Intercession Group Has Three Events In Next Few Days In Warsaw
WARSAW — The rebranded Intercession Group in Kosciusko County has a full slate of activities this year, including three events in the next few days.
Intercession Group began in 2011 with a focus on Haiti, but changed leadership and gears in 2016 and now works on helping local business leaders by hosting various functions.
In recent years, they’ve worked to organize four programs and a large annual two-day event — the Global Leadership Summit held in August — that organizers anticipate could fill the Performing Arts Center at Warsaw Community High School this year, said Jeri Purdy, executive director of Intercession Group.
“We have a lot going on and we have a large reach into a lot of spheres of influence and sectors of business in the community,” Purdy said.
Intercession Group relies on grant money, corporate support and donations. Their mission is to facilitate hope. “We believe hope comes from knowing your mission within your personal faith,” Purdy said.
Organizers of the faith-based non-profit have scheduled numerous other events, including three in the next six days. Those include:
- At 7 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 28, a community prayer will be at the YMCA, 1305 Mariners Drive. The public is welcome. The event will continue for about an hour. Coffee and water will be provided.
- At 11:45 a.m. Friday, March 1, the group will host “In The Gap” at The Vic at One Ten, 110 S. Buffalo St., with a discussion focusing on employee engagement. The meeting is sponsored by Nextremity Solutions. Bradley Harris, from Miller’s Health, will be the featured speaker. Tickets are no longer available for the event, though.
- At 11:45 a.m., Monday, March 3, the group will host “Women In The Workplace,” a panel discussion aimed at women. This month’s panelist will include men and women who will talk about the #metoo movement “and how respect for the other side makes all the difference,” according to the group’s Facebook page. Reservations for Women In The Workplace are needed because a free lunch is included.
The group also organizes meetings for Men Following Christ, which has attracted more than 100 participants in the past, Purdy said.
Organizers said they saw a void three years ago that needed to be filled.
“When we rebranded in 2016, we knew there was a gap in our community,” Purdy said.
“DePuy (Synthes) and Zimmer Biomet were doing leadership development on their own, but none of the smaller companies or mid-size companies or even non-profit organizations and churches had an outlet to go out and have the resource of leadership development … without going to Indy or Chicago,” she said.
The Global Leadership Summit at the PAC is one of hundreds of satellite locations for a broadcast that originates at Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Ill., outside of Chicago. Local organizers have seen attendance rise in its first two years. In 2017, they had 435 attendees. That grew to about 535 the following year.
“This year, we already have 505 registered and we’re anticipating a full Performing Arts Center of 800. It’s been an incredible journey and ride and Willow Creek has been incredibly generous to our community to see the growth potential we have here,” Purdy said.
This year’s summit is Aug. 8 and 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., each day. Lunch will be available via eight food trucks at the PAC.
The leadership summit requires a ticket and can be purchased at https://glswarsaw.com/event/global-leadership-summit-2019/.
Purdy said they are still building the group’s identity and “avenue of influence” in Kosciusko County.
“We still are working to raise awareness of what we provided to companies and organizations,” she said. “Our goal to not just educate and empower, but to provide hope in the already established cultures of businesses and organizations. Hope in the form or strengthening one’s faith journey and highlighting tangible ways leaders can use their influence to produce hope within our 80,000 residents of Kosciusko County.”