Nancy was introduced to LightShine Ministries sitting in the living room at her cabin in 2012. Her friend, Steve Hoey (who is part of the Leadership Team of LightShine Alaska) was telling her family about his mission trip to Alaska with Mennonite Disaster Services and how he got introduced to LightShine Ministries in Eagle, Alaska during that trip back in 2009. She started to attend the monthly meetings and then went on her first trip to the native village of Gulkana in 2013. Since then she has returned every year (sometimes several times a year) to serve on a variety of teams…Copper Center, Mountain Home Fellowship, Globe Creek Camp, Women’s Alaska Dream Center, Strelna Lake Wilderness Bible Camp, Regent Life Church in Homer, and most recently, the village of Gambell, Alaska located on St. Lawrence Island.
Nancy serves on the Leadership Team of LightShine Alaska as the secretary and assist with marketing & events to promote the ministry. In 2019, she met Joe. In 2022, Joe joined her on his first LightShine Mission Trip to Regent Life Church in Homer. They also just so happened to get married on The Spit during that same trip and had the honor of having Steve Hoey perform the nuptials.
The experience of serving on mission teams in Alaska alongside talented team members is incredibly rewarding for Joe and Nancy. Joe has now served in Homer, Copper Center, and at our ministry base in Palmer. As of 2024, he joined the LightShine Alaska Leadership Team to assist with planning teams for years to come.
It’s a joy to introduce people to LightShine Ministries and witness their reactions when they first arrive in Alaska to serve on a team. It’s especially awesome when they decide to become a part of LightShine Ministries and return to Alaska year after year to continue serving the people there. Developing life-long relationships with team members and Alaska Native people has been an incredible blessing for the Shaffers.