In this episode, Andrew interviews Jeff Schiefelbein, co-founder and culture catalyst for Undivided Life.  Andrew questions Jeff about his role as a culture catalyst, and the pair discusses just how important culture is to organizations of all sizes.  Jeff describes how he encourages organizations t...

By Andrew Robinson, Petrus President

Recently, my family and I stayed in an Airbnb. I had an interesting encounter with an appliance that illustrates a problem that a lot of nonprofit leaders struggle with.

Your dishwasher can actually dry your dishes...



You’re probably wondering why this w...

By Mary Walker, Petrus Blog Contributor

The end of the year, that is. 

Did you know that about 1/3 of annual giving happens in December? The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is a season that encourages generosity. As a result, nonprofits ramp up their “asks.” Also, in the United Stat...

By Mary Walker, Petrus Blog Contributor

Latest Information on Giving Trends

Giving USA 2022: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2021 was released in June.  The Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy researched and wrote the report. 

The following are highligh...

This episode of the Petrus Development show features the keynote address by Matt Regitz of Divine Renovation at the Petrus Development Conference (PDC) in June.  Matt joins conference participants to talk about the importance of healthy leadership teams in ministry.  By contrasting the characteristi...

By Mary Walker, Petrus Blog Contributor

Donor meetings can be intimidating to both new and experienced development professionals, but they also have the potential to be such fruitful blessings to our ministry.  In my years of fundraising, I've developed a series of steps that helps me prepare a...

By Meghan Larsen-Reidy, Campus Minister, Diocese of Pittsburgh

My background is in ministry and not in development; however, the pandemic made it impossible to continue doing ministry without fundraising. There was a reduction in the funding source of my job’s budget, and in order for it to con...

By Bryan Wilburn, Director of Development, St. Paul’s Newman Center at NDSU

What can you do when you’re in a rut? 

I suppose one option would be to stay there. To act as if it’s not happening and try to power through on your own. Oftentimes though, the first step to getting better is admitt...

By Mary Hernandez, Petrus Blog Contributor

The newest release of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) annual Compensation and Benefits Study is timed perfectly for organizations creating a strategic plan to start or grow their development team in the new year. We've limited the sc...

By JoAnn Shull, Petrus Consultant

I’m going to be really honest with you, dear reader, in that for the vast majority of my life I had no idea what this idea of “development” was or that I would end up in a career that I didn’t even know existed.  

Growing up, my family was not church-going, bu...

By Sarah Rose, Petrus Consultant

“Intense love does not measure, it just gives.” - St. Teresa of Calcutta

Spring is here! In Texas, that means the bluebonnets are in full bloom. These gorgeous blue flowers bring joy to so many people - including myself!

Growing up, The Legend of the Bluebonn...