Rewired by Grace
NEUROSCIENCE-INFORMED. RELATIONALLY GROUNDED. SPIRITUALLY ROOTED.
Discover how God uses safe relationships to heal what information alone cannot.
September 18–20, 2026 • LaFontaine, Indiana
5 Keynotes • 30+ Workshops • Life Growth Groups • CE Credits
Why Insight and Willpower Alone Fail to Create Lasting Change
Many people know what they should do differently.
They have insight.
They’ve read the books.
They’ve heard the sermons.
Yet under real stress, the same patterns return. Why?
Because the deepest drivers of behavior are often implicit emotional learnings formed through relational experience. Until those emotional learnings are updated, insight alone rarely produces durable change.
Where Neuroscience and Grace Meet
The NeuroRelational Change Model offers a framework for understanding how transformation actually occurs.
Rather than focusing only on thoughts or behaviors, the model addresses the deeper emotional learnings that organize how a person experiences themselves, others, the world, and God.
Lasting change happens when those emotional learnings are updated through corrective relational experiences, then stabilized through meaning and practice.
At the Summit, you will learn the model and experience it in action.
Beyond Your Typical Conference…
Beyond Information
Most conferences deliver content. This summit creates experiences that help insight become embodied and relationally grounded.
Beyond Psychology
The summit integrates neuroscience, relational psychology, and Christian theology into a coherent model of transformation.
Beyond Professional Training
Many participants come for professional development—and leave with deep personal growth as well.
Who This Conference is For…
Helping Professionals
- Counselors
- Therapists
- Executive coaches
- Social workers
- Pastors and ministry leaders
- Educators and organizational leaders
Individuals Seeking Deep Growth
Christians who want:
- more than surface-level change strategies
- a clearer understanding of how the brain and heart transform
- a relational pathway for lasting growth
What You’ll Experience…
- 5 Keynote Presentations
- 30+ Workshops
- Pre-Conference Immersive Seminars
- Relational Learning Experiences
- Optional Life Growth Group Track
- Continuing Education Credits
Keynote Speakers
Scott Makin, MA
Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, and Consultant Founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant. Developed the curriculum for the NeuroRelational Change Model Certification. Led hundreds of process groups, workshops, and leadership trainings for family businesses to million-dollar companies.
Gregg Makin, Ph.D
Executive coach, neuroscience expert, and co-founder of the Makin Institute for NeuroChange Gregg has a PhD in Organizational Leadership, is a NeuroChange Certified Specialist, and an ICF Professionally Certified Coach. Gregg brings decades of transformative coaching and relational neuroscience experience, having trained hundreds of coaches globally and led hundreds of process groups.
Jules Wilhelm, MA
Founder of Jules Wilhelm Inc., MA, Licensed Professional Counselor, Founder of EQ-niversity™ and the Impact Program Jules designs and delivers practical, habit-based emotional intelligence training for leaders, teams, and organizations. EQ-niversity is an emotional intelligence education platform that teaches leaders how to build skills they can practice, apply, and pass on. The Impact Program is a leadership development experience designed specifically for senior living organizations navigating high turnover, leadership strain, and culture fatigue.
Leslye Taylor, MA
Organizational Development and Leadership Architect at Performance Research Lab and creator of Loving Leadership Studio™ Leslye helps mission-driven organizations lead complex change, build high-trust cultures, and develop leaders who multiply talent and drive lasting impact. She works beneath surface-level leadership skills to strengthen foundational character capacities that drive healthy leadership and team performance: trust-building, courageous candor, emotional steadiness under pressure, confident authority, and inspiring vision.
NeuroRelational Summit 2026 Schedule
Friday, September 18
Pre-Conference Immersive Seminars and Skill Labs
8:30 – 11:30 a.m., 1:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Building Effective NeuroRelational Change Skills: From Knowledge to Practice
Counseling, Social Worker, Helping Professionals, Pastors, Leaders
Dr. Karen Thacker, Ph.D., LPC, is a licensed professional counselor, supervisor, adjunct professor, and NeuroRelational Certification Trainer
Step into an engaging, hands-on “playground” that brings the NeuroRelational Change (NRC) model to life. In this dynamic workshop, participants will learn practical NRC skills that support deep, brain-based change—helping to transform toxic Implicit Core Emotional Learnings (ICELs) into healthier, more adaptive patterns. Through a blend of clear instruction and experiential learning, attendees will explore how these skills fit within the NRC model pathway, observe live demonstrations, and actively practice in a supportive, low-pressure environment. Emphasis is placed on building confidence through repetition, reflection, and real-time feedback. Whether you’re new to NRC or looking to deepen your application (these easily integrate to any approach) or looking to deepen your skill set, this lab offers a rich opportunity to integrate both the “why” and the “how” of lasting change – so you leave not just informed, but equipped and ready to use these skills in your work.
Leading Experiential Process Groups: The Neurobiology of Character Change
Counseling, Social Worker, Helping Professionals
Madeline Spring is an expert in character-level transformation who integrates her clinical licensure and ICF coaching certificate with 250+ hours of psychodrama and sociometry training to lead high-impact groups as a TLP (Townsend Leadership Program) Director and professor at the Townsend Institute for Counseling & Coaching.
Stop managing groups and start facilitating breakthroughs with confidence. This 6-hour pre-conference intensive is designed for facilitators who want to bring deep, character level healing to the group setting and feel confident in the transformational work they provide. Blending psychodrama, sociometry, and high-impact experiential activities, this training is designed for the clinician who wants to master the art of deep process work. In this dual track experience, you will learn the “why” and “how” of character-level change while experiencing your own personal growth. Participants will walk away with ready-to-use techniques for both group, and individual sessions to create deep character level healing in your clients (as well as some personal breakthroughs yourself!)
8:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Attachment Focused EMDR within the NeuroRelational Change Model
Counseling, Social Worker, Helping Professionals
Cathy Laub, LMHC, is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who has her own private practice. She specializes in complex trauma and has significant experience in EMDR and group therapy
The NeuroRelational Change Model describes four core developmental domains—attachment, separation, integration, and authority—that shape how people experience relationships, boundaries, identity, and agency. These character patterns are not primarily cognitive beliefs but implicit core emotional learnings stored in attachment memory networks, formed through repeated relational experiences early in life. The power of EMDR lies in its ability to directly activate and update those memory networks through memory reconsolidation, facilitated by corrective relational experiences. When an attachment memory is reactivated in therapy and paired with new, contradictory relational experiences – held within a safe therapeutic relationship — the brain can revise the meaning encoded in that memory. This allows the underlying attachment learning that shaped core character domains to be updated at the neural level, facilitating deep-level change at a much faster pace: instead of only helping clients understand their patterns, EMDR helps rewrite the implicit core emotional learnings that created them, enabling long-lasting character transformation.
The Trust Lab: Building Capacity to Have Hard Conversations That Transform Team Dynamics
Executive and Life Coaching, Leadership
Julia LeFevre is a NeuroRelational Certified Specialist, leadership coach, and speaker who helps leaders become regulated leaders so they can build trust, navigate hard conversations, and create healthier team cultures
This lab will help leaders develop the capacity and skills required for trust-building conversations. Most leaders know which conversations they need to have. The challenge is to have them in a way that strengthens trust rather than damages it. The missing piece is often not a communication technique. It is internal capacity. When leaders enter difficult conversations with empty relational tanks, the nervous system shifts into protection mode. Curiosity narrows, defensiveness rises, and even well-intentioned conversations can escalate or stall. But when leaders proactively fill their relational “brain tanks” through connection and support, they are far more capable of staying grounded, clear, and collaborative under pressure. This interactive skill lab helps leaders develop the capacity and skills required for trust-building conversations. Participants will explore how relational connection fuels regulation, practice simple ways to refill their relational reserves before tension arises, and learn practical tools for navigating difficult conversations with honesty and care. Through guided exercises, live practice, and structured feedback, participants will learn how to stay regulated during tension, express what matters clearly, and turn conflict moments into opportunities for stronger collaboration. Participants will leave with practical strategies to proactively meet their relational needs, approach hard conversations with greater internal capacity, and lead discussions that strengthen trust across their teams.
1:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Leading Change That Works: Engaging People Through the Loving Leadership Advantage™
Executive and Life Coaching, Leaders
Leslye Taylor, MA, is an Organizational Development and Leadership Architect at Performance Research Lab and creator of Loving Leadership Studio™, helping mission-driven organizations lead complex change and build high-trust cultures that multiply talent and drive lasting impact.
Most change initiatives fail not because the strategy is wrong, but because leaders underestimate the human side of change. Drawing on insights from neuroscience and organizational psychology, this interactive and thought-provoking workshop helps leaders understand why people resist change and how to engage them in moving forward together. Participants will learn how to apply the Loving Leadership Advantage™ to design and lead change initiatives that engage people, navigate resistance, and strengthen team alignment. Through guided reflection, discussion, and practical exercises, participants will learn from one another, expand their professional networks, and practice relational leadership skills that help teams embrace change. Leaders will leave with a Loving Leadership Change Blueprint™, a practical plan they can use immediately to guide their teams through meaningful and lasting change.
The Art of Attunement: Building Safe Relationships that Lead to Transformation
For Everyone
Joy Schultheis serves with Cru as a Leadership Development Coach, helping leaders and teams across 30+ ministries grow spiritually and expand their Kingdom impact.
In this interactive workshop, you will learn the powerful coaching skill of attunement and how it creates safety and meaningful connection with clients. Using biblical relational principles, you will learn to identify where clients are stuck and facilitate deeper growth. We will also explore the 18 types of attunement and practice applying them through role-play and real coaching examples so you can build stronger relationships and lead clients toward lasting transformation.
UnLeadership: Responding to God’s Invitations to Dive into the Unseen Operating Systems of Our Lives and Join Him in the Deep Waters.
For Pastors, Leaders, Therapists, Spiritual Directors, and Helping Professionals
Dave Rider, MA, has over 30 years of hands-on leadership experience and runs a leadership consulting practice outside Chicago, Illinois. Dave spent much of his earlier career in Fortune 500 companies, starting in manufacturing and operational excellence. He has over 14 years of experience in human resources, with responsibilities that spanned leadership development, learning/knowledge management, and HR Leadership.
This is not a typical leadership workshop. Traditional leadership training focuses on what to add—more skills, better strategies, stronger systems, and sharper tools. UnLeadership begins somewhere deeper. It invites pastors, leaders, therapists, spiritual directors, and helping professionals to consider what must first be undone, uncovered, untangled, and surrendered if we are to lead from wholeness rather than performance alone.
At the center of this workshop is the conviction that leadership is shaped by more than what is visible. Beneath our behaviors, habits, and competencies are unseen operating systems – deep emotional, relational, and spiritual dynamics that influence how we lead, respond, relate, and discern. If we ignore these deeper waters, we risk leading from fragmentation rather than integration.
Through a deeply reflective and faith-forward lens, this workshop explores God’s invitations to unlock how life truly works, uncover the healing power of biblical community, untangle the heart, embrace Unknowing, allow ourselves to be undone, unleash the Spirit’s transforming work, and undo the schemes that keep us stuck. Rather than separating work, emotional health, relationships, skill development, and spiritual formation into isolated silos, UnLeadership offers an integrated framework for whole-person development.
