Archbishop William E. Lori, S.T.D.

Chairman of the Board

Archbishop of Baltimore

Archbishop Lori serves as Archbishop of Baltimore, MD, the first See (diocese) in the United States.

A longtime defender of religious liberty, Archbishop Lori is the former chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine and the Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty. He currently serves as a member of the Administrative Committee, the Priorities and Plans Committee, the Committee on Pro-Life Activities and the Promotion and Defense of Marriage Committee. He serves as a consultant to the Committee on Doctrine, the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism and the Committee for Religious Liberty. He is also the Supreme Chaplain for the Knights of Columbus.

Archbishop Lori formerly served as Bishop of Bridgeport, CT (2001-20012) and as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. (1995-2001). He received his Bachelor’s degree from the Seminary of Saint Pius X in Erlanger, KY; a Master’s degree from Mount Saint Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, MD; and a Doctorate in Sacred Theology(S.T.D.) from The Catholic University of America. Archbishop Lori is a founder of Catholic Benefits Association.

Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, S.T.L., D.D.

Vice Chairman of the Board

Archbishop of Oklahoma City

In 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Paul S. Coakley as the fourth Archbishop of Oklahoma City, OK. He previously served as Bishop of Salina, KS (2004-2010). His episcopal motto is “Duc in Altum” (Put Out into the Deep), which is found in Saint Luke’s gospel when Jesus, after teaching the crowds from Simon’s boat, invites the apostles to “put out into the deep” and lower their nets for a catch (Lk. 5:4).

On Nov. 11, 2025, Archbishop Coakley was elected the president of the U.S. Catholic  Bishops’ Conference. 

He received his Bachelor’s degree in English and Classical Antiquities from the University of Kansas; his Masters and Masters of Divinity from Mount St. Mary Seminary in Emmitsburg. MD; and his Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. Archbishop Coakley is a founder of Catholic Benefits Association.

Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond, M.D.V.

Archbishop of New Orleans

Archbishop Gregory Aymond is the first New Orleans native to serve as its Archbishop in the 216-year history of the archdiocese. He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of New Orleans in 1975 and is a graduate of both St. Joseph Seminary College (1971) and Notre Dame Seminary, from which he received his Master of Divinity degree (M.D.V.) in 1975. He was a professor and rector of St. John Vianney Preparatory School until 1981 after which he served as professor of pastoral theology and homiletics and director of pastoral education at Notre Dame Seminary, where he served as president-rector for 14 years. Archbishop Aymond also served as Executive Director of the Archdiocesan Christian Formation and Director of the Archdiocesan Propagation of the Faith.

He was ordained an auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans in 1997, appointed Bishop of Austin in 2000, and returned to the Archdiocese of New Orleans upon his appointment as its Archbishop in 2009.

He has chaired the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on the Protection of Children and Young People and the Committee on Divine Worship. From 2000-2004 he chaired the National Catholic Education Association. In addition to serving on several USCCB committees, Archbishop Aymond is Chairman of the National Catholic Bioethics Center. He was elected to the Boards of the Catholic Benefit Association and the Catholic Insurance Company in 2016.

Most Reverend John O. Barres, J.C.L.

Bishop of Rockville Centre

The Most Reverend John O. Barres, S.T.D., J.C.L., is the fifth Bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre (Long Island, NY).  Previously, he served as the Bishop of the Diocese of Allentown (PA) from 2009 to 2016.

He is a graduate of Phillips Academy (Andover), Princeton University and the New York University Graduate School of Business and holds advanced theological degrees from the Catholic University of America and the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome.  Bishop Barres serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Catholic University of America.

His Episcopal motto “Holiness and Mission” is taken from Pope St. John Paul II’s encyclical Redemptoris Missio, which emphasizes the universal call to holiness and mission in the Catholic Church.  It also expresses Bishop Barres’ commitment to Pope Leo’s XIV’s emphasis on global Catholic missiology and evangelization and the call for a “missionary conversion” of Catholic parishes and every dimension of Catholic life and witness to the world.

Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone, J.D., J.C.L.

Archbishop of San Francisco

Salvatore J. Cordileone was born in San Diego on June 5, 1956 to Leon and Mary Cordileone, who raised their family in Blessed Sacrament Parish. Salvatore was the second son and the third of their four children.

In December 1974, during his first year of college at San Diego State University, he was encouraged by a young parish priest he respected to attend a seminary vocation retreat. It was during this first year that the Archbishop discerned his call to the priesthood, entering St. Francis Seminary and transferring as a sophomore to the University of San Diego. He was ordained a priest on July 9, 1982. 

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone was appointed Judicial Vicar for the Diocese of San Diego in 1990 and served as an assistant to the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura in Rome from 1995-2002.

On July 5, 2002, Pope John Paul II appointed him the Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of San Diego, where he served until his appointment as Bishop of Oakland on March 23, 2009. On July 27, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as the ninth Archbishop of San Francisco.

Archbishop Cordileone is a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth and also of its Committee for Canonical Affairs and Church Governance. He currently serves as well on the USCCB Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism, Subcommittee on the Catechism, and Eucharistic Revival Bishops’ Advisory Group. In addition, the Archbishop serves on a number of boards to support Church efforts beyond the USCCB, including Cross Catholic Outreach, the Courage Apostolate Episcopal Board, the Governing Board of the International Theological Institute in Trumau, Austria, and the Episcopal Advisory Board of the Catholic Healthcare Leaders Association.

Bishop John T. Folda, S.T.L.

Bishop of Fargo

The Most Reverend John Folda is currently serving as the Bishop of Fargo. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1989 for the Diocese of Lincoln, NE. Bishop Folda attended St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia where he obtained a bachelor of arts in philosophy and a master of divinity. He went on to the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome for his licentiate in sacred theology.

As a priest, he served the Lincoln diocese as pastor, diocesan director of religious education, spiritual director and as rector of St. Gregory the Great Seminary. He also served on the board of directors to Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital and was a member of Catholic Social Service Board and the Ethics Committee of St. Elizabeth Regional Medical Center.

Bishop Folda was installed as the Bishop of Fargo on June 19, 2013 and has served on various committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda, J.D., J.C.L.

Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

Archbishop Bernard Hebda is the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Ordained a priest for the Diocese of Pittsburgh in 1989, his route to the priesthood and episcopacy was different than most in that he was graduated from Harvard University (1980) and Columbia University School of Law (J.D. Degree 1983) before enrolling in St. Paul Seminary in Pittsburgh (1984). Archbishop Hebda completed his philosophy studies at Duquesne University before going to the North American College in Rome where he completed his theological studies, earning his S.T.B. from the Pontifical Gregorian University (1989) and his licentiate in canon law (1990).

He returned to Pittsburgh to serve in the bishop’s office as Master of Ceremonies and as director of campus ministry at Slippery Rock University Newman Center, before being called to Rome in 1996 to work for the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, the council responsible for the interpretation of the Code of Canon Law. St. John Paul II named him Undersecretary of the Council in 2003. While in Rome, he also served as an adjunct spiritual director at the North American College and as a confessor for the postulants of the Missionaries of Charity (founded by Saint Teresa of Kolkata) and for the Sisters of that community working at a home for unwed mothers.

He was named Fourth Bishop of the Diocese of Gaylord in Michigan on October 7, 2009, by Pope Benedict XVI. His Episcopal ordination took place on December 1, 2009. On September 24, 2013, Pope Francis named Bishop Hebda Coadjutor Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Newark. While serving in Newark, Archbishop Hebda lived in a dormitory at Seton Hall University and renewed his interest in campus ministry. On June 15, 2015, Pope Francis named him Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, in addition to his responsibilities in Newark. On March 24, 2016, Pope Francis named him Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.

He is currently the Treasurer of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and a member of the USCCB Committee on Canonical Affairs and Church Governance. Archbishop Hebda was elected to the Boards of the Catholic Benefits Association and the Catholic Insurance Company in 2016.

Most Reverend Richard G. Henning, S.T.D.

Archbishop of Boston

Archbishop Richard G. Henning was born in Rockville Centre, New York in 1964 to Richard and Maureen Henning, the first of five siblings. He grew up in Valley Stream, N.Y., and attended Holy Name of Mary Parish and grade school. In the summers, Archbishop Henning spent a good deal of time on a small island in Long Island’s Great South Bay, where his family has gone for generations. There, he developed a lifelong passion for the water, sailing, boating and kayaking on the bay.

Archbishop Henning received his training for the priesthood at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, New York. He was ordained a priest in 1992 and has extensive experience ministering in a large parish school and to the Spanish-speaking Catholics of Port Washington. In addition to fluency in English and Spanish, Archbishop Henning speaks Italian and can read French, Greek and Hebrew.

In 1997, Father Henning was sent to complete post-graduate studies in Sacred Scripture. He earned a Licentiate in Biblical Theology at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. and a Doctorate in the same from the University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, Italy.

In 2018, Pope Francis appointed Archbishop Henning as an auxiliary bishop in the Diocese of Rockville Centre, where he served as a regional Vicar and later as the Vicar for Clergy and Pastoral Planning. In November 2022, the Holy Father appointed Archbishop Henning as the Coadjutor Bishop of Providence, R.I. He succeeded Bishop Tobin as the Bishop of Providence on May 1, 2023.

In August 2024, Pope Francis appointed Archbishop Henning as Archbishop of Boston, and he was formally installed on October 31, 2024. Archbishop Henning is active in the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, serving on multiple committees. He also serves on the boards of several seminaries and universities.

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann, D.D.*

Archbishop of Kansas City, KS

Archbishop Joseph Naumann is the Emeritus Archbishop of Kansas City, KS. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1975 after study at St. Louis Preparatory Seminary South (1967), Cardinal Glennon College (1971) and theological studies at Kenrick Seminary (1975).

He spent his early years as a priest in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, MO where he served as Vicar General (1994-2003) and an Auxiliary Bishop of St. Louis (ordained 1997). He was then appointed Coadjutor of the Archdiocese of Kansas City, KS (January 2004) and on January 15, 2005 assumed the responsibilities of as the 4th Archbishop and 11th Bishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City, KS.

He has served on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Pro-Life Activities, Committee on Marriage and Family, the Kenrick-Glennon Seminary Board of Trustees and Chairs the Kansas Catholic Conference. Archbishop Naumann was elected to the Boards of the Catholic Benefits Association and the Catholic Insurance Company in 2016.

*After his retirement as Archbishop of Kansas City, KS, in May 2025, Archbishop Naumann agreed to continue serving on the CBA Board in an Emeritus capacity.

Most Reverend Joe Vásquez, S.T.L.

Archbishop of Galveston-Houston

Archbishop Vásquez was born July 9, 1957, in Stamford, Texas to Juan and Elvira Vásquez. He is the eldest of six children with three brothers: Robert Vásquez, Samuel Vásquez, and James Vásquez; and two sisters: Cynthia Martínez and Consuelo Garza.

He obtained a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Saint Mary’s Seminary in Houston, and a licentiate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

He was ordained a priest on June 30, 1984, for the Diocese of San Angelo. He was appointed titular bishop of Cova and Auxiliary Bishop of Galveston-Houston on November 30, 2001, and was ordained a bishop on January 23, 2002. On January 26, 2010, he was appointed Bishop of Austin. On March 25, 2025, he was installed as the Archbishop of Galveston-Houston.

Archbishop Vásquez currently serves as a consultant to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Pro-Life Activities. He has previously served on the following committees of the USCCB: Chair, Committee on Migration; Administrative Committee; Committee for Religious Liberty; consultant to the Committee on International Justice and Peace, the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, Subcommittee on Hispanic Affairs; and the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism. He also previously served on the Board of Directors of Catholic Relief Services and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.

Most Reverend Edward J. Weisenburger, J.C.L.

Archbishop of Detroit

Archbishop Edward Joseph Weisenburger was born December 23, 1960, in Alton, Illinois. He earned his S.T.B. in Theology and M.A. in Religious Studies from Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium, and his J.C.L. in canon law from the University of St. Paul, Ottawa. He was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City on December 19, 1987.

His extensive administrative and governance experience includes serving as Vice-Chancellor, Adjutant Judicial Vicar, and Vicar General of the Oklahoma City Archdiocese.

He was appointed eleventh Bishop of Salina, Kansas (2012), seventh Bishop of Tucson (2017), and sixth Archbishop of Detroit (2025). He has served the USCCB on the committees for the Protection of Children, Migration, and the Catholic Communications Campaign subcommittee. He currently serves as Episcopal Moderator for the National Association of Church Personnel Administrators and is a board member of the Vatican Observatory Foundation. He is a Fourth Degree Knight of Columbus and Knight Commander with Star in the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem.

Most Reverend Thomas J. Wenski

Archbishop of Miami

Archbishop Thomas Wenski is the Archbishop of Miami. After being named coadjutor bishop of Orlando in 2003, and taking over as bishop in 2004, Miami’s “native son” returned to South Florida in 2010 as the archdiocese’s fourth archbishop. He quickly moved to reopen some parishes that had been closed due to the 2009 financial crisis, and launched a second archdiocesan synod in 2012. It concluded in October 2013 with a Strategic Pastoral Plan which began to be implemented in 2014.

In 2003, the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Migration and its Mexican counterpart published “Strangers No Longer: Together on the Journey of Hope,” a first-ever joint pastoral statement urging better treatment of Mexican immigrants in the U.S.

Archbishop Wenski also has traveled as far away as Korea and the Congo to study the plight of refugees. And he has been heavily involved in PROCHE, the international Partnership for Church Reconstruction in Haiti in response to the January 2010 Port-au-Prince earthquake. He continues to speak out as strongly for immigrants as for the unborn, and urges Catholics to set an example of holiness in a world full of outrage and divisiveness.

Sister Pia Jude, S.V., J.D.

Sisters of Life

Sister Pia Jude was born and raised in New Jersey. After graduating from St. Peter’s University in Jersey City, N.J., Sister Pia Jude attended Rutgers School of Law and obtained her Juris Doctorate.

She worked for several years at a major corporate law firm in New York City before meeting the Sisters of Life and entering the community in 2013. Sister Pia Jude professed her final vows on August 6, 2021, and currently provides legal assistance to the Office of the Superior General, which ultimately supports and upholds each Sister of Life and the missions of service to vulnerable pregnant women, those suffering after abortion, and men and women in need of the liberating message of the dignity of every human life.

Sister Pia Jude has been deeply inspired by the dedication and love of Pro-Lifers, having served in the Sisters’ missions to the Co-Workers of Life and the Respect Life Office for the Archdiocese of New York. Her family is doubly blessed, as her twin sister is also a Sister of Life.

Sister Brigid Mary Meeks, R.S.M., J.D.

Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma

Sister Brigid Mary Meeks is a Religious Sister of Mercy of Alma, MI. She entered religious life in 2013 and perpetually professed in 2021. Prior to entering the Sisters of Mercy, she attended Davidson College, where she played Division I soccer and majored in Early British Literature.

As an undergraduate student, she was president and founder of the largest student body organization: a mentorship organization that trained upperclassmen to be leaders and assigned them to incoming first year students to support their transition to college. During the summer between her Junior and Senior year, she worked at an international law firm in Tbilisi, Georgia, where she had her re-version to the faith. By God’s providence, she got homesick and left Georgia the day before Russia invaded Georgia. After college, Sister Brigid Mary served in her home diocese— the Archdiocese of Denver— as Director of Youth Ministry for Our Lady of Loreto Parish.

Upon entering the Religious Sisters of Mercy, her first assignment was to St. Francis Health System. Her work there as a novice marked out the path for her future studies. She was sent to obtain her masters in bioethics and then a law degree, with a concentration in health law. She graduated from Villanova Law School with high honors in 2022.

Immediately following graduation, she returned to St. Francis Health System to serve in its legal department for one year; from 2023-2024, she clerked for the Hon. Morgan T. Zurn in the Delaware Court of Chancery. She now serves at her motherhouse in Alma, MI as the secretary to the superior general and in-house counsel for her community.

Sister Mary Peter Muehlenkamp, O.P., J.D.

St. Cecilia Congregation

Sister Mary Peter has been a Dominican Sister of St. Cecilia Congregation in Nashville, Tennessee since 1996 and presently serves as In-House Counsel and Immigration Coordinator for the Congregation.

She has taught in various Catholic elementary and secondary schools and was president of her community’s Aquinas College in Nashville from 2007-2011.

Sister Mary Peter received her Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Northern Kentucky University, her Juris Doctor from Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University, and Post-Baccalaureate Teacher Certification from Aquinas College.

Helen M. Alvaré, J.D.

Professor of Law at George Mason University School of Law

Helen Alvaré is a Professor of Law at Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University where she teaches Family Law, Law and Religion and Property Law and is a faculty advisor to the school’s Civil Rights Law Journal.

Ms. Alvaré served as a consultor to the Pontifical Council of the Laity (Vatican City) for eight years, and is an advisor to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops USCCB). She is also the founder of Women Speak for Themselves, an organization of women who support the competing voice offered by religious organizations and individuals regarding sex, marriage, family life and religious freedom.

Ms. Alvaré is a prolific writer on the issues of marriage and family and a committed advocate for the First Amendment rights of religious organizations and individuals. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from Villanova University, her Master’s degree in Systematic Theology from The Catholic University of America and her Juris Doctor from Cornell University School of Law.

Thomas M. Buckley

General Counsel – Archdiocese of St. Louis

Tom has served as in house General Counsel for the Archdiocese of St. Louis since 2012. He oversees the legal affairs of the local Church, its parishes and agencies.

Tom is an Adjunct Professor of School Law at St. Louis University. He currently serves on the boards of directors of the Bishops Plan Insurance Company, a Vermont domiciled property and casualty insurer, and the St. Thomas More Society – a St. Louis association of Catholic lawyers.  He is a past director of the National Catholic Educational Association in Arlington, Virginia.

Tom received his Bachelor of Arts and Sciences degree from St. Louis University and his Juris Doctor from St. Louis University School of Law. Tom is a Knight of the Equestrian Order of Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.

Beth Elfrey, J.D.

Chief Human Resources Officer at Knights of Columbus

Beth Elfrey serves as the Chief Human Resources Officer at the Knights of Columbus. Prior to joining the Knights, Ms. Elfrey served as the Director, Fraud/Bank Secrecy Act in the Internal Revenue Service’s Small Business/Self-Employed Operating Division; she also was an attorney in the Department of Justice Tax Division.

She graduated with high honors from Florida International University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration (Accounting major) and received her Juris Doctor with honors from Georgetown University Law Center.

Nancy Matthews, J.D.

Nancy Matthews is a graduate of Smith College and an honors graduate of the University of Connecticut School of Law. She is the retired Chancellor of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Conn. She has served Catholic Benefits Association as Corporate Secretary and Membership Director since their inception in 2013.

Carla K. Mills

Chief Financial Officer – Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas

Carla Mills has served as the Chief Financial Officer for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas since 2013. She leads the Accounting, Human Resources, Internal Audit and Pastoral Center departments and serves on the Archbishop’s leadership team. Ms. Mills is a Dame Commander with the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem and a Charter Member of Legatus in Kansas City.

Ms. Mills has a background in non-profit accounting from her time with Catholic Charities of Kansas City-St. Joseph. Prior to joining the non-profit world, she was Vice President of Finance for an investment management company and a senior finance manager for a pharmaceutical company. Ms. Mills earned her CPA after beginning her career with Ernst and Young.

She serves on a number of boards including the Diocesan Fiscal Management Conference and Catholic Cemeteries of Northeast Kansas. Ms. Mills earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Kansas State University and an MBA from Rockhurst University.

Douglas G. Wilson, Jr.

CEO

A Marine and Viet Nam veteran, Doug Wilson majored in English Literature at Georgia State University where he also completed his Master’s in Healthcare Administration. He went on to make a career of reviving struggling hospitals around the United States. More recently he led the start-up and growth of two new healthcare technology companies. Doug now serves as Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Benefits Association.

L. Martin Nussbaum

General Counsel

Martin Nussbaum is the General Counsel for the Catholic Benefits Association.  He also is founding partner of First and Fourteenth PLLC, a boutique firm advising and advocating for religious institutions nationwide. 

Martin graduated Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude from the University of Notre Dame with a degree in Theology.

He is a consultant to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Religious Freedom Committee and a member of the Executive Committee of the National Diocesan Attorneys Association. 

Sister Diane Marie McGrew, O.S.F – In Memoriam

Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis

Sister Diane Marie McGrew, O.S.F., became a member of The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in 1988.

Sister Diane Marie was appointed President of OSF Healthcare System in 2006. Beyond her role as president, Sister’s service extended to various pivotal positions within her religious congregation and its health care ministries. She was elected to the Governing Board of the Congregation and assumed the office of treasurer in 2000, demonstrating her financial stewardship and commitment to the Congregation’s Mission. Additionally, her longstanding presence on the boards of OSF HealthCare, OSF HealthCare Foundation and OSF Saint Francis, Inc., exemplified her deep-rooted dedication to the advancement of the OSF Ministry and its philanthropic efforts.

Sister Diane Marie was a member of the Finance Council of the Catholic Diocese of Peoria since 1995 and a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives.  Sister earned a Bachelor of Business degree in accounting from Western Illinois University, Macomb, Illinois.

Sister Diane Marie died on June 9, 2024 after a long battle with ovarian cancer.