Highlights from IPM’s 40th Anniversary Year Celebratory Activities & Inaugural General Assembly

December 2014Vol. XXV - No. 2

FORGING CONNECTIONS:CelebrAtInG 40 YeArs

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A Publication of IPM (International Partners in Mission)

FORGING CONNECTIONS:CelebrAtInG 40 YeArs

IMAGIne. Inspired, Immersed, and Invested, the General Assembly and Related Celebratory Activities highlighted in this Special Edition of Connections provided a strategic series of moments to imagine the next four decades of IPM. With representatives from across the IPM Family, we came together to reshape IPM’s governance model in a more inclusive fashion, shared stories of transformation, and imagined a more impactful future for IPM.

The imagination we shared is highlighted throughout this Special Issue. It was carried back with each of the delegates to their respective homes and communities. Most importantly, it lives on in the hearts and souls of all of us as we reshape IPM to Inspire, Immerse, and Invest in a new generation of IPM Partners and Friends at the dawn of IPM’s next forty years.

Thank you for all you do to Inspire, Immerse, and Invest yourself in the IPM Family. Your love and imagination are what make all this possible.

Peace, Joseph F. Cistone

Cleveland, OH, USA December 23, 2014

Follow Joe on Twitter @JosephFCistone

Find Joe on Facebook at www.facebook.com/joseph.cistone

On tHe COVer: IPM Project Partners, International Staff, and Friends from EL SALVADOR, INDIA, NICARAGUA, and the USA stand before the attractive skyline of Cleveland, Ohio, the host city of IPM’s Inaugural General Assembly. The city offered a hospitable welcome to IPM Partners who travelled from warmer regions of the world as indigenous representatives for their home communities.

Throughout the week, I kept coming back to four “I” words I have touched on in earlier writings, and that strike me now more than ever as the meaning of IPM: Inspire, Immerse, Invest, and Imagine. While no particular word can adequately summarize the totality of IPM or any specific stage in IPM’s organizational development, these four capture both IPM’s remarkable past and aspirations for the future.

InsPIre. Whenever I speak with anyone involved in the founding of IPM, it is crystal clear that what moved the founders and their friends to create this remarkable organization was the life-changing inspiration that the old model of “mission” was no longer relevant or appropriate. As relatively young missionaries, the Mayer & Strege families—along with other close colleagues like Dennis Hilgendorf & Ellen Hilgendorf-Mead, George Hrbek, and Dick Sering (see related stories on page 5)—realized that the position the Church of their childhood placed them in, both domestically and internationally, was untenable. With IPM, the women and men of India, Lebanon, and Nicaragua would no longer be objects of proselytization, but brothers and sisters in the creative work of bringing the Peaceable Kingdom to life on Earth. Such insight inspired thousands of people of faith to see one another for the first time as Partners who could join hands and hearts together in a shared struggle for social justice, regardless of the cultural, economic, and sectarian divisions among them. Such inspiration drew me to IPM and led directly to the next “I.”

IMMerse. Those of you who are newer to IPM might rightly assume that Immerse is the root of IPM’s premier programmatic initiative of the past decade: the Immersion Experience Program. But to be immersed is much more than a short-term sojourn among IPM’s

Partners worldwide. To truly be immersed—whether in Metropolitan Saint Louis or San Salvador—is to walk alongside those who often hover on the margins of our societies and to be converted to a new way of life through our encounter with them. As Jay McNally recounts on page 12, such a journey opens our eyes and our souls to a transcendent reality that our consumer-driven culture seeks to deny. The simple truth of Immersion is this: when we humbly enter into partnership with our brothers and sisters around the world, we learn that we all share the same hopes, dreams, and aspirations for our families, communities, and ourselves. The question is: what next?

InVest. The obvious step is to invest. For some of us, this has meant forty years of committed giving in support of a particular IPM Partner or program. For others, it might mean helping out with a mailing or hosting an IPM gathering in one’s home. For an increasing number of us, it is offering our personal and professional talents in service of IPM’s mission. Students from Yale helping to document the stories that are included in our new anthology 40 Stories for 40 Years (see page 7); Gesu Parishioners lovingly stuffing and mailing the beautiful IPM Holiday Cards; Friends of IPM in the right spirits offering their useful professional experience, thoughts, and suggestions on a probono capacity; donor friends supporting IPM through their financial commitment to IPM’s new Project Partner Reserve Fund – these are but a few of the ways people like us invest in the life-affirming work that is IPM. And, as we come to the end of another year, it’s clear that in the years ahead, the personal, financial, and professional investment of each of you will shape the future direction of this Partner-driven organization.

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In October, more than forty members of the IPM Family from around the world gathered together in northeast Ohio for IPM’s Inaugural General Assembly. Our week in Cleveland, and the related activities around the country throughout the past year, provided a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to share stories of our respective journeys and to plan together for the coming decade.

December 2014

IPM Friends Barbara & Jamie Sheffler with Joe at the Namaste! One Night for the World benefit event and cultural celebration this October.

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IPM Wishes to Send our Infinite Thanks to Everyone who Made our 40th Year the Best Yet!

A special thanks to the following individuals and groups for helping to make IPM’s Inaugural General Assembly a huge success:

Anonymous

Ariel Ventures, LLC, OH

The Business of Good Foundation, OH

The Camiener Foundation, OH

Peter & Rita Carfagna

Alyne & Joseph F. Cistone

Clark Hill, PLC, MI

The Cleveland Foundation, OH

John & Laurie Cunningham

Hank & Mary Doll

Eaton Corporation, OH

Nadine Hopwood Feighan

Carol & Marty Findling

The George Gund Foundation, OH

George & Stephanie Morrison Hrbek

Bev & Jim Kamphoefner

Alice & Tim McCarthy

Jay & Jenn McNally

Ostara, a supporting Foundation of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, OH

Pinnacle Gardens Foundation, OH

Audrey G. Ratner Philanthropic Fund of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, OH

Ray of Light International, Inc., OH

Rite Sprouts Co., OH

Joy Roller

RPM International, OH

Singing for Change Foundation, SC

Kerry & Sue Stewart

Ulmer & Berne LLP, OH

Grace Weber

December 2014

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IPM International Board, Project Partners, Staff, and Friends gathered with keynote speaker & PBS travel personality Rick Steves at the Breen Center for the Performing Arts at Saint Ignatius High School for the closing evening event of a week filled with celebratory & strategic activities in Cleveland, Ohio this October in our Inaugural General Assembly.