Participants will be introduced to a broader understanding of leadership across three interwoven landscapes: the natural landscape of systems, skills, and outcomes; the internal landscape of emotion, story, and relational patterns; and the spiritual landscape where God’s Kingdom is active and the Holy Spirit is at work. They will also explore five layers of leadership development, each with its own kind of knowledge and learning approach.
This workshop is designed to expand leaders’ understanding of themselves, the people they serve, and the deeper places where transformation happens. It offers a more holistic path for those who want to lead with greater wisdom, freedom, spiritual depth, and effectiveness—so they can join God more fully in His Kingdom work.
For ALL Pre-Conference Attendees (4:30 - 5:15 p.m.)
For ALL Pre-Conference Attendees. Located in the Barn
Pizza with Pre-Conference Speakers for more Dialogue and Questions.
Summit Begins
5:30 – 6:45 p.m.
KEYNOTE: Rewired by Grace: Why Insight, Willpower, and Prescribed Solutions Don’t Last — What Actually Does
Scott Makin, MA, is the founder of the Makin Institute, the Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
Most of us were taught that change happens by trying harder, changing our thinking, focusing on the positive, getting more information, moral pressure, or self-disciplined behavior plans, yet many of us still feel stuck in the same cycles of anxiety, shame, anger, or loneliness. These change strategies can help in the short term, but often collapse under stress or over time. In this session, you’ll discover why they fail: they treat the symptoms while the deeper “neural wiring” underneath stays the same. You’ll learn how to spot the most common outdated change engines and reposition them in their proper role — support tools, not the source of transformation. Rewired by Grace shows a different path — how God designed our brains to change through safe relationships, honest emotions, and genuine relational experiences that replace old messages like “I’m not enough.” “I am not desirable.” “I am too much.” You’ll leave with simple, practical next steps to build the kind of connection — with God and others — that makes real change not just possible, but sustainable when life gets hard.
7:15 – 8:30 p.m.
WORKSHOP 1 (Choose 1 of 6)
Clinical Supervision as a Corrective Relational Experience: A Trauma-Informed Approach to Supervision
Michelle Hollomon, Ph.D., LMHC, is a counselor, clinical supervisor, and educator whose research focuses on the intersection of trauma, spirituality, and quality of life among helping professionals. She lives in Seattle, WA, and is married with two adult children and one needy Chihuahua. Website: www.michellehollomon.com
A Corrective Relational Experience is often considered the most basic mechanism of psychological healing. This is especially critical in the supervision relationship, as many trainees enter the field with their own trauma histories. Together, we will explore trauma-informed opportunities to engage empathetically, validate trainees’ experiences, and deliver powerful, ethical supervision.
Perfectly Flawed Leadership: Why Vulnerability Makes Leaders Stronger
Gil Dukeman is a Former Lead Pastor, Marriage & Family Counselor for True Relationships, Global Ambassador for North America & Caribbean for EQUIP (Canada), Founder/CEO of Exponential Leadership Solutions
Many leaders have learned to lead through polish, control, and image management – but those strategies often create distance, not openness and safety. This workshop offers a different path: leadership shaped by grace and courageous honesty. You will experience how lasting influence grows when leaders move beyond left-brain performance and learn to lead from a more integrated, relational, and deeply human place of weakness, hurts, limits, and failure. This kind of leadership does not deny weakness or brokenness – it brings them into the light where they can be transformed into greater approachability, deeper connection, and actually increase your influence. If you want to become the kind of leader who helps create a safe, grace-filled, relational atmosphere where people can truly grow, this workshop will give you the vision, practical insights, and relational tools to do so.
The EQ Lightning Round: A 3-Step Tool to Start Meetings to Build an Emotionally Intelligent Culture
Jules Wilhelm, MA, is the CEO and Founder of Jules Wilhelm Inc. and EQ-niversity™, bringing 25 years of experience as a licensed therapist and 10 years of translating clinical psychology into practical leadership strategy. She is the creator of the Impact program and Next Level Leadership™ trainings.
Most teams begin meetings carrying stress, distractions, and unspoken emotions that quietly undermine focus and collaboration. In this hands-on workshop, Jules Wilhelm teaches a simple three-step EQ process leaders can use to create a productive emotional “container” at the start of meetings, retreats, or team gatherings. Participants will learn the EQ Lightning Round, a structured team exercise that helps individuals name emotions, request support, and quickly move the group toward a focused, collaborative mindset. Leaders will practice the tool live and leave with a Team EQ process they can implement immediately with their teams.
Beyond Insight: The Whole Brain NeuroCoach Framework for Change That Sticks
Gregg Makin, Ph.D, is in Organizational Leadership, a NeuroChange Certified Specialist, and a Professionally Certified Coach (PCC). Gregg brings decades of transformative coaching and relational neuroscience experience, having trained hundreds of coaches globally.
Most coaches, counselors, and ministry leaders know how to help people gain insight, yet many still wonder why powerful conversations do not always produce lasting transformation. In this workshop, you will learn our Left–Right–Left Brain NeuroCoach Framework—a structured, integrated process that begins with clarity, focus, and psychological safety. It then shifts into right-brain attunement to access deeper implicit emotional learning, facilitates transformative relational experiences, and returns to left-brain mindsight and actionables, so that growth becomes sustainable in real life. You will discover how this model goes beyond surface-level behavior change by helping professionals uncover deeper drivers, coach more response-specifically, and use relational presence as a genuine catalyst for transformation. Whether you are a coach, counselor, pastor, or leader, this workshop will give you a practical roadmap to create sessions that are more emotionally potent, professionally distinctive, and far more likely to lead to enduring change.
