Nazareth welcomes back Katherine Banasiak, recognized as a 2019 West Suburban Chamber of Commerce “Regional 30 under 40” recipient. She had been working at Pillars Community Health where she oversaw its development office but previously had worked in the development department at Nazareth.

Although she enjoyed her job in healthcare, she missed the atmosphere at Naz. The family culture and warmth at Naz make for an excellent environment for everyone, said Banasiak. 

Banasiak works as the director of development where she works with Nazareth’s donors, supporters, and alumni daily. She loves to work with her Nazareth team and enjoys being able to oversee all of the moving parts of the business office. This year, Banasiak’s main focus is working on the Jack Wheeler Golf Outing and Nazareth’s second largest fundraising event, The WALK. “I love how I am always busy and I always have something to work on!” said Banasiak.

Banasiak graduated from Wittenberg University with a degree in communications and journalism. Banasiak then went on to work at a small magazine after college. She is very grateful for her degree in journalism as her job includes a lot of writing, but she said she is happy where she is. She believes her greatest strengths are her writing skills and her personal relationship skills which stemmed from her study of journalism. 

Banasiak says that she is gradually working on shifting her mindset from healthcare to student life each day. She feels that she is a very enthusiastic person and is incredibly passionate about her job and family. Her husband, Sean Banasiak, is a science teacher and coach here at Nazareth. Banasiak says that she loves spending time with him and their son.

Banasiak prides herself on her innate personal relationship skills. “Being relatable helps. It helps make conversations more natural and comfortable,” she said. Banasiak is a kind, hardworking person and Naz is lucky to have her back.