After 14 years of working at Bluffton University as the campus pastor, Stephen Intagliata lovingly referred to by others as “Tig,” is retiring as the semester comes to a finish this spring.
Campus Pastor Stephen ‘Tig’ Intagliata. Photo courtesy of Rae Staton.
Intagliata and his wife, Karen Intagliata, will move to the Washington D.C. area to be closer to his son and his family, and the two families are planning to buy a house together. Intagliata is looking at the possibility of taking a position to pastor a church, but he is ultimately looking forward to having more time to spend with family, travel, volunteer at different places, find a church to be involved in and to see all the museums in D.C.
Intagliata offered some words of hope to students during this strange time of pandemic and working from home. He wants students to hang in there as the semester comes to a close and to finish strong. He also asks for everyone to stay connected to people, reach out to others especially if you are feeling alone or isolated. Sometimes others may be an encouragement to you and you could be an encouragement to them.
“It’s really not social distance, it’s physical distance that we’re keeping. But we can still be socially close to each other by connecting with each other,” said Intagliata.
He also asks to learn something from this time, whether that’s a new hobby, skill or a new routine that can take us away from the usual busy lifestyles. Slowing down can allow for deeper reflections and prayers without all the other things to keep busy with.
Intagliata expressed how much he is going to miss the campus and all the students, getting to walk alongside them as they grow and discover who they are as they explore their faith. He also expressed how much he’ll miss hanging out in Marbeck and getting to worship during chapel.
“I remember I grew so much in my years of college,” said Intagliata. “A lot of people poured into me when I was in college and walked alongside me, and now, I have had that opportunity here at Bluffton. I’m really going to miss that, working with students and walking with them in their journey.”
Intagliata also shared a farewell remark to the students of Bluffton University.
“My hope for every student at Bluffton really learns to understand how much God loves them and to be open to receive that love and then to live a life of service to God as a response to the gift of God’s love to them,” said Intagliata. “Loving others as Jesus has loved us and loving yourself.”
Intagliata also shared a few of the things he spoke on during the last chapel of the semester on April 16. He hopes students will continue to discover who they are and who God created them to be. To find their voice and share, support, encourage and love each other. That students will continue to make their faith their own. To continue exploring what being a child of God looks like and what that means to them—and to cling on to that.
“God wants to heal and mend our brokenness and pain that we have to make us healthy and whole people. When we love ourselves better, we can love others better,” said Intagliata.