How to Find Your Voice and Lead Your Life (Without Control or Collapse)
Allison Posell, MA, LPC, LMHC, is an Ordained Minister and Appreciative Inquiry/Family Systems coach. She works with Homeward Bound and various denominational conferences to support clergy, teams, and leaders through assessments, stabilization, coaching, and ongoing support.
Does your life feel like a pendulum swinging between striving to control everything and feeling like you’re falling apart? Fear of conflict, fear of being “too much”, fear of being exposed, or the need to control to feel safe can rob you of the ability to use your voice, make clear decisions, hold boundaries, and stay steady when others are upset. In this workshop, you will learn to claim healthy authority – moving beyond passivity, approval-seeking, and over-explaining – into quiet confidence, clear communication, and relational strength that doesn’t rely on intensity to be effective.
Dialogue about the Keynote Address & Supervision for Your Caseload; Open Process Group and 1:1 Coaching
Scott Makin, MA, is the founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
Scott will be available to answer any additional questions regarding the Keynote. He will also be available for supervision regarding your clients’ dynamics or next steps in the growth and healing process.
Open Process Group. For anyone who needs a place to connect or work through experiences activated by a keynote presentation or workshop. Led by Anthony Johnson, LMHC, whose passionate personal mission and unwavering commitment are devoted to fostering growth and healing.
Registered Process Groups. These groups will be taking place for those who registered for a process group experience. They are led by experienced facilitators.
1-on-1 Coaching. For anyone who needs someone to connect with or work through experiences activated by a keynote presentation or workshops. There are three experienced coaches available.
8:30 p.m.
Relational Time with coffee and desserts available
Saturday, September 19
8:30 – 9:45 a.m.
KEYNOTE: Love That Rewires: The Apostle Paul’s Relational Blueprint for Lasting Change
Gregg Makin Gregg Makin, Ph.D, is in Organizational Leadership, a NeuroRelational Certified Specialist, and a Professionally Certified Coach (PCC). Gregg brings decades of transformative coaching and relational neuroscience experience, having trained hundreds of coaches globally.
We live in a world of “go it alone” strength – yet many of us quietly pay for it with isolation, stuck patterns, and a nervous system that never fully exhales. We will explore how the deepest kind of change doesn’t come from more insight, casual connections, or willpower, but from real relationships that carry love all the way into the places we keep hidden. Through Paul the Apostle and his “band of brothers,” we’ll trace a simple, unforgettable pathway: Acknowledge, Ask, and Accept.
9:45 a.m.
Relational Time & Refreshment Break
10:15 – 11:30 a.m.
WORKSHOP 2 (Choose 1 of 5)
Using Anger for Good: Transforming Fear into Strength and Connection
Jason Cussen, MBA, MA, Founder of Hopescape Counseling Services; telehealth therapist licensed in IN, IL, MA, and TN; bringing over 20 years of clinical and leadership experience across hospital systems, community mental health, addiction treatment, and outpatient care.
Anger often feels fearful or bad, pushes others away, and is something to control or avoid. Yet God designed anger to honor your needs, strengthen your autonomy, develop boundaries, and create freedom from past, painful relational experiences—a response to unmet relational needs. Learn how anger can be a meaningful signal rather than a problem to eliminate. Integrating neuro-informed and experiential approaches, you will learn to begin with relational experiences you can place yourself in with safe people that will transform your fear of anger into an ally and friend. For professional helpers, learn how to use your attuned presence and relational safety to help anger be regulated for easier access, rather than defended against. You will learn how to move beyond surface-level strategies to provide relational experiences that address developmental deficits, so anger feels healthy and leads to meaningful connections.
From Chaos to Clarity in Parenting: NeuroRelational Strategies That Build Emotional Security, Confidence, and Healthy Boundaries
Karisa Hart, MA, in Organizational Leadership and is the Practice Administrator at Hart Dental. She is also a wife of 27 years and a mother of five very different kids, all of which has given her a deep, practical perspective on how people grow, get stuck, and find their way forward.
Many families feel like they’re constantly reacting – managing behavior, putting out fires, and navigating tension without a clear path forward. In this workshop, we’ll explore how to move from reactive parenting to intentional leadership by having a few simple strategies that build deep character in your children. Learn how to lead with attunement to address resistance and get to the root cause. Strengthen initiative and personal power to be different by finding ways to be less controlling or to do less for them. Help them deal with failure and loss through grieving with you or their friends. Develop responsibility by focusing on creating loss for bad choices rather than lecturing or shaming them. You’ll leave with tools you can apply immediately to create growth, reduce tension, and lead your family with confidence and purpose.
Emotional Intelligence in Christ: Leading with Wisdom, Self-Control, and Relational Strength
Rich Cummins, MAOL, CFRE, is the president of the Timothy Group, where he coaches Christian leaders and organizations in relational leadership and development strategy. He speaks nationally on Christ-centered leadership, emotional intelligence, and building healthy teams and organizations.
This workshop explores how emotional intelligence and spiritual formation intersect to shape effective, Christ-centered leadership. Participants will learn a practical framework—Emotional Intelligence in Christ (EIC)—that integrates personal identity in Christ, self-control, altruistic leadership, and relational connection. Through reflection and interactive discussion, leaders will examine how emotional responses influence decisions, relationships, and team culture. The session introduces the simple EIC Method (Encounter → Identify Behavior → Course Correct) to help leaders respond to pressure in ways that reflect Christ’s character. Participants will leave with practical tools to lead with greater wisdom, relational awareness, and spiritual maturity.
