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John, Laurie, and their children moved to Madison, and
John took a job with C-Spire as their corporate recruiter and
employee relations director. Even in the corporate world,
sharing his faith was an important part of John’s life, and while
at C-Spire he began a ministry for local businessmen called the
Men’s Roundtable. The group is still going strong 15 years later,
with up to 75 men in attendance regularly. It was through a
colleague at C-Spire that John learned about an organization
called Corporate Chaplains of America (CCA), whose mission
statement is to “bring care and compassion to the workplace,
where it is needed most, and where it can make a meaningful
difference.” All chaplains with CCA are men and women who
are vetted, and seminary trained.
Corporate chaplaincy seemed to be a good fit for Nordan,
with his experience in the business world and his years in
ministry. After 19 years at C-Spire, John took a leap of faith to
become a corporate chaplain and has been in this role since
April of 2022. He serves as chaplain for nine companies,
ranging in size from 10 employees to over 200. “Businesses
provide the service for their employees free of charge,” John
says. “It’s totally confidential, voluntary, and permission-based.”
It’s often said that in order to truly minister to people,
you must meet them where they are.
“People spend most of their time at
work, so it makes sense to provide
them with someone they can talk to
confidentially about things going on
in their life,” John says. “We’ve found that job performance
tends to go up and employee retention and satisfaction
are positively impacted when a chaplain is consistently on site.
Employees are able to build a relationship with the chaplain.
They know they can talk to me about anything - whether it’s
relationship issues, bereavement, marital issues, and even
alcohol and drug addiction.” When crisis situations occur in the
workplace, John is able to be of help immediately, as he already
has a relationship with the employees.
One of Nordan’s weekly meetings is with a group of 15-20
line haul drivers every Monday night. “In their line of work,
it’s crucial that they not be distracted. Knowing they have
someone to talk to every week can ease the stresses of life
and give them peace as they head out on the road,” John says.
30 • NOVEMBER 2023