor
Participants discovered creative and practical ways to know their neighbors and make genuine, life-giving connections. They also explored the strategies employed by healthy, growing churches to create intentional environments where relationships deepen with God and with one another.
This workshop was led by Canon Mike Orr, Canon for Communications & Evangelism for the Episcopal Church in Colorado and Founder of Caffeinated Church.
Video Storytelling – Start to Finish Video Production Training
How do we capture the stories of our people in modern ways in 2026? It starts with video. In this workshop, Easton Davis, Canon for Communications and Digital Evangelism in The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, led participants in a hands-on experience in capturing Good News behind the lens. The session included video and audio basics, a live demonstration of someone sharing their story, and post-production, along with time for questions and responses.
Participants left the workshop knowing how to use their phone to create professional-quality videos, capture strong audio on a budget, tell someone’s story effectively, and manage post-production.
Defending Democracy from Christian Nationalism: Ethical Tools for the Church
In this session, Dr. David P. Gushee addressed the growing threat of Christian nationalism—or what he terms “Authoritarian Reactionary Christianity”—and equipped church communities with theological and ethical frameworks to respond. Drawing from his 2023 book, Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies, he explored American history, global parallels, and offered practical guidance grounded in the Baptist Democratic and Black Christian traditions.
AI 101 – How to Prompt, What Platforms to Use, and Tips and Tricks
This workshop served as a beginner-friendly guide to understanding and using AI in ministry communications. Participants covered the basics of prompting, explored some of the most helpful platforms available to churches today, and learned tips and tricks to use AI ethically, efficiently, and effectively in their context.
This workshop was led by Katie Allred, a leader in church communications, marketing strategy, and digital engagement. She is the founder of ChurchCommunications.com, a community and resource platform serving church leaders through website content, social media, podcasting, and educational content.
Leveling Up Your Ministry Photography: Gear, Tips & Tech
Ready to enhance your visual storytelling? Whether just starting out or looking to fine-tune a setup, this hands-on workshop guided participants through today’s essential camera gear, helpful accessories, and the latest tools for capturing stunning images in a ministry context. The session broke down common photography terms, explored real-world examples, and shared budget-friendly upgrade ideas to fit churches of all sizes.
With over a decade of experience behind the lens, Bro. Andrew Morehead, Missioner for Communications and Evangelism for the Episcopal Church in East Tennessee, led this updated workshop packed with insights, humor, and practical takeaways.
Shame Slayers Needed
No one escapes the influence of shame—especially not a kid growing up in evangelical Appalachia who just wants to walk an imaginary runway across the living room floor in his mother’s oversized black pumps. But even half a lifetime of efforts to disparage, diminish, and dim her sparkle couldn’t keep Flamy Grant in the closet. As the first drag queen to ever release a gospel record and top the Christian music charts, Flamy’s flashy presence has continued to confound the self-appointed gatekeepers of a world where queer artists and fans alike have long been ignored and expelled.
In this session, Flamy Grant shared her story of finding belonging within herself and creating more space for others, even when the world around her says, “you can’t do that here.” Proving that there’s no limit to what you can accomplish when you strap on a stiletto and stamp out shame, participants were invited to reflect on courage, identity, and the work of making room for others.
Show & Tell: Why Storytelling Is the Church’s Next Faithful Step
What happens when we stop assuming people understand what the Church is and start listening to what they’re actually searching for? In this session, Ashley Graham-Wilcox offered an inside look at Show & Tell: Stories for the Nones, Dones, and Disconnected, the multi-year Lilly Endowment–funded storytelling project rooted in Caffeinated Church and designed to equip mainline congregations to communicate faith with clarity, honesty, and imagination.
Participants heard:
Why this project exists and why storytelling is the urgent invitation before the wider church
What has already been learned from the initial research partnership with Egg Strategy, including how Millennials and Gen Z describe spiritual curiosity, mistrust, longing, and belonging
What comes next in the expanded research phase—and why listening well is foundational to faithful communication
How the project is already producing tangible, high-quality media through short-form documentaries, bilingual narrative podcasts, and congregational storytelling training
How congregations can participate, collaborate, or prepare for what’s ahead
This session focused on hope for the future of church communications through digital ministry, narrative integrity, and generational engagement.