As we celebrate the remarkable career of Cindy Shaw, we reflect on her 18 years of dedicated service at IPC.
One of Cindy's most notable achievements was the founding of Grace Groups, a ministry that has fostered spiritual growth and deepened connections among members. The Grace Group ministry was the first “official” small group ministry at IPC. Cindy has done a remarkable job in envisioning, implementing and nurturing this ministry over the years, as well as encouraging a growing number of members and friends of IPC to participate in Grace Groups each year. Shortly after the end of COVID, when everyone was feeling the deep need to reconnect with our family of faith, Cindy had the idea to start a new fellowship ministry at IPC called IPC Connect. Her vision for IPC Connect has further strengthened our community bonds and provided a welcoming space for all. We have all enjoyed spending time in the homes of church members, attending local theater productions, learning to play Mah Jong, learning ballroom dancing, and attending social events in venues across the city. IPC Connect provides a space for deepening our relationships with one another in a fun and relaxed atmosphere.
Beyond these initiatives, Cindy's contributions extend to numerous other ministry areas. For many years, Cindy was a primary point person for the Fourth Quarter ministry to senior adults at IPC, and planned many meals, day trips and even overnight adventures for the “mature” adults in our congregation! In addition, Cindy served for many years as the facilitator of the Strengthfinders ministry of IPC. This small group ministry allowed existing members of IPC, IPC staff and several years of new member classes to meet in a small group setting, deepen their relationships with each other, and use the Strengthfinders book to discover their spiritual gifts and strengths and discuss how they could best use those gifts in ministry at IPC.
As you can see, Cindy’s ministry has always been about connecting IPC members to one another to deepen our fellowship opportunities and our relationships within our church family, as well as fostering opportunities for us to deepen our relationship to God and our discipleship to Jesus Christ. And she has done all of her work with joy, love and faithfulness.
As Cindy embarks on her well-deserved retirement, though we will miss her, we celebrate her legacy of service and commitment to fostering genuine relationships. We wish her joy and fulfillment in this new chapter.