An Introduction to NeuroRelational Change Skills
Karen Thacker, Ph.D, LPC, is a licensed professional counselor, supervisor, adjunct professor, and NeuroChange Certification Trainer
This interactive workshop is designed to equip participants with the basic NeuroRelational Change (NRC) skills through a balanced approach that combines foundational knowledge with hands-on practice. Attendees will explore the NRC model and basic skills that support neural-network-level changes in clients. In addition to instructional content, the workshop emphasizes experiential learning in a shame- free environment. Participants will engage in guided role-plays to practice using the skills in a supportive setting. Peer feedback will deepen learning and build confidence. Whether you are new to NRC (these easily integrate into any approach) or looking to deepen your skill set, this workshop offers practical tools and strategies you can apply in your sessions. By the end of the workshop, attendees will have increased knowledge and practical experience to begin creating deep, lasting change.
A Relational Model for Junior Church That Changes How Kids Grow
Lizzy Makin is the children’s ministry director at LaFontaine Christian Church in Indiana. A former public school teacher. She comes from a multi- generational background in ministry. She leads a growing ministry of over 120 kids weekly, creating relational environments where kids are known, supported, and formed through connection.
Joel Makin, MA, is a licensed professional counselor (since 2011), a graduate of Huntington University, and an actively practicing clinician. He is the owner of Dynamic Growth Counseling LLC, a fully virtual private practice based in Wabash, Indiana.
Many of us have seen how important it is for kids to learn Bible stories and know what is true, but information alone does not always shape how they live, relate, and grow. Kids can often give the right answers and still feel alone, reactive, or unsure of what to do with their emotions and relationships. What we’ve been building is a relational model of Junior Church rooted in the way Jesus meets people, where growth happens through real, lived relational experiences, not just teaching. Each week, kids gather in consistent small groups and are coached in real time to practice skills like attuning to others, expressing themselves clearly, staying present under pressure, and responding with both care and healthy boundaries. Over time, these repeated experiences help them build the capacity to stay connected, manage emotions, and relate to others in healthier ways. In this workshop, we’ll show what this looks like each week, how it is facilitated, and how it is beginning to shape kids not only in Junior Church, but in their homes, friendships, and everyday lives.
Dialogue on the Keynote Address & Caseload Supervision; Open Process Group and 1:1 Coaching
Supervision for Your Caseload- Room Z
Scott Makin, MA, is the founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
Scott will be available to answer additional questions about the keynote and to provide supervision for those who want support in understanding their clients’ dynamics or determining next steps in the growth and healing process.
Open Process Group. For anyone who needs a place to connect or work through experiences activated by a keynote presentation or workshop. Led by Anthony Johnson, LMHC, whose passionate personal mission and unwavering commitment are devoted to fostering growth and healing.
1-on-1 Coaching. For anyone who needs someone to connect with or work through experiences activated by a keynote presentations or workshops. There are three experienced coaches available.
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch: Enjoy on-site food trucks or dine on your own in Wabash (10 minutes north) or Marion (12 minutes south).
1:00 – 2:15 p.m.
WORKSHOP 3 (Choose 1 of 5)
Developing Teams of Trust That Perform: Turning Rupture into Repair
Leslye Taylor, MA, is an Organizational Development and Leadership Architect at Performance Research Lab and creator of Loving Leadership Studio™. She helps mission-driven organizations lead complex change, build high-trust cultures, and develop leaders who multiply talent and drive lasting impact. Leslye works beneath surface-level leadership skills to strengthen foundational character capacities that drive healthy leadership and team performance: trust-building, courageous candor, emotional steadiness under pressure, confident authority, and inspiring vision.
High-performing teams are built on trust, but trust does not grow through slogans or team-building exercises. It grows through repeated experiences of honesty, accountability, and repair. In this interactive session, leaders will learn how to turn moments of tension and conflict into opportunities to strengthen trust and connection. Grounded in the Loving Leadership Advantage™ framework, participants will explore practical relational skills that reduce defensiveness, increase accountability, and help teams stay connected around a shared mission. When leaders cultivate environments of trust, people experience joyful work, their gifts multiply, and teams produce meaningful impact together.
Helping Your Athlete Bounce Back, Stay Strong, Handle Difficult Coaching, and Compete with Confidence
Anthony Johnson, MA, has worked with individuals and teams in both high-profile settings and unassuming contexts for over 30 years. An 11-year NFL career, 15 seasons as an NFL Chaplain, and the last 6 years as a licensed mental health counselor with an impassioned personal mission and an enduring drive to facilitate growth and healing.
Every sports parent wants to help their child play with confidence, handle pressure, bounce back from mistakes, and respond well to coaching. But many of the most common parenting responses – though well-intended – can accidentally increase anxiety, shame, emotional shutdown, or the fear of failure. In this practical and hope-filled workshop, parents will learn how to respond to real sports moments – mistakes, hard coaching, emotional meltdowns, slumps, pressure, and setbacks – in ways that build inner strength instead of performance fear. Drawing on the NeuroRelational Change Model, this workshop will show how parents can become a powerful source of relational security, helping young athletes develop stronger core character traits that fuel confidence, resilience, emotional regulation, motivation, and leadership. Parents will leave with a clearer understanding of how to help their child compete more freely, recover faster, stay more coachable, and grow not just as an athlete but into a mature adult with a flourishing life.
Four Steps to Deeply Hearing Your Spouse: A NeuroRelational Approach to Connection
Gregg Makin, Ph.D, in Organizational Leadership, is a NeuroRelational Certified Specialist and a Professionally Certified Coach (PCC). Gregg brings decades of transformative coaching and relational neuroscience experience, having trained hundreds of coaches globally.
