DMI Survey Results 2025

​This past spring (2025), we had over 400 individuals complete the Disciple Maker Index (DMI) survey. Your input helped us to better understand the beliefs, practices, needs, and desires of our community. Thank you for taking the time to share your honest responses, your prayers and your dedicated presence. 

Watch for upcoming opportunities to get involved, through events, ministries, and continued feedback on our journey ahead. With your help, we’ll grow stronger as a community, deepen our faith and touch lives as the “Hands of Christ.”

If you have questions, suggestions, or would like to lend your time or expertise, please connect with Amy Grace: amy.grace@nativity‑bvm.org

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Next Generation Parish

Nativity BVM is participating in an initiative called the “Next Generation Parish” led by the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI). This process will help our parish prepare for the future, growing in vitality and service to one another.  Our parish was selected as one of the parishes in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to take part in this multi-year process, made possible to us at no cost due to the generosity of donors. 

In 2022, many of our parishioners began this journey by participating in a Disciple Maker Index (DMI) survey which generated over 230 responses.   You can read a summary of those results here.

​The Next Generation Parish initiative is taking place over two phases. In the first phase, an Envision Team was formed of parishioners that represent a broad cross-section of our community to work with CLI and the parish to help develop a set of parish priorities and goals for the next 3 years. We are now in the next phase, implementing the parish priorities. A newly formed Implementation Team will take on this phase, which will take another two years.

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From left to right: Back row - Timothy Broadhurst, Fred Pondo, Robbie Bonanto, Fr. Edward Bell, Matthew Haas, Matt Decaro; Front row - Amy Grace, Corinne Wolfe, Deacon Bill Kussmaul

Meet the Implementation Team​

​The Implementation Team will meet during the next two years to bring our parish priorities to life. These priorities are:

• Spiritual Growth
• Parish Engagement
• Communication

Please pray for our Implementation Team that they may move our parish of Nativity BVM into a continued thriving, spirit-filled community.

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​Front row from left to right with years in the parish: Steve Hefferan ​(21), Jane McNerney (60), Steve St Martin (17), Gino Benedetti (28). Back row from left to right: Robbie Bonanto (43), Malela M. Werner (16), Charlie O'Donnell (35), Kevin Reilly (19), Fr Ed Bell (18), Andrea Hannigan (10), John Drake (11), Rosanne Gatta (27), Dr. Gary Rainey (47), Matthew A. Haas (23).

Meet the Envision Team

​The Envision Team analyzed your survey responses as well as additional data from our geographic area, trends in Catholicism within the US, and comparison information of our parish relative to other parishes in the Archdiocese. As they worked toward developing a set of parish priorities, there were several intermediate steps. One of these steps was to identify three pertinent learnings from this analysis and to identify three potential opportunities. These are those initial findings:

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