Province V of the Episcopal Church
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Big Provincial Gathering 2026

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Thursday, July 30, 1 pm ET - Pre-Event Trainings and Provincial Youth Event begin
Friday, July 31, 12 noon ET - Big Provincial Gathering begins
Saturday, August 1, after lunch - BPG ends (see detailed schedule for Saturday afternoon activities)

Kalamazoo, Michigan - 
Is in the Eastern Time Zone
Host:  St. Luke's, Kalamazoo
Supporting Locations:  First Presbyterian Church (across the street from St. Luke's)

Plenary Leader (aka "Keynote Speaker"):  The Rev. Lorenzo Lebrija

YOU ARE INVITED!
The Big Provincial Gathering (BPG) is an opportunity to meet new people and connect with others who share your ministry passions.  It is structured like a "ministry fair" so that people may host workshops and conversations to share program and resource ideas with others.  Join in this amazing event to get resources for your local ministry context.

Information Menu

click on the red words to jump to that information.
Registration Links
Register for the Big Provincial Gathering (BPG)
Register for the Provincial Youth Event (PYE)

Lodging
Lodging information

Schedule
Full weekend schedule

Pre-event Trainings
Pre-event trainings will begin on Thursday,
July 30 at 1 pm ET and will continue on Friday morning.  

Workshops
Workshops are organized in this chart.  You can click on each title to see the description and join the conversation on the blog.

Child-Care and Children's Programming
Nursery child care and Children's Programming is available for elementary-aged children at no cost.  Please include information about your children in your registration.

Provincial Youth Event
Register for the Provincial Youth Event (PYE)
Exhibit Hall
There will be an exhibit hall!  
If you would like to have a table in the exhibit, fill out this form.

Swag
Send Physical or Digital Swag for this event!  Fill out this form so we can be in touch with details.

Resource Tables
Book Store - visit Kazoo Books at the BPG!
Resource Trading Table - bring books and materials to share with others.  Pick up what is useful to you!
Sacristy Swap - share your excess with others!

Sponsorships
Sponsorship opportunities
Thanks to our sponsors!

Staff for BPG
Lorenzo Lebrija - Plenary Leader
Westley Art Hodges - Musician
Steve Welch - Technology
Carissa Riedesel - Food Coordinator

Navigating Kalamazoo
Location information
Discover Kalamazoo - for local restaurants and ammenities

Schedule

​Thursday, 1 pm ET - Pre-Event Trainings and Provincial Youth Event begin
Friday morning - Pre-Event Trainings and Provincial Youth Event continue

Friday - begin at St. Luke's
11 am -
Registration opens, Exhibit Hall opens, Child care opens, Children's Program Opens
12 noon ET - Big Provincial Gathering begins!
12:45-2:15 pm - Workshop #1
2:15-2:45 pm - Break, Snacks, and Exhibit Hall open
2:45 pm - Plenary
4:30-6 pm - Workshop #2
6:15 pm - Evening Prayer
6:30 pm - General Convention Deputy Reception, hosted by Church Pension Group
Dinner on your own and hosted activities at St. Luke's

Saturday
7 am -
Continental Breakfast and Exhibit Hall opens
7:45 - Gathering time for prayer, music
8 am - Prayers and Plenary
9:15 am - Workshop #3
10:45 - Break, Exhibit Hall
11 am - Eucharist (Exhibit Hall closes)
12:30 - lunch
1 pm - Mission Opportunities (Workshop #4)
2:45 pm - Closing Prayer and Farewell
3 pm - Dismissal

Resource Tables

​Book Store
Kazoo Books is the BPG Book Store.  There will be a great mix of new and used books.  If you would like to pre-order books to pick up at the event, fill out this form.

Resource Trading Table
If you have books or other resources looking for a new home, bring them with you!  Tables will be available to drop available books.  We will encourage everyone to look at books and take them home with them!
You will have the opportunity to leave the leftover books with us.


Sacristy Swap
Have liturgical items that need a new home?  Bring them with you!  We will have an area where others can look through items and take home new blessings.  If you have questions about what might be best, contact Brian Wilbert, 440-935-2183.
Please mark each item with your name.  You will need to take leftovers home with you.

Meet Our Plenary Leader!

The Rev. Canon Lorenzo Lebrija, DMin, MBA

Internationally noted as an expert in the innovation field, Fr. Lorenzo Lebrija is the chief innovation officer of Virginia Theological Seminary and the executive director of TryTank Research Institute, which focuses on advancing theological research to meet the evolving needs of the church in the modern world. 
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Before launching TryTank, Fr. Lorenzo was the Chief Development Officer for the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles. He also served as the Pastor on behalf of the Bishop at St. John's Episcopal Church in San Bernardino, CA, and as priest associate at St. Athanasius Episcopal Church at the Cathedral Center of St. Paul in Los Angeles. He studied at the General Theological Seminary in New York City and earned his Master of Divinity degree. He also earned a Doctor of Ministry degree from Virginia Theological Seminary. 