Stop the cycle of trying to “fix” your partner and start building a true connection at the NeuroRelational level. Many couples find communication challenging because giving advice, even well-intentioned, often hurts marital satisfaction and leaves the speaker feeling misunderstood. This workshop will equip you with a concrete 4-step framework to shift your focus from problem-solving to attuning and understanding. This powerful shift in communication helps you feel less alone, promotes personal emotional healing, and significantly deepens intimacy by ensuring that both partners feel genuinely “gotten”, leading to lasting relationship satisfaction.
This workshop explores how emotional intelligence and spiritual formation intersect to shape effective, Christ-centered leadership. Participants will learn a practical framework—Emotional Intelligence in Christ (EIC)—that integrates personal identity in Christ, self-control, altruistic leadership, and relational connection. Through reflection and interactive discussion, leaders will examine how emotional responses influence decisions, relationships, and team culture. The session introduces the simple EIC Method (Encounter → Identify Behavior → Course Correct) to help leaders respond to pressure in ways that reflect Christ’s character. Participants will leave with practical tools to lead with greater wisdom, relational awareness, and spiritual maturity.
Betrayal Wounds: Understanding and Repairing Spiritual Betrayal
Cheryl Merrell, MA, LMHC, is a licensed mental health counselor practicing in Utah, Texas, and Idaho. She focuses on trauma and relational healing for individuals leaving high-control religious environments.
Relational wounds often occur in the very communities meant to provide belonging, care, and spiritual support. When trust is broken in faith settings, the impact can be profound – affecting identity, relationships, and spiritual life. Explore the spectrum of spiritual and relational betrayal and learn how to respond to Church hurt without defensiveness, to validate reality, to facilitate repair, and to rebuild trust with integrity and boundaries.
Joy, Attachment, and Transformation: Creating Relational Environments Where People Flourish- Room C
Mike Scamihorn, MA. Mike is deeply committed to helping others. His personal journey is a daily pilgrimage toward becoming a more “whole-brained shepherd” as he seeks to follow Jesus more closely. He welcomes those who feel stuck or isolated into meaningful, covenant relationships within a small group of three to five people.
Many people try to grow through information, willpower, or solitary effort, yet God designed transformation to happen most deeply through being welcomed into safe, emotionally present, joy-filled relationships that reshape how they experience themselves, others, and God. In this workshop, I will explore how shared experience and joyful attachment become powerful pathways for deepening discipleship, healing isolation, and fostering whole-person growth. Participants, especially pastors and leaders, will gain a fresh vision for creating relational environments where people are not merely taught the truth but experience grace-filled relationships that help the truth become embodied and lasting.
Supervision for Your Caseload, Open Process Group and 1:1 Coaching
Scott Makin is the founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
Scott will be available for those who want supervision regarding their client’s dynamics or next steps in the growth and healing process.
Open Process Group. For anyone who needs a place to connect or work through experiences activated by a keynote presentation or workshop. Led by Anthony Johnson, LMHC, whose passionate personal mission and unwavering commitment are devoted to fostering growth and healing.
Registered Process Groups. These groups will be taking place for those who registered for a process group experience. They are led by experienced facilitators.
1-on-1 Coaching. For anyone who needs someone to connect with or work through experiences activated by a keynote presentation or workshop. There are three experienced coaches available.
2:15 p.m.
Lunch: Enjoy on-site food trucks or dine on your own in Wabash (10 minutes north) or Marion (12 minutes south).
2:45 – 4:00 p.m.
WORKSHOP 4 (Choose 1 of 5)
The Heart of Daring Leadership
Kristi Mallory, MA, is an International Coaching Federation (ICF) executive coach and BetterUp coach, a certified facilitator in Dare to Lead by Brené Brown, and a Master’s in Organizational Leadership. Kristi brings 30+ years of senior leadership experience to her engaging talks, inspiring leaders to build courageous, trust-centered cultures where people feel seen, valued, and ready to do their best work.
Based on the research of Dr. Brené Brown, Dare to Lead™ is an empirically based courage-building program…what Brené refers to as a “skill-based playbook for leaders.” The most significant finding from her latest research is that courage is not an inherent quality (you either have it or you don’t) but rather it is a collection of four skill sets that are teachable, measurable, and observable. In this workshop, we will explore the four skill sets and better understand what it takes to develop the courage-building skills.
When Emotions Speak: Finding the Root beneath the Reaction
Brittany Makin, MSW, is a licensed clinical social worker supporting teens, adults, and families in navigating challenges, strengthening resilience, and deepening emotional connection. With specialized training in neuroscience, sexual concerns, and Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), Brittany integrates evidence-based, experiential approaches that help clients move beyond patterns of distress toward greater healing and relational security. She and her husband, Ben, have their own private practice.
Website: www.makingrowth.com
Many people have learned to fear, dismiss, or manage their emotions. In this workshop, you will learn how to befriend your emotions, recognizing that emotions are not the enemy – they are signals to root issues or can be used for growth and healing. These signals often reveal where core character capacities are strained or underdeveloped. Attachment deficits may surface as fear of rejection or loneliness. Separation deficits often appear in people-pleasing, fear of disapproval, or resentment. Integration deficits can manifest as all-good or all-bad, or as black-and-white thinking. Authority deficits may emerge as difficulties in interacting appropriately within various power dynamics.
Lament as Attachment Repair: Meeting God and Others in Loss Without Pretending
Allison Posell, MA, LPC, LMHC, is an Ordained Minister, and Appreciative Inquiry/Family Systems coach. She works with Homeward Bound and various denominational conferences to support clergy, teams, and leaders through assessments, stabilization, coaching, and ongoing support.
Disappointment, loss, and pain shape every one of our stories. Well-meaning words like “Think positive,” “Trust more,” “He won’t give you more than you can handle,” or “God is in control” can keep us from honestly expressing the depth of our suffering to God and others. This workshop invites you to rediscover lament as God designed it to be and how Jesus lived that out, especially after the Last Supper. Lament can be a pathway to a more genuine relationship with God, stronger connections with others, and the “real” support needed to navigate sadness and grief. Those in the helping professions will learn how to facilitate this unique pathway.
Imago Dei and the Relational Soul: How Connection Shapes Identity
Michael Anderson, MA, is a NeuroLeadership and Mental Fitness Expert, Leadership Coach, Trainer, and Speaker.
Being made in the image of God (Imago Dei) means being made for relationship. Drawing from theology and human development, we’ll examine how identity is formed in community, why isolation diminishes us, and how vulnerability reflects God’s relational nature. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of connection as essential to spiritual, personal, and relational thriving.
The Brain Remembers Grace: How Evocative Memories Restore Calm and Strength
Scott Makin, MA, is the founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
What if one of God’s hidden gifts for healing is your brain’s ability to remember grace? In this workshop, you will discover how emotionally rich memories of nurturing relationships, meaningful successes, sacred moments with God, and even sensory experiences like music, places, and objects can help restore calm, strengthen your core self, and bring stability when you feel overwhelmed or alone. Titus used evocative memories to help Paul when he was overwhelmed (2 Corinthians 7). The Israel nation used 7 annual feasts (e.g., Passover, Tabernacles, Weeks) as evocative memories of God’s love and provision. Rather than relying solely on insight, willpower, new behavioral strategies, or coping techniques, evocative memories tap into the brain’s natural capacity for self-soothing by reactivating the same comforting neural pathways associated with belonging, being loved, safety, acceptance, value, and strength. You will learn how evocative memories work, why they are so powerful in times of distress or aloneness, and how to help others intentionally access and deepen them. This powerful NeuroRelational Skill can help counselors, executive coaches, ministry leaders, and everyday believers to access deeper resilience, reduce aloneness, and intentionally build a richer inner world of grace-filled support. You will leave with practical techniques for facilitating past grace into present strength.
Face it Together! Turning Shame Into Strength
Ricky Jones, MA, works at the Union Church Counseling Center. He has 30 years of ministry experience as a Senior and Executive Pastor, a Certified Marriage Coach, a Life Coach, a Grief Counselor, and an Acute Stress & Trauma Counselor.
We all have parts of ourselves we would rather hide – failures, limitations, contradictions, unfinished places, and wounds that still ache. Yet real maturity does not come from pretending those parts are not there. It comes from learning how to face them honestly, without being overwhelmed by shame, fear, or self-rejection. This best happens in a relationship, not alone. In this powerful workshop, you will discover how your struggles, imperfections, and broken places can become the very soil where deeper strength, resilience, and freedom grow. Lasting change is not about polishing the outside, but about strengthening the inner structure that allows you to hold both your strengths and your weaknesses with greater stability and courage. Doing this with safe people will make it easier to stop running from the hard parts of your story and begin transforming them into places of wisdom, authenticity, and power.
Supervision for Your Caseload
Karen Thacker, Ph.D., LPC, licensed professional counselor, supervisor, adjunct professor, and NeuroRelational Change Certification Trainer.
Michelle Holloman, Ph.D, LMHC, is a counselor, clinical supervisor, and educator whose research focuses on the intersection of trauma, spirituality, and quality of life among helping professionals. She lives in Seattle, WA, and is married with two adult children and one needy Chihuahua.
Karen and Michelle will be available for those who want supervision regarding their client’s dynamics or next steps in the growth and healing process.
4:15 – 5:15 p.m.
KEYNOTE: Rewiring Workplace Relationships: Practical Emotional Intelligence for teams
Jules Wilhelm, MA, is the CEO and Founder of Jules Wilhelm Inc. and EQ-niversity™, bringing 25 years of experience as a licensed therapist and 10 years of translating clinical psychology into practical leadership strategy. She is the creator of the Impact program and Next Level Leadership™ trainings.
In the business world, emotional intelligence is often misunderstood. Leaders worry that addressing emotions at work will take too much time, require therapy-level skills, or create relational messes they do not know how to manage. As a result, many teams stay stuck in reactivity, disconnection, and costly communication breakdowns. In this keynote, Jules Wilhelm shares a practical, neuroscience-aware approach to building emotional intelligence in the workplace one skill at a time. Drawing from her EQ Roadmap™ and Known, Matter, and Measure Culture process, Jules demystifies how relational change happens in everyday business conversations and shows how simple, repeatable language shifts can create meaningful corrective relational experiences at work. Making the world a better place, one conversation at a time!
Sunday, September 20
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
KEYNOTE: The Loving Leadership Advantage™: Building High-Performing Teams in Mission-Driven Organizations
Leslye Taylor, MA, is an Organizational Development and Leadership Architect at Performance Research Lab and creator of Loving Leadership Studio™, helping mission-driven organizations lead complex change and build high-trust cultures that multiply talent and drive lasting impact.
Mission-driven organizations often operate in complex and rapidly changing environments. In this keynote, Leslye introduces The Loving Leadership Advantage™, a leadership framework grounded in neuroscience, organizational psychology, and strategic alignment that helps leaders cultivate Joyful Work, multiply God-given gifts, and build high-trust teams capable of delivering lasting Kingdom impact together. Participants will gain fresh insight into how leaders create environments where people thrive, gifts are multiplied, and teams unite around meaningful mission outcomes.