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IPM MEMORIAL, TRIBUTE & SPECIAL GIFTSGifts received April 14, 2014 – December 19, 2014

We remain grateful to our benefactors for their enthusiastic financial support of IPM’s mission. All donations, whether made as memorials or as tribute gifts, in succession as regular Monthly Partners in Mission or as a one-time special gift, are sincerely appreciated. We are pleased to recognize the following contributions:

HOnOrArY GIFts:Johnny DoeringEllen Hilgendorf-MeadGeorge HrbekJim KamphoefnerKen* & Rhoda MahlerJim* & Sammy MayerGary MeadorFlo & Vic SaegerLarry SehyBarbara ShefflerGrace Weber

MeMOrIAl GIFts:Janet ClarkPatricia DamsgaardLinda DiedrichMargaret FinerDennis HilgendorfKenneth L. MahlerPaul ManskeWilma M. MartensJim MayerKim McElaneyRobert S. MillerKathleen MinkRaymond Moelter

Mary PierceJohn PinningFrieda RehderKathy SehyPaul & Vercile Strege

neW MOntHlY PArtners In MIssIOn:Ann Cox Halkett Eric MoellerJoan Perry

MAjOr & sPeCIAl GIFts reCentlY reCeIVeD:Anonymous (2)The Business of Good

Foundation, OH Ariel Ventures, LLC, OHClaire BedardCalvary St. Andrews Church, NYThe Camiener Foundation, OHPeter & Rita CarfagnaAlyne & Joseph F. CistoneThe Cleveland Foundation, OHJohn & Laurie CunninghamLois & Tom DolanHank & Mary Doll

Emily EganThe Evangelical Lutheran Church

of the Good Shepherd, ILNadine Hopwood FeighanCarol & Marty FindlingThe Ganlee Fund, NYCarolyn & Herbert GishlickThe George Gund Foundation, OHKathleen & Larry HillGeorge & Stephanie Morrison HrbekHyland Software, OHGina & Paul Jenkins, UKBev & Jim KamphoefnerRuth KamphoefnerMarilyn & Ronald KoepkeJames & Susan LathamLutheran Church of the Good

Shepherd, MOMagnificat High School, OHWilma M. Martens Bequest, CAAlice & Tim McCarthyJay & Jenn McNallyDianne & Roger NeiswanderOstara, a supporting Foundation

of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, OH

Penney Memorial Church, FL

Mary & Ron PetryEsther & Jerry PfabePinnacle Gardens Foundation, OHAudrey G. Ratner Philanthropic

Fund of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, OH

Ray of Light International, Inc., OHRite Sprouts Co., OHRPM International, OHFlo & Vic SaegerDavid & Laura SangreeMax & Peggy SchaeferRoy P. SchroederLarry SehyThe Dudley P. & Barbara K.

Sheffler Foundation, OHTrinity Lutheran Church, MOSinging for Change Foundation, SCSpring Hill College, ALSt. Thomas/Holy Spirit Lutheran

Church, MOBeth & John StregeDiane & Mark StregeGail & Tim StregeUlmer & Berne LLPIola & Neal VanstromGrace Weber

*Deceased

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Radhika Reddy, co-founder of Ariel Ventures, LLC, was delighted to join Cutty Banner, Natalie Ross-Norris, Clark Pope, and Stephanie Washlock as one of the co-chairs for IPM’s annual Namaste! One Night for One World benefit. Held at the Ariel International Center in conjunction with IPM’s 40th Anniversary inaugural General Assembly, this year’s Namaste was a spectacular evening that brought cross-cultural exchange amongst representatives from over ten countries across all regions of the globe. Radhika was especially pleased to present a contribution through her charity, Ray of Light International, Inc., to five of our Partners in support of their remarkable work in EL SALVADOR, INDIA, KENYA, NEPAL, and NICARAGUA. IPM is profoundly grateful for the charity’s wonderful assistance, which will go a long way in ensuring IPM’s Project Partners’ successful continuation of their life-sustaining work around the world.

From left to right, International Board Chair Caroline Mills, Chief Executive Officer Joseph F. Cistone, Ariel Ventures Founding Partner Radhika Reddy, and South Asia Regional Director Mahesh Upadhyaya gather together at Namaste! on October 16.

together, We Can transcend borders of Faith, Culture, and economic Circumstance

IPM HOnOrsIPM Celebrations in the United States

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2014 Mayer-strege Award presented to Dennis Hilgendorf & ellen Hilgendorf-Mead for their lifelong commitment to IPM’s mission, especially in the Middle east and UsA.

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Joseph F. Cistone and Caroline Mills present the Mayer-Strege Award to Ellen Hilgendorf-Mead and her late husband Dennis Hilgendorf, posthumously, at the Annual Donor Appreciation Brunch in St. Louis, MO in May 2014.

2014 richard e. sering Honorees: Founding Partner George Hrbek & Corporate Partner eaton CorporationIPM was thrilled to honor a lifelong friend and founding Partner, George Hrbek, and the Eaton Corporation with this year’s prestigious Richard E. Sering Awards.

Now retired, George has served as a Lutheran Pastor to parishioners across the Midwest, and was active in the Civil Rights Movement and Cezar Chavez-led farm workers’ movement. Upon relocation to Cleveland, George became involved in the Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry, advocating for the low-income urban population of the city and organizing programmatic developments and resources that enable socio-economic mobility. A friendly and well-loved mentor, George and his wife, Stephanie Morrison Hrbek, now run a community theater in Cleveland’s thriving arts district, continuing a lifelong commitment to community partnerships that build justice, peace, and hope.

The Cleveland-based Eaton Corporation has been a generous and devoted corporate Partner to IPM Projects, particularly in East Africa. Eaton’s partnership with IPM exemplifies IPM’s unique approach to giving that includes funding, staff expertise, and the provision of technical equipment & assistance on the ground in several of the countries where IPM works. Employing local people and selling products in more than 175 countries, Eaton is a diversifed company with a strong commitment to ethical community involvement and global corporate contribution. We look forward to expanding our partnership with Eaton in Latin America & the Carribean in the coming years.

From left to right, George Hrbek, Stephanie Morrison Hrbek, Jan Roller, Charles Butts, and Kemy Cistone (front, center) at Namaste! 2014. George will be featured in the upcoming 40 Stories for 40 Years collection (see page 7).

Caroline Mills and IPM Board Treasurer and Eaton Internal Audit Governmental Compliance Manager Larisa Goldman present a Richard E. Sering Award to Eaton Corporation accepted on behalf of the international company by Barry Doggett, Vice President of Public & Community Affairs.

Many thanks to our International board Members, who continuously rise to the occasion to lend their talents and professional resources to IPM! Thank you to Caroline Mills, who has shown quiet yet resounding integrity for the past two years as Board Chair, and a warm acknowledgement of Board Chair Elect, Jim Kamphoefner. A very special thank-you to Beth Damsgaard-Rodriguez, Mark Falbo, and Douglas Horner, who conclude their service to IPM as International Board Members this year. We are so grateful for Doug’s unyielding energy and support during the General Assembly! We look forward to everyone’s continued involvement in IPM’s work.

Caroline Mills thanked Doug Horner earnestly for his decade of service on IPM’s International Board at the 12th Annual Namaste! celebration on October 16.

On behalf of the Kandula Community Project of Machakos, KENYA, Dorothy Nyong’o, Managing Director of the Africa Cancer Foundation, accepted the award from Caroline Mills for the Project’s tireless efforts to better their community. Most recently, in partnership with IPM and through the gratefully appreciated support of The Camiener Foundation, the Project initiated a women’s basket-making cooperative, and augmented their learning facility for pre-school and primary-aged children with the addition of new classrooms.

2014 Kathleen t. Mink Project Partner Award presented to Kandula Community Project of KenYA

reverend richard e. sering Award Rev. Richard Sering was the founder of Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry (LMM) and served as the Executive Director from its inception in 1969 until his death in 2003. A friend and colleague of IPM for some thirty years, Dick sought to serve with those who are oppressed, forgotten and hurting. IPM established this award in honor of Rev. Richard Sering in 2003, and it is given each year to an outstanding individual or group of individuals who show his same dedication to promoting justice, peace, and hope around the world.

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40Th ANNIvERSARY MATCh CAMPAIGN!IPM is happy to share that we have received a commitment from the Singing for Change Foundation and an anonymous donor to “match” any donation made today through January 31, 2015 in support of our Annual Fund Campaign! For every dollar donated up to $40,000, that dollar will be matched, doubling the impact your generosity enables! Please consider making a special contribution to IPM’s Where Needed Most Fund today, which allows us the flexibility to carry out our mission of changing lives around the world.

PrOjeCt PArtner reserVe FUnDWe shared in May that IPM is currently fundraising towards a $300,000 goal to establish a Project Partner Reserve Fund that would guarantee the disbursement of Project Partner payments in advance of their retrospective project implementation for the first time in IPM’s 40-year history. By 2024, IPM’s 50th Anniversary, we hope to have built the fund to a $3 million Project Partner Endowment Fund. If you are interested in contributing to this fund, please contact Joseph F. Cistone directly at +1.216.235.3213.

Planned Giving Opportunities & IPM’s 1974 SocietyJoin us in celebrating our 40-year legacy of nurturing life-sustaining global partnerships by ensuring that IPM’s programs continue into the future through our 1974 society. Planned gifts provide IPM with much-needed resources, and allow your commitment and dedication to IPM to be carried out as we celebrate our many anniversaries to come!

• Recently, IPM was the grateful beneficiary of three gifts totaling $15,000 for IPM’s Paul & Vercile Strege Fund at the Cleveland Foundation.

• Following a full life dedicated to social justice through various work, including ten years of commitment to the Lutheran Children’s Agency, friend of IPM, Wilma M. Martens, graciously included IPM in her bequest.

Thank you!

For more information about including IPM in your estate planning, creating an endowed named fund, or other charitable legacy gifts, please contact IPM at +1.216.932.4082.

A two-Way street: Giving Hours & experience We remain profoundly grateful to our dedicated volunteers who continue to give so generously of their time and talent to help us grow and expand IPM’s reach of global partnerships. There are countless opportunities to volunteer with IPM: Lend your energy and ideas to our Global Citizens Program, International Visitors venues, PR/Marketing campaigns, Social Media/Tech Support, Special Events, or general Office Support.

For more information about these and other giving opportunities, please contact Ilze Fender at +1.866.932.4082 (toll free) or ifender@ipmconnect.org.

Wish listSupport IPM by donating some of our “wish list” items! Contact the IPM Office for more information at +1.866.932.4082 (toll-free).

• Computers, Laptops, and Tablets (new or like-new condition)• LCD/LED Projector• Skype-friendly Headsets

Get Connected to IPM!Visiting us online through our website and social media is an incredible way to get on-the-ground updates from our Regional Staff around the world, the latest information regarding our Immersion Experience travel opportunities, and all the recent news in IPM happenings around the world!

• Visit our website at www.ipmconnect.org. Bookmark us as a “Favorite.”

• “Like” us on Facebook. Share our posts and photos to your “wall” so that others in your network can discover IPM.

• “Follow” us on Twitter. “Retweet” our posts.

• Check out our Youtube channel, and subscribe to it. Video interviews with our Project Partners and image montages from recent Immersion Experience Programs are uploaded regularly.

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In honor of 40 Years of Partnerships that inspire justice, peace, and hope,IPM is pleased to announce that we are releasing a commemorative anthology and musical compilation in conjunction with our 40th Anniversary celebratory year!

Paul Jesudian (far left), son of the late Dr. Vimala Charles, met with Joseph F. Cistone and representatives of the Kanyakumari Trust Hospital to discuss the Project’s leadership transition since his mother’s passing in January of 2014. Following a lifetime of service to her community and the Trust Hospital in Nagercoil, INDIA, her legacy continues to be a source of inspiration to the region. Her voice, among many other influential individuals with long histories of partnership with IPM, is featured in 40 Stories for 40 Years.

