Stace Ginn and his wife of 15 years, Melanie Shaw Ginn, have been faithful servants in the planning and planting of Gospel City Church, sharing their expertise and knowledge as business owners, leaders, and philanthropists. Since the church’s inception, Stace has served on the Business Advisory Board and feels that his relationship with the McCaman and Rodriguez families, the Gospel City congregation, and their ministry has been an extraordinary blessing in his life and walk with Christ.

Born and raised in northern Kentucky, Stace grew up in the Christian home of a farming family, virtually becoming a “PK” (Pastor’s Kid) as a child when their church’s pastor, “Pastor Andy,” his wife, and their teenage children lovingly served as his caregivers during his formative years while his parents were at work. Stace is the only child of his mother, Linda, who worked her way up from a bookkeeper to be the first woman president of a bank in southern Indiana, and his father, Phillip, who was a farmer and Army veteran. Phillip and Linda have been married for 63 years. Today, they are retired and live on a small horse farm in Kentucky, where Stace and Melanie have built a home to be close to them during the summer months. 

In 2020, Stace and Melanie decided they also wanted to be near Melanie’s parents, Bob and Suzanne Shaw, and they started their search for a second home in Boynton Beach, Florida, where Melanie was raised. Through a God-driven series of miraculous circumstances, they were able to quickly find a home only a block from Melanie’s parents’ home and closed on it just as the pandemic hit. 

Bob, who was a great spiritual inspiration to Stace, recently passed away in September of 2022, so the Ginns are extremely grateful that the Lord led them to their second home and allowed them to be exactly where they needed to be during this season of all of their lives. They are now enjoying spending extended time with Suzanne as she courageously moves into a new chapter without her husband of 63 years.

Stace’s Journey to Faith: “I do not have a dramatic, ‘Road to Damascus’ salvation story. Having grown up with, literally, the church as my playground, I helped Pastor Andy put together church bulletins, witnessed his prayerful preparation for his weekly sermons, and accompanied him on home visitations. He crafted homemade wooden blocks for me and had me memorizing Bible verses and practicing mathematical equations at the age of three. His kindness and grace served as a beacon to me and a light that ultimately led me to accepting Christ as my Lord and Savior. When I was 12 years old, I asked Christ into my heart and accepted him as my Lord and Savior during a church revival. Later that month, I met with Brother Sparrow and the Elders about my decision, and when I was baptized, Brother Sparrow spoke to the congregation about how I had asked some of the most probing questions he had ever received from a child. I guess it was an early indication of my future as a skeptic, which is often a prerequisite for an attorney.

Today, my walk-in faith is pretty simple: I do not fear death. I have an unshakeable confidence. As a believer, my destiny is to be with Jesus and my Heavenly Father. Understanding that my destiny is death is my rock. Recently, at my father-in-law’s funeral, I read one of my favorite passages, Ecclesiastes 7:2-4, which states, ‘It is better to enter a house of mourning than a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man, and the living should take this to heart. … The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning.’ For my daily walk, as I get older, I am consistently more aware than ever of my need to be stronger and more grounded in the Word of God as my encouragement and guidance to navigate the myriad of challenges that inevitably have and will come. That is something that Pastor Dave’s and Jose’s preaching, our weekly Bible study, and our growing friