Showing the heck up to REPAIR

What made this gathering remarkable was more than the logistics and even the expertise—it was the people. Folks came from every walk of life and shared stories, fears, griefs, and hopes... - Katie

At the end of October, I had the honor of helping put on the Waymakers’ inaugural REPAIR event. There’s a special kind of satisfaction that comes from seeing something move from an idea on a Zoom call to a living, breathing experience—culminating in a reverent gratitude that comes with being behind-the-scenes, having the full, sweeping view of every single person who quietly makes it happen.

Here’s what I saw, from behind-the-scenes..

Four months after fully kicking off our plans, it was time for REPAIR. Bright and early, the morning after the keynote, people started arriving for workshops (at 8 AM on a Friday!).

I could immediately feel a buzz of hope ripple through the lobby. Ahead of time, we’d asked participants to come with one conflict they wanted to work on in mind—something real, something they were hoping to repair. Our goal was to equip them with tools to build peace in their inner lives, their relationships, their families, congregations, communities, and beyond. And people came, notebooks in hand, leaning forward in that way people do when they’re really trying.

Over the next two days, what unfolded went far beyond “skills training.” Yes, we ran six 4-hour workshops at a time, twelve a day, twenty-four total. And yes, someone who stayed for the long haul could attend a max of 16 hours(!) in four workshops, yet somehow, we still averaged 3.37 workshop tickets per registrant. People were hungry. Many told us they wished the sessions were even longer. They wanted more time, more space, more breathing room. (We also heard loud and clear on the need for more stretch breaks!)

But what made this gathering remarkable was more than the logistics and even the expertise—it was the people. Folks came from every walk of life and shared stories, fears, griefs, and hopes they may never have spoken aloud before. They did it in spaces facilitated by some of the world’s best conflict-transformation leaders; but the courage in the room belonged to the participants themselves.

A total of 330 workshop participants showed the heck up, and of the 248 who completed a workshop review/self-assessment, when rating how confident they felt in their ability to approach conflict before workshop(s), they responded 2.64 on a 5-point scale. The average post-session rating was 4.07, a 54% increase in attendees’ perceived confidence and skill after only one session. 88% said the workshops were highly relevant to their personal or professional lives, and 99.6% said they learned something new or useful!

Beyond these hopeful numbers, participant responses capture the heart of the weekend:

“The best immersion experience I’ve ever had in my life.”

“The vulnerability and experiences of the facilitators were deeply moving and appreciated.”

I spent most of the conference zipping around addressing little event kinks, so I never actually sat in on a full workshop. But I got to absorb them through the comments people shared with me in breaks and afterward—raw, emotional, grateful accounts. And somehow, I also ended up helping facilitate one myself.

Public speaking is not in my comfort zone… give me planning, organizing, and behind-the-scenes chaos any day! But when Patrick and Chad asked if I would co-facilitate a workshop on navigating faith transitions with them, I gave myself a pep talk, and dug in. It felt important to offer multiple voices in what we knew would be a tender conversation.

Patrick led our session with history, data, and trends—helping people locate themselves or their loved ones along spectrums and pie charts (surprisingly moving for many!), and recounted the Prodigal Son through a new lens, offering a message of hope and reconnection. I then shared my own faith transition, as honestly as I could—its fragility, disorientation, the way it asked me to leave behind old versions of myself to find alignment within. I could sense the room soften with a shared understanding… the listening, the nods, the quiet exhale people make when realizing they’re not alone.

Chad offered a gift of vulnerability, sharing truly raw experiences that further broke open the space for people to share and witness one another, and then offered ways to walk with people at different points in their faith journeys (read his recounting of this session HERE).

It was simple and profound and reminded me that one of the most important things we can do is to just be with one another, fully, in life’s hardest and most ‘brutiful’ moments.

I am truly so appreciative— to the people who came, who shared their stories, and who trusted us enough to show up fully. I am grateful to the team and facilitators who created the conditions for this kind of openness, and to those who reminded me what it means to be human: fragile, brave, hurting, and hopeful all at once.

REPAIR is just the beginning of our bridge building. We left feeling inspired, humbled, and energized.

The Waymakers team is already looking ahead, exploring ways to make this work sustainable and accessible to even more people.

Thank you so much for being with us on this journey!

Katie