40 Stories for 40 Years: In a collaborative project that has been in the making for years, IPM is proud to share with you 40 stories gathered from past and present IPM Project Partners, Project Coordinators, board Members, staff, and Friends that convey the incredible depth and breadth of IPM’s significance in lives all over the world since 1974.With a special extended preface by Joseph F. Cistone, this book is a candid and moving portrayal of the amazing way IPM has touched thousands of lives over the past 40 years. Here’s a small excerpt from a reflection from the late Dr. Vimala Charles, a longtime Friend & Coordinator to IPM in INDIA. Dr. Charles recalled IPM support in the aftermath of the devastating tsunami of 2003:

“Most heartening was the spontaneous helping hand extended by IPM. Within hours of the disaster, they came forward with their help…They asked what type of help they could give, like housing, clothing, education, medical care, etc. Help came through so many agencies: bundles of clothing, various food items, cooking facilities, and even recreational items, like TV and radio, became available from government and non-government sources. But when we asked community representatives what they most needed, they requested primarily for help in getting them back to work — not to feed them, but to help them get started on their own legs.”

Many thanks to the business of Good Foundation and others for making the publication of this collection possible! Your support helps us to share the work and vision of so many who have come together in solidarity through IPM.

Martha Cecilia Arroyave Arbeláez of COLOMBIA (leftmost, top left), Carol Findling of Carol Stream, IL (photo at right, rightmost, standing) and Susan Mutuku Kyule of KENYA (below) are just a few of the many individuals who will be featured in 40 Stories for 40 Years.

“the Accompaniment for Accompaniment”: IPM celebrates 40 Years with a compilation music album featuring artists from all over the world that stand in solidarity through the expression of social justice through song.Featuring tracks from both Jim & Peter Mayer, sons of IPM Co-Founders Jim & Sammy Mayer, Grupo Horizontes of El Salvador, New Jersey punk rockers the Hudson Falcons, and IPM Staff in Missouri, Eric Moeller, among many others! One track, titled “Light Up the Night,” was recorded over two sessions in a collective twenty hours at Encapsulated Studios in Maplewood, MO.  Collaborating musicians included Eden Theological Seminary students and alumni, as well as Eden’s Director of Music, and two members of the former band The Strummalongs. You can check out a final cut of the track by visiting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6guRAiNSks , and stay in communication early in 2015 to purchase your copy of the highly anticipated complete album!

IPM St. Louis Staff Eric Moeller (left) spent time in the studio writing the lyrics to “Light Up the Night,” a single inspired by IPM’s mission and 40-year legacy and featured on “The Accompaniment for Accompaniment” album.

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CelebrAtInG & COMMeMOrAtInG

40 YEARS:

Founded in Missouri on May 10, IPM began our celebratory 40th Anniversary activities in St. Louis with an incredible benefit concert put on by Peter, Jim, & Brendan Mayer and our Annual Donor Appreciation Brunch in May. Surrounded by members of both the Strege and Mayer founding families, Friends & Donors of the St. Louis area, and our International Board, the weekend was a gratifying reminder of the extraordinary commitment and vision of IPM’s historical roots.

During the week of October 13-17 in the city of Cleveland, Ohio, IPM facilitated our Inaugural General Assembly, adopting a new, democratic governance to be implemented by IPM on January 1, 2015! An incredible amount of thanks goes to the donors & volunteers who made the weeklong series of community panels, strategic planning sessions, evening and lunchtime lectures, and many other events possible! We continue to be inspired by all that is accomplished when the IPM Family comes together.

A Picture Paints a thousand Words…Celebratory Activities Commemorate 40 Years of Changing Lives Around the World!

1. From left to right, a dynamic musical and familial trio of Brendan, Peter, and Jim Mayer performing at the First Congregational Church in St. Louis. The talented family did not disappoint, and even inspired the crowd to get on their feet and out of their seats to form a conga line!

2. Co-Foundress Sammy Mayer (seated, bottom right) surrounded by members of both the Mayer and Strege families at the post-concert reception at the First Congregational Church in St. Louis.

3. Longtime IPM supporters Peter and Rita Carfagna offered their generous hospitality and lovely home for a 40th Anniversary Welcome Reception on Monday, October 13 to set the precedent for what would be one of the most inspiring weeks in IPM’s history! Pictured here with IPM Project Partner Sandra Peña of Lidia Coggiola, the Carfagnas welcomed IPM’s Board, Project Partners, Staff, and Panelists with an evening filled with food, music, and conversation.

4. From left to right, long-time IPM supporters Ed & Marie Schroeder, Clint McCann, and Ethelda

Bertram pause their conversation at the Annual Donor Appreciation Brunch on May 10th to smile for the camera and wish IPM a happy birthday.

5. Latin American and Caribbean Project Partners listen to Robert Jaquay of The George Gund Foundation act as moderator for a panel of local organization representatives during a discussion titled “Taking Cleveland International” hosted by The Cleveland Foundation, a thought-provoking discourse that emphasized the importance of IPM’s model of partnership.

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6. IPM Project Partners & Staff from EL SALVADOR, INDIA, NEPAL, and ROMANIA enjoy the beautiful view of the grounds from the Carfagna’s home during their gracious welcome reception.

7. Dorothy Nyong’o (right), Managing Director of the Africa Cancer Foundation and mother of the Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o, spoke at Notre Dame College on October 14 regarding her commitment to health education and pre-emptive cancer screenings in KENYA.

8. International Board Chair Elect, Jim Kamphoefner moderated a panel discussion in response to College of the Atlantic’s Professor Jay Friedlander’s presentation on the concept of abundance and how leading entrepreneurs must conduct business ethically and sustainably if humanity is to thrive in the environment we have created. Respondents included Himatbhai Pochabhai Chauhan of the Pochabhai Foundation, INDIA, Rodrigo de Castro Amadee Peret of the Agro-ecological Resource Center, BRAZIL, and Kenyan Senator Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o.

9. Randell McShepard of RPM Inc. and past Richard E. Sering Honoree moderated a Cleveland corporate panel on international funding. IPM respondents included Barry Doggett (far left) of Eaton Corporation, Regional Director for South Asia, Mahesh Upadhyaya (right), Hilary Kazoora of Watoto Wa Lwanga in KENYA, Wanda Shealey of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, that received Immersion Experience Scholarship funding from corporate partners in Cleveland, A.J. Hyland, former President and Chief Executive Officer of Hyland Software, and Sandra Peña of Lidia Coggiola in EL SALVADOR.

10. Sandra Peña with A.J. Hyland, a longtime supporter of IPM’s work in EL SALVADOR. A.J. travelled with IPM to EL SALVADOR in January of 2007 and served as a respondent on behalf of Hyland on the corporate panel for international funding moderated by Randell McShepard (see photo 9).

11. A Spanish language strategic planning session with representatives from the DOMICAN REPUBLIC, EL SALVADOR, KENYA, NICARAGUA, ROMANIA, and the UNITED STATES. Part of the adopted General Assembly model is an increased emphasis on multi-lateral learning by providing the space and time for individuals across continents and cultures to come together and reflect critically about IPM’s forward progress as a powerful force for good in the world.

12. International Board Member and Vice Principal of Catholic Memorial School James Keane takes a question from the Cleveland City Club’s CEO Dan Moulthrop during his lunchtime presentation at the City Club that discussed “The Restoration of Liberation Theology: From Gutiérrez and Ratzinger to Pope Francis and Obama.” You can watch a recorded livestream of Jim’s talk by visiting: http://youtu.be/_QXQWemWcuc.

13. IPM International Board Treasurer and Eaton Corporation’s Larisa Goldman and IPM Friend & Volunteer John Cunningham discuss the content of James Keane’s thought-provoking lecture.

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14. George Hrbek leads an Interfaith Reflection session, time allotted during the General Assembly at the start and close of each day for communal reflection through meditation, music, and art.

15. Judith Ranger Smith of the Singing for Change Foundation moderated a panel on human trafficking at John Carroll University featuring IPM Staff Member Soni Shrestha from NEPAL, Project Coordinator Joana Peterson of the DOMINCAN REPUBLIC, and local representatives from the Collaborative to End Human Trafficking and the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center.

16. Kathryn Matthews Huey, Dean of the Amistad Chapel, welcomes guests to the UCC International Headquarters with Doug Horner prior to introducing Clint McCann’s lunchtime lecture.

17. From left to right, Sharon Milligan, of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH and former Board Chair of IPM, IPM International Board Member Peggy Schaefer of St. Louis, MO, Mahesh Upadhyaya of INDIA, Caroline Mills of Fort Washakie, WY, Soni Shrestha of NEPAL, and Hilary Kazoora of UGANDA bring distinct and diverse voices together during an Interfaith Reflection session.

18. IPM Project Partners from BRAZIL, EL SALVADOR, INDIA, KENYA, NEPAL, and NICARAGUA sit down to share snacks and stories at Namaste!

19. Many thanks to Clark Pope and Mike & Stephanie Washlock for the delicious and eclectic international food spread at Namaste! Not only did everything taste superb, but was equally as attractive to the eyes!

20. Eden Theological Seminary’s Professor Clint McCann uses “Psalm 85” by John August Swanson and Psalm interpretation to discuss social and environmental justice.

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21. IPM International Board Members and the Latin America & the Caribbean region Project Partner representatives and Staff showcase their smiles in a photo that speaks volumes to the warm partnerships IPM supports. In October 2014, Fátima Benítez and Sandra Peña of EL SALVADOR (second and third from left) joined Joseph F. Cistone in Bar Harbor, ME to present at the International Human Ecology Forum at the College of the Atlantic, where they spoke of the immense significance of IPM’s Immersion Experience Program in creating cross-cultural exchange.

22. Paul Woyat, Sister Dorothy Kazel’s nephew, current student at St. Ignatius High School, and former Immersion Experience Program participant, provided a moving reflection prior to the highly-anticipated Keynote event.

23. On Friday evening, the Inaugural General Assembly ended on a high note with the Keynote presentation by PBS Personality and Travel Expert, Rick Steves, a 2014 Mayer-Strege Award recipient. Rick spoke on the power of travelling like a local and assimilating to cultures different than one’s own as highlighted in his book Travel as a Political Act and as lived out through IPM’s Immersion Experience Program.

24. Alyne Kemunto Cistone, Kenyan Senator Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o, Dorothy Nyong’o, and longtime friend of IPM Hank Doll at the Immersion Experience Participants’ Reception before Namaste!

25. Oscar Romero, the internationally renowned martyred Salvadoran, remains a perpetual symbol of hope for the poor and voiceless in Latin America. His visage, shown here, inspired all in attendance.

26. Prior to his sold-out, IPM-sponsored luncheon presentation, PBS Personality and Keynote Speaker, Rick Steves (right), met with Paul N. Harris of KeyCorp (left) and Dan Moulthrop of the City Club of Cleveland (center) for coffee.

27 IPM International Board, Project Partners, Staff, and Friends gather in a corner at the City Club of Cleveland, where the majority of the week’s strategic planning sessions and presentations were held.

28. With encouragement from Positively Cleveland, IPM “tweeted” our signature blue to be emanated from the iconic Cleveland Terminal Tower to close out the successful Inaugural General Assembly week!

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December 2014

my faith my journey –

By Jay McNally, EL SALVADOR and NICARAGUA Immersion Experience Participant, 2014

For most of my life, I’ve been a secular, spiritual-not-religious person. There has always been a draw toward spiritual discipline for me, and this has lead me back to organized religion over and over again. I repeatedly rejected calls to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Judaism, among others.

The past few years led me back through that same cycle, but something is different. As I sought the hidden world, the rational side of me kept focusing on the empirical, evidence-based argument. From that point of view, reality is bound by measurement, observation, and the replication of outcomes. I was plagued by questions: what happened just before the Big Bang, and how did those independent mitochondria cede their independence and become cellular organelles? Rationalism aside, why is beauty and the prohibition of murder so universal among people worldwide? I still don’t know.

These doubts and questions nagged at me enough that I felt drawn to find community in people on a similar path that would appreciate my journey. That community brought me to a Christian church — unexpected for me. And that church community has supported my search for answers and shown me a depth that I had never experienced before.

I don’t want to dismiss other phases of my journey, or the religious faiths that others explore. It’s that this one stuck. I don’t see this journey as dogmatic or absolute; it stretches me back in time to appreciate

historical faith and propels me forward to a new context and to be over-awed by the limitlessness of God — a new word in my lexicon.

So what does this have to do with IPM?

Honestly, my faith journey led me to see community in a broader sense and to seek relationship with others, and to be in service to others. I learned about IPM when Joe Cistone and his family moved to Mount Desert Island, Maine. For several years, Joe and Alyne were people I was drawn toward and over time they became good friends.

One of Joe’s refrains when talking about IPM partnerships is encaminarse. Drawn from a colloquial term in NICARAGUA that signifies walking together towards a common goal, IPM “walks with” its partners. Frankly, I had no idea what that actually meant beyond a romantic, abstract notion of peace and goodwill. But curiosity got the better of me.

In November of 2013, my wife, Jenn, and I went with IPM on an Immersion Experience Program (IEP) to EL SALVADOR. We quickly found out that this encaminarse is palpable and visceral. An IPM Immersion Experience and the IPM way of partnering is gritty and intimate. It has smells, tastes, and images that are not common in middleclass America.

We went to sites of murder, rape, and genocide. We spoke with people that were there when the atrocities occurred, and we broke bread with people that are still putting the pieces of their lives together again. This wasn’t a movie. These were individual people with names, personalities, and aspirations, living in highly-compromised and unsafe places with no way out. It was stark and real.

We didn’t build a school or dig latrines for them. Instead, we listened. We cried. We talked and found common ground. Encaminarse.

And the more we listened, the deeper they dug. We sat there together uncomfortably;

I sat in humility and found community in a new place with new people that were old souls. And they were saving me.

The people want to be known, not anonymous. They didn’t want my pity or my money or my labor, just my attention, a willingness to retell their stories and to appreciate their dignity.

This one Immersion Experience led to a half dozen more in this last year, including one to NICARAGUA with my daughter, Lily. Like me, she was touched deeply and hasn’t let go of how it changed her.

I went to learn about IPM and found my soul.

One of the last acts of an IPM IEP is an ancient ceremony called an agape. Agape is a Greek word for love. The arc of an Immersion Experience is disarming and intimate. You meet many people, become familiar with political, religious, and historical events.

In the end the question is what are you going to do with this experience and information. We can choose to sweep it under the rug, and go on with our lives, pretending it doesn’t matter. We can choose to placate our sense of concern with any number of acts of humanity, faith, and devotion. We can tell the stories. But there is also a call to personal action beyond good works, and that is to transform ourselves deep inside. That is where we are in solidarity: encaminarse.

My faith journey could be characterized by hours of bumpy, sweaty rides in a van, shared meals, witnessing the courage and faith of Project Partners, or the “golly-gee-aren’t-these-people-resilient!” moments. But my faith journey was honestly found in the hands of Salvadoran and Nicaraguan women and children showing me my own soul. Encaminarse.

“Encaminarse”

www.ipmconnect.org

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Jay McNally and his daughter, Lily, visited NICARAGUA together this June and shared time with the women of CEPROSI.

Jay with Fátima Benítez and the women of the ACACCPAMU cooperative in Armenia, EL SALVADOR.

www.ipmconnect.org

13December 2014

IPM’s Immersion Experience Program is changing lives around the world, and inspiring

social justice careers right here in the US.

The Journey of a Lifetime

“As a Beaumont School student, Alyssa Bovell had learned about Sister Dorothy Kazel, an Ursuline nun who taught at the school before undertaking missionary work in EL SALVADOR, where she was murdered in 1980. Bovell’s August trip to the Central American country, with International Partners in Mission (IPM), drove home the impact of Kazel’s sacrifice.

“To be there, to hear about the history of El Salvador and the civil war and see the challenges that people are still facing today, there aren’t words to describe that,” Bovell said.

Bovell began a two-year fellowship at IPM’s Cleveland Heights headquarters after graduating in May from the University of Dayton with a major in International Studies…Bovell said the [immersion] experience made her feel that she has come full circle since her high school days. “It was a sign that I’m on the right path. I had more respect for Beaumont and [its] mission of educating women for life, leadership, and service.”

Sister Kazel began her tenure in El Salvador before the civil war began, preparing for Mass, developing lay leaders and teaching childcare. After war erupted in 1977, she tended to victims, refugees and the bereaved. Though her life was in danger, she refused to leave. She and three other churchwomen were murdered on Dec. 2, 1980.

Their bodies were placed in shallow graves, where a memorial and chapel now stand. The IPM group traveled in a van to the site in La Paz, where they held an informal service joined by members of the community.

”I appreciated the work that [Sister Kazel] did and the fact that she gave her life to do it. but it wasn’t until I was able to see that site and be in the country, and not only see the challenges they’re still facing, but the optimism for the future and appreciation for the work that is being done, that [it was all] brought home for me,” Bovell said.”

IPM’s Immersion experience Programs are short-term travel opportunities for individuals, friends, and groups where participants learn firsthand from IPM Project Partners around the world. IPM offers Immersion Experiences to build cross-cultural relationships so that participants can gain a greater understanding of the global realities of poverty and injustice.

For more information on upcoming open Immersion Experiences — which will include IEPs in COLOMBIA, EL SALVADOR, KENYA, INDIA, and ITALY in 2015 — or to book an Immersion Experience Program for your class, congregation, or community group, please contact Melanie Strout, Immersion Experience Coordinator at mstrout@ipmconnect.org or by telephone at 207.801.9020.

Alyssa and the Interfaith Immersion Experience delegation gather at an overlook of the Santa Ana volcano, the tallest volcano in EL SALVADOR.

As originally featured in the Heights Observer, Freelance Writer & IPM Volunteer Carol Pearson captures how an IPM Immersion experience Program can connect the lessons taught in a classroom to the global realities of poverty and injustice, as told by recent University of Dayton grad and IPM staff member, Alyssa bovell.

Alyssa Bovell (left) learned the finer “points” of embroidery from IPM Project Partner Paula Perez at the women’s cooperative ACOMUJERZA in August.

Alyssa bovellstrategic Initiatives & Immersion experience Fellow

Alyssa Bovell joined the IPM team in May of 2014, and is working as the Strategic Initiatives & Immersion Experience Fellow in IPM’s Cleveland International Headquarters. Alyssa graduated from the University of Dayton (UD) with a B.A. in International Studies and Political Science and a minor in Human Rights Studies. While at UD, Alyssa was very active on campus, in the Dayton

community and abroad in Guatemala and Malawi, and received the Joyce Durham Award for the Best Student Essay on the Subject of Women and Gender and the Dr. Margaret P. Karns Award for Academic Excellence and Service in Global and Local Issues. As featured on page 13, Alyssa travelled with IPM on an Immersion Experience this past August, and handled the majority of the logistical coordination during IPM’s Inaugural General Assembly. We look forward to seeing you grow with IPM, Alyssa!

Andrea Hess student Intern

Through the generous support of Hank & Mary Doll, Andrea Hess joined IPM in August of 2014 as a field placement intern working to support the efforts of IPM’s 40th Anniversary Inaugural General Assembly and Celebratory Activities, as well as in the expansion of IPM’s Resource

Development Program. Andrea received her bachelor’s degree in Social Work from Saint Louis University in December of 2013, and is currently a graduate student at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University, pursuing a dual degree program to receive a Master of Science in Social Administration (MSSA) as well as a Master of Nonprofit Organizations (MNO) by December of 2015. Andrea shares IPM’s value of promoting awareness of a global community, is passionate about social justice, particularly focusing on fair trade, human trafficking awareness efforts, and working with women and children. Many thanks for sharing your passion and skills with IPM, Andrea!

December 201414

December 2014

Kids just like you are connecting with IPM all over the world!

kidsconnections

December 2014

Vol. XXVno. 2

Darius Sherman is a 4th grader from Ohio, who recently conducted a pencil drive for the students of Watoto Wa Lwanga in KENYA! His sister, Brooklyn, travelled with IPM on an Immersion Experience Program to the Project in 2011, and he was so inspired by her experience that he decided to see what he could do for the children she spoke of in his home community. Here he is, presenting the donation of pencils to IPM Project Coordinator Brother Hilary (right). Darius was also able to meet Senator Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o of KENYA, who stands to the left of Darius!

In October, IPM EL SALVADOR Staff, Fátima Benítez, spent time with the girls of the Mount Desert Girl Scout Troop 4. Together, they got a little crafty and created handmade gifts for the children of Lidia Coggiola in EL SALVADOR! (A giant thank you to IPM Friends Robyn Lessard and Monica Jones for making the afternoon possible!)

Do you like to craft? How would you like to host a craft table in the coming year, to sell what you create — and handcrafts made by IPM’s Project Partners! — to donate to kids and their families just like you around the world? Ask your parents and teachers to contact IPM today about ways you can help through your school, church, or afterschool club…or to talk to IPM about visiting the children you fundraise for, like Darius’s sister, Brooklyn, did in KENYA!

Who’s Who at IPM

www.ipmconnect.org

Please make note of the updates made to our Project Partner list since our last issue of Connections!

WOMen GenerAl FUnD IPM supports projects devised by women to address their unique needs and to ensure their personal dignity.

COlOMbIA (Ibague) Women’s Community Project/SER MUJER provides micro-enterprise opportunities for low-income mothers of Ibague.

brAZIl (Uberlandia) The Agro-ecological Resource Center (AFES) promotes the development of agricultural practices that are less harmful to the environment and sustainable over time.

DOMInICAn rePUblIC (el Cercado) El Cercado Community Development mobilizes the community and works on health and sanitation projects.

DOMInICAn rePUblIC (el Cercado) The women of Women’s Nutritional Program produce nutritional products to be readily available to low-income or undernourished community members.

el sAlVADOr (Armenia) ACACCPAMU/FUSANMIDJ works with women’s groups to promote improved health and sustainable income-generating opportunities in and around Armenia.

el sAlVADOr (Zaragoza) ACOMUJERZA/Mujer y Comunidad focuses on improving their community through folklore traditions, native dance, and creating handicrafts.

el sAlVADOr (san salvador) NUTRAVIDA promotes the use of soy products among low-income families to supplement their daily nutrition. The project also runs a diner as an income-generating activity for women in the community of San Ramon.

InDIA (Ahmadabad) HUM is a women’s micro-enterprise organization that also promotes interfaith dialogue between Hindu & Muslims in Ahmadabad.

2014 project partners

Where Needed Most provides unrestricted funds to IPM.

Services and Programs of the IPM Office provides IPM staff with technical assistance and education.

Emergency Needs Around the World enables IPM to provide rapid response in emergency situations.

The Indigenous Leadership Program provides technical assistance to Project Partners through local IPM staff.

Immersion Experience Program Youth Scholars provides full and partial scholarships to students of economic need for IPM’s Immersion Experience Programs

CHIlDren GenerAl FUnD Donations to this category support the personal, physical and spiritual development of children throughout the world.

CHInA (Henan Province) The Back to School program allows children from impoverished Chinese families to attend school.

COlOMbIA (Ibagué) Niños Trabajadores (Working Children) provides an alternative to violence and drug abuse for children who work in the marketplace.

el sAlVADOr (Zaragoza) Lidia Coggiola promotes the character and well-being of the community’s children through creative workshops, activities and scholarship opportunities.

KenYA (Kakamega) Friends of Kakamega supports the Kakamega Orphan project that helps over 400 children by teaching families basic farming skills to have crops grown in their own homes for personal consumption.

KenYA (Machakos) Kandula Community Project seeks to address development issues in their community around water, sanitation, and children’s education in Kandula village.

KenYA (nyabondo) St. Martin de Porres is a school for children affected by cerebral palsy run by the Franciscan Sisters of Saint Ann.

lebAnOn (beirut) ASTUHA (Association des Tuteurs des Handicapés) helps children with disabilities, especially autism and cerebral palsy, reach physical and occupational autonomy.