Before entering seminary, Fr. Lorenzo was president and CEO of Seraphic Fire & Firebird Chamber Orchestra, Miami's professional choral and orchestral ensemble. He was also the Miami Program Director for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation responsible for a substantial grant portfolio and the launch of the Knight Arts Challenge. Having been General Manager for RadioActiva Hispanic Radio and Editor/Director of Operations for Miami's Community Newspapers, Fr. Lorenzo has vast media and marketing experience.

Beyond the DMin and MDiv degrees, he also has an MBA and a B.A. from Florida International University, has completed the full training at the Fundraising School at Indiana University, is a Certified Foresight Practitioner from the Institute for the Future in Palo Alto, CA, has a certificate in Design Thinking from IDEO in Palo Alto, CA, and is an ICF trained coach.

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Meet our Musician!

Westley Art Hodges (he/they) is a native of New Orleans and has resided in Chicago, IL, since 2018. Westley has served as the Director of Music Ministries at St. Mark's Episcopal Church (www.stmarksevanston.org) in Evanston, IL, since 2019. Before being at St. Mark's, they served as Director of Music for The Annunciation of Our Lady Episcopal Church in Gurnee, IL, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Peoria, IL, St. Joseph's Episcopal Church, McDonough, GA, St. Aiden's Episcopal Church, Alpharetta GA, and St. Patrick's Episcopal Church, Long Beach, MS. Outside of church work, Westley performs as an accompanist and solo artist and teaches private music lessons to a studio of 24+ students.
Westley earned an Associate of the Arts in Music Education at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Perkinston, MS, and studied Clarinet Performance at Delta State University, Cleveland, MS. They earned a Bachelor of the Arts in Liberal Studies with a Minor in Women and Gender Studies at the University of Illinois Springfield, where they also did graduate work in Women and Gender Studies.

Outside work, Westley enjoys spending time with their fabulous husband, Joseph, and their mischievous cat, Sidney “Sid”. Westley and Joseph are both members of Lakeside Pride ensembles (www.lakesidepride.org). In Lakeside Pride, Westley is the section leader of the clarinet section of the Symphonic Band and Director of the 30+ member clarinet choir. Westley is also the clarinetist in the Amethyst Wind (www.amethystwinds.org), a professional woodwind quintet in Chicago. At the end of the day, if you're looking for Westley and music isn't involved, you'll always be able to find them in the kitchen, perfecting savory and dessert recipes while enjoying time outdoors hiking and camping. For more information about Westley, please visit www.westleyhodges.com.

Location Information

​St. Luke's Episcopal Church
St. Luke's is our main host, and BPG activities will be based out of this location.  Plenary sessions, food, and the Exhibit Hall are all at St. Luke's.  All rooms are accessible in this facility.  Attend plenary sessions to follow the group to your workshop rooms.
247 W. Lovell, Kalamazoo, Michigan 49007

First Presbyterian Church
Across the street from St. Luke's, this will be the location of the PYE on Thursday-Friday, the Children's Program on Friday-Saturday, and some of the workshops.  All rooms are accessible in this facility.  Attend plenary sessions to follow the group to your workshop rooms.
321 W South Street, Kalamazoo, Michigan 49007


St. Barnabas Episcopal Church
PYE will use St. Barnabas as their evening activities and sleeping location.
929 E Centre Ave, Portage, Michigan 49002

Hiltons near St. Luke's
The two Hilton properties near St. Luke's are the conference hotel.  Use this link to make your reservation.  If you encounter an error, contact Heather or the property.  MAKE YOUR RESERVATION QUICKLY to ensure that you get a room.  Other lodging options are available.

THANK YOU to our sponsors!
We can only provide this amazing opportunity because of sponsors.  If you are interested in sponsoring the opportunity, please contact Heather.

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Province V of the Episcopal Church

65 East Huron
Chicago, IL  60611
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​​574.366.2288
[email protected]

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  • Home
  • Who We Are
    • About Province V
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Executive Board
    • Provincial Staff
    • Affiliated Organizations
    • Networks
  • What We Do
    • Calendar of Events
    • Synod
    • Featured Events >
      • Women Clergy Retreat >
        • Women Clergy Retreat details
      • BPG 2026 >
        • Pre-Event Trainings
      • PYE 2026
  • What You Need
    • Campus Ministry Developer >
      • Cohort Registration Form
    • Engaging Gender Complexity
    • Anti-Human Trafficking
    • Coaching
    • Grants