9:00 a.m.
Relational Time & Refreshment Break
9:30 – 10:45 a.m.
WORKSHOP 5 (Choose 1 of 5)
EMDR and the NeuroRelational Model
Cathy Laub, MA, LMHC, is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor who has her own private practice. She specializes in complex trauma and has significant experience in EMDR and group therapy.
The power of EMDR lies in its ability to directly activate and update those memory networks through memory reconsolidation, as facilitated by corrective relational experiences. When an attachment memory is reactivated in therapy and paired with new, contradictory relational experiences – held within a safe therapeutic relationship – the brain can revise the meaning encoded in that memory. This allows the underlying attachment learning that shaped core character domains to be updated at the neural level, facilitating deep-level change at a much faster pace: instead of only helping clients understand their patterns, EMDR helps rewrite the implicit core emotional learnings that created them, enabling long-lasting character transformation.
Resilient Leaders: Beating Burnout through Vulnerability
Michelle Hollomon, Ph.D., LMHC, is a counselor, clinical supervisor, and educator whose research focuses on the intersection of trauma, spirituality, and quality of life among helping professionals. She lives in Seattle, WA, and is married with two adult children and one needy Chihuahua.
Website: www.michellehollomon.com
More than half of U.S. pastors, counselors, and other leaders report feeling burned out, and many are tempted to leave their vocation altogether due to internal and external pressures. Using the Core Character Traits as a guide, this presentation will help you identify your personal burnout blind spots, implement actionables to strengthen key capacities, and access resources that support long-term resilience.
The Neuroscience Of High Performance: The Human Power Skills Of Great Leaders
Michael Anderson, MA, is a NeuroLeadership and Mental Fitness Expert, Leadership Coach, Trainer, and Speaker
In this engaging session, leadership expert Michael Anderson explains the neuroscience behind high performance and teaches the power skills that distinguish exceptional leaders. Drawing on cutting-edge research and real-world experience, he introduces three essential keys to mental fitness. Using these keys, along with Anderson’s Blueprint for High Performance, he guides leaders to think more clearly, lead with confidence, and perform under pressure. Participants will discover practical ways to apply brain science to build high-performing teams, strengthen credibility, and deepen trust with peers and direct reports. This session equips leaders with actionable tools to elevate performance — starting with how they think, lead, and connect.
From Chaos to Clarity in Parenting: NeuroRelational Strategies That Build Emotional Security, Confidence, and Healthy Boundaries. Barn, Left Room before Gym
Karisa Hart, MA, has a Master’s in Organizational Leadership and is a Practice Administrator at Hart Dental.
Many families feel like they’re constantly reacting – managing behavior, putting out fires, and navigating tension without a clear path forward. In this workshop, we’ll explore how to move from reactive parenting to intentional leadership by having a few simple strategies that build deep character in your children. Learn how to lead with attunement to address resistance and get to the root cause. Strengthen initiative and personal power to be different by finding ways to be less controlling or to do less for them. Help them deal with failure and loss through grieving with you or their friends. Develop responsibility by focusing on creating loss for bad choices rather than lecturing or shaming them. You’ll leave with tools you can apply immediately to create growth, reduce tension, and lead your family with confidence and purpose.
Supervision for Your Caseload
Scott Makin, MA, is the founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
Scott will be available for those who want supervision regarding their client’s dynamics or next steps in the growth and healing process.
Registered Process Groups
These groups will be taking place for those who registered for a process group experience. They are led by experienced facilitators.
11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
KEYNOTE: Carry It Home: A Relational Goodbye for Lasting Change
Scott Makin, MA, is the founder of the Makin Institute, Friends Counseling Center, and Co-Founder of the Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University Irvine, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Executive Coach, & Consultant
This closing session is a meaningful NeuroRelational sending experience that helps you reflect on what became real for you during the summit, deepen the connections formed along the way, and carry that growth into everyday life. Through guided reflection, attuned interaction, and one final relational experience, you will name what God has been doing, anchor it more deeply in your story, and leave with one clear next step. This is not just the end of a conference—it is a grace-filled moment of closure, connection, and commissioning. Come ready to leave not only informed, but seen, strengthened, and sent.
Experience the Life Growth Group Track
One of the most distinctive elements of the Summit is the Life Growth Group Experience. These are not discussion groups. They are guided relational growth experiences designed to create Corrective Relational Experiences (CREs)—moments where new relational realities update old emotional learnings that keep people stuck.
Participants explore how they relate to themselves, others, God, and the world around them within a safe, attuned environment. Process Groups are led by experienced facilitators, and you stay with the same people in each session.
Through honest sharing, presence, and relational attunement, many people discover that change happens not merely by learning new information but by experiencing something different in relationships.
Reserve your spot when you register today!
3 opportunities to experience a Process Group
Pre-Conference 5-Session Process Group
Friday, September 18: 2 sessions in the morning, 2 in the afternoon, and the final one during the 7:15 pm workshop.
9-Session Process Group
Friday, September 18: 2 sessions in the morning, 2 in the afternoon, one during the Friday evening workshop, 5 during each workshop time on Saturday and Sunday.
5-Session Process Group
During each workshop session starting Friday, September 18 at 7:15 pm and continuing each workshop time on Saturday and Sunday.
Come for the ideas. Stay for the experience.
Leave with a deeper understanding of how people truly change—and a lived taste of that change yourself.
NeuroRelational Summit 2026 Locations
Friday & Saturday
La Fontaine Christian Church
202 Bruner Pike, La Fountaine, IN 46940
Sunday
Charley Creek Inn
111 West Market Street, Wabash, IN 46992