MAlAWI (blantyre) Project Peanut Butter uses fortified peanut butter to treat children suffering from chronic malnutrition.

UsA (Cleveland, OH) Family Promise (formerly IHN) is a collaborative effort of congregations to provide shelter, meals and support to homeless families.

YOUtH GenerAl FUnD: Donations to this category support the personal, physical and spiritual development of young people throughout the world.

KenYA (Kajaido) AIC Girls School is a primary educational institution that provides financial support for the education of young girls.

KenYA (Kajaido) Bride Rescue Project rescues young girls from forced early marriages and harmful cultural practices.

KenYA (Kibera) Located in the slums of Kibera, Watoto wa Lwanga here provides formal education to over 300 children along with food, guidance counseling & medical care.

UsA (Fort Washakie, WY) Sacajawea Treasures works with Eastern Shoshone tribal members on traditional beadwork which they sell in order to educate the larger community on the Shoshone traditions as well as have a source of income.

InDIA (nagercoil) Mary Jenkins Hospice Center provides treatment and loving care for the terminally ill.

IsrAel (jerusalem) The Peace Center for the Blind teaches visually handicapped Palestinian women skills and self-reliance.

ItAlY (Castel Volturno) Project of Hope/Speranza II provides a safe haven and skill training for African women rescued from human trafficking and prostitution.

KenYA (bondo) Rieti Agricultural Project provides training in sustainable agriculture to a group of women in Bondo.

KenYA (Dandora) Dandora Women’s Forum coordinates income-generating activities for its members. It also promotes gender equality through training and legal counseling.

nePAl (nationwide) Calendar Project at SWI supports women in production of calendars which promote community themes.

nICArAGUA (nindiri) CEPROSI (Center for Education & Promotion of Holistic Health) works with local women’s groups to improve their communities’ nutrition and health and to develop sustainable economic opportunities.

nICArAGUA (san Francisco libre) Mujer y Comunidad trains women in six villages to be health promoters, reducing leprosy and the effects of poverty.

UsA (Cleveland, OH) Esperanza Threads is a fair-wage organic clothing cooperative that also offers job training to those with barriers to employment.

WOMen

YOUtH

CHIlDren

DIreCt sUPPOrt

UsA (Missouri boot Heel, MO) Shining Scholars provides financial support, guidance counseling, food and school supplies to middle- and high-school-aged youth so they may have a better chance of attending college.

UsA (Ogala, sD) Project Lakota addresses the significant housing problem for the Lakota people living on the Pine Ridge Reservation by purchasing building supplies and organizing volunteers.

UsA (st. louis, MO) Restorative Justice School Project implements activities which teach students to work through and overcome conflicts nonviolently and effectively.

UsA (st. louis, MO) Youth Enrichment Program provides year-round educational programs and activities for youth on the academic sidelines in connection with CWAH (Community Women Against Hardship).

DID YOU KNOW? Over the past 40 years, IPM has partnered with over 348 Project Partner Initiatives across 41 countries that span five continents, and has allocated over $10 million to support & sustain our Project Partners worldwide.

By becoming a Monthly Partner in Mission today, your gift will support the more than 60 Project Partners in the 20 countries that IPM currently works with in two-way partnership that far exceeds simple monetary support. Please contact IPM at +1.216.932.4082 for specific donor opportunities!

To learn more about IPM’s unique mission and rich history of working in solidarity with our Project Partners, please contact Sarah Gauvin at sgauvin@ipmconnect.org.

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IPM

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PAIDCleveland OH

PERMIT #1995

IPM (InternatIonal Partners In MIssIon) is the successor organization to Partners in

Mission, founded by Lutheran missionaries

Jim Mayer, Paul Strege and others in 1974.

IPM works across borders of faith,

culture, and economic circumstance

with children, women, and youth to

create partnerships that build justice,

peace, and hope.

join us as we work to provide a

sustainable, effective and personal way to

transform our world community.

Connections shares experiences and stories about people of faith working in partnerships to promote change. Connections is mailed to 6,000 donors and friends worldwide. If you are interested in receiving Connections or would like us to add a friend, family member, congregation or organization to our mailing list, please contact us at IPM, 3091 Mayfield Road, Suite 320, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118, USA, telephone +1.216.932.4082, or via email at office@ipmconnect.org.

executive Committee: Caroline Mills, Chair, Fort Washakie, Wyoming • Jim Kamphoefner, Chair Elect, San Rafael, California • Priscilla D’Costa, SND, Vice-Chair, Bangalore, INDIA • Ana Greig, Vice-Chair, Mejicanos, EL SALVADOR • Douglas Horner, Vice-Chair, Cleveland, Ohio • Bill Nyasio, Vice-Chair, Nairobi, KENYA • Mark Falbo, Secretary, Jacksonville, Florida • Larisa Goldman, Treasurer, Beachwood, Ohio • Joseph F. Cistone, Chief Executive Officer, ex-officio, Mount Desert, Maine

Directors: Antonina Aura, Nairobi, KENYA • Xenia Chevez, Nindiri, NICARAGUA • Beth Damsgaard-Rodriguez, St. Louis, Missouri • Margie Hojara-Hadsell, Holt, Michigan • James Keane, West Roxbury, Massachusetts • Gary Meador, Gates Mills, Ohio • Peggy Schaefer, Ballwin, Missouri

Directors emeritus: Paul F. Bente* • Carol Findling • Sammy Mayer • Paul Strege* • David Westcott*

Honorary board: Tony Dowell • Sharon Milligan • Zoraida Soza Sanchez • Hina Shah

IPM International staff: Anthony Baio • Fátima Benítez • Raluca Besliu • Alyssa Bovell • Joseph F. Cistone • Ilze Fender • Sarah Gauvin • Eric Moeller • Jared Odhiambo • Soni Shrestha • Donna Skufca • Melanie Strout • Mahesh Upadhyaya • Cara Weber

student Interns: Sarah Emigh-Doyle • Andrea Hess • Iris Hicks • Claire Meriance • Neil Oculli • Selina Pagan • Sharonda Smith

Connections: Graphic Design: Academy Graphic Communication

A Publication of IPM (International Partners in Mission)

*Deceased