NCS New Canaan

Founding Chapter

A Tale of Tragedy, Triumph and Changed Lives

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Tom Mallon humbly shares the incredible journey that took him from growing up in southern Ohio (a la “Hillbilly Elegy”) as one of seven children with nine people living in a three-bedroom, one-bathroom home to building and selling his company in an innovative way that changed the lives of his employees.

Tom describes a turning point in his faith when he asked God what it meant to be “saved”, and God vividly revealed situations in which He had provided for Tom supernaturally. From that revelation, he knew God loved him and that he was “saved”.

Tom recounts his career path from working in the local glass factory, to selling books door-to-door for seven summers (including as a Harvard Business School graduate without a job), to 11 years in commercial real estate, to watching his first business venture fail due to a bad partnership, to starting the business that he would eventually build, sell to an ESOP and then sell to a Catholic health system, resulting in the lives of his employees being profoundly changed (13 employees becoming millionaires, 3 more receiving $900,000 and even the lowest-paid employees walking away with $400-500,000).

Tom vulnerably shares how God used a triple-tragedy (death of his first business dream, death of his father, and a health challenge) to “roto-rooter” his soul in preparation for his second business venture.

He describes the growth of his second venture and the drawn-out sale process that took the business through two letters of intent before the Holy Spirit convicted him to pursue an ESOP sale by asking “what is the best business decision you can make for your company’s future that will increase the ministry and mission of the business?” Tom also shares how the faithful culture of the business grew after the ESOP sale.

Finally, Tom explains the lessons he learned about the importance of “aligned capital” and how those lessons led to the formation of his current venture, Perpetuate Capital.

Adventures of a Urogynecologist (Dr. Bob Lobel – 1/6/23 – NCS New Canaan)

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With incredible courage, humility and vulnerability, Dr. Bob Lobel shares the challenges and pain that can come from “family of origin” problems–in his case never feeling he could meet his father’s expectations.

Bob explains that, despite being seen by others as a hugely successful and confident surgeon, those childhood feelings manifested as intense “shame” that has impacted his marriage, relationships, career and life. He describes it as a “chronic illness” that requires daily “medication”.

Despite growing up in a home devoid of religion or God, Bob talks about the deep faith that has helped him survive horrific tragedies, including the loss of a child to SIDs and his first wife to cancer.

As the founder of the NCS Albany chapter, Bob shares the profound impact NCS has had in his life: his first NCS experience was a Retreat at Mohonk Mountain House, an NCS Retreat at Hershey opened the door to understanding his shame, and an NCS Retreat at the Homestead helped his family heal from the loss of his first wife.

This is an NCS brudder truly taking off his mask in the hope that revealing his pain may help others begin to face and heal from theirs.

Running the Good Race (Reginald Jones III – 12/16/22 – NCS New Canaan)

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With incredible humility and authenticity, Reginald “Regg” Jones III shares a unique and fascinating faith, family and life journey that had its faith roots at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Darien, site of an incredible spiritual revival documented in the book The Miracle in Darien by Bob Slosser.

Regg describes growing up with a father who decided to change the trajectory of his family by making time with his children a priority and how Regg came to face the same challenge with his own family. He explains the four “family values” that shaped much of his educational and professional journey and how he came to accept Jesus Christ as his Lord at the tender age of 11.

Jones talks about how his faith grew through the mentorship of others, the struggle he experienced after college in deciding between pursuing a path in “ministry” or “business”, how those mentors helped him choose business, and how he later came to understand that his choice was based on a false dichotomy, learning that both paths constituted “ministry”.

Regg describes his professional path through top firms such as Pepsico, Apple, Bain and Goldman Sachs, and the lessons they taught him about organizational culture. He explains how he learned to carry and share his faith in those environments and how all those lessons about culture and faith eventually helped shape the vision and culture of Greenbriar, the private equity firm he founded in his 30’s.

Regg explains the four pillars of Greenbriar’s unique culture that was born from a vision to take the best of the corporate cultures he had experienced and shape them by his faith, and he describes why he believes “love wins” even in the marketplace.

With remarkable vulnerability, Jones talks about how he navigated the challenges along the way and how God showed up with “kisses from Heaven” to encourage and guide him at just the right times. He describes challenges such as balancing a demanding career with family life, starting a new business in the midst of 9/11, and walking the “thin green line” between success and failure, always trusting in God’s providence.

Finally, Regg explains the vision that inspired his involvement in the founding of Trinity Church Greenwich.

Three Lessons from a Journey with Jesus (Bishop Frank Caggiano – 12/2/22 – NCS New Canaan)

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With wonderful humor and great humility and authenticity, The Most Reverend Frank J. Caggiano, the Fifth Bishop of the Catholic diocese of Bridgeport, CT, shares the incredible twists and turns of his lifelong faith journey, as well as three lessons learned along the path.

Caggiano describes with tremendous transparency life growing up in a closely-knit Brooklyn community as an Italian-American son of immigrant parents. He talks about his father’s extreme pride when he was accepted into Yale and his father’s heart-wrenching disappointment when he announced he was going to seminary.

Caggiano explains the two calls that have been on his life. First, the call to step up and be a man of faith–letting his life be claimed by Jesus–which he humbly admits is a project still underway. Second, his call to leadership and the challenges in discerning, understanding and finally accepting that call.

With extraordinary vulnerability, Caggiano then shares three life lessons from his faith journey, including the difficult ways in which some were learned:

  • Caggiano tells how, in choosing to pursue his call to the priesthood, he learned that the things you want in life are not always the things you need in life. He describes how he left seminary to pursue the material comfort he wanted, how God gave him everything he wanted in a lucrative business career, how he came to reorient his heart toward the one thing we need–Jesus, and how that reoriented his entire universe to see everything as a blessing.
  • Caggiano shares how, through his stubborn resistance to his call to the priesthood and God’s relentless pursuit, he learned to appreciate God’s gracious love, accept the call as a blessing, and finally surrender to Jesus as his master.
  • Caggiano explains how, through the death of a young priest and the wisdom of a mentor, he learned that his life would not be measured by its length or accomplishments but by the quality of life he shared with others in faithful witness through presence, authenticity and honesty. In sharing that what allows us to persevere is the assurance that the Holy Spirit can give us the courage to be disciples wherever we are and to stand with Christ regardless of what the world says or how it reacts, Caggiano humbly admits that this is a lesson he is still learning.

Bishop Caggiano ends with a wonderful word of encouragement about the blessing and importance of men being able to meet in the spirit of the New Canaan Society–a safe place where men can remove their masks, support each other and share the life lessons learned in our journey with Jesus.

So, let me just end by saying this. You are very blessed to have this gathering. For me, coming as a brother and witnessing what you are–don’t ever take it for granted. There are not many safe spaces where we can gather and drop our masks and be who we are called to be and to share whatever life lessons we have learned in the grace of Jesus Christ. So, I must tell you I am very grateful to have shared this morning with you, and perhaps, if time permits, I may be able to join you not as a speaker but just as a brother in faith.

Following Bishop Caggiano’s talk is an extended Q&A covering topics such as the faith implications of being a Mets fan and the important role of fathers.

The Making of a Christian Lawyer (Joseph Ruta – 10/21/22 – NCS New Canaan)

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With a wonderful mix of humor and humility, Joseph Ruta shares the fascinating journey that led him from a largely secular upbringing at an Italian family resort in the Catskills to his faith as a follower of Jesus and his profession as a lawyer.

In his unique and entertaining style, Ruta describes with tremendous transparency what it was like growing up in a “very Italian” family that moved from Brooklyn to the Catskills to operate a summer resort during the 1970’s. He vulnerably explains the challenge of going from being the popular social director and emcee at the resort nightclub (at the age of 13) to struggling to fit in and be accepted when the resort closed for the season and school began.

Joe talks about how testifying in court when he was very young planted the desire to become a lawyer, and how the miraculous faith healing of a friend’s father began his exploration of faith. Ruta also shares the details of his own faith awakening (followed by a baptism in the resort pool), and how he came to walk away from his faith–only to return with even greater commitment and passion after a sudden revelation while living in Manhattan.

Ruta tells how his return to faith led him to Times Square Church, where he met his wife. It is a marvelous and funny story of how God can use the most unlikely people and circumstances to guide, shape and equip one of His children.

Below are images of a postcard from the Dellwood resort, showing the Marco Polo Lounge where Joe was the 13-year-old emcee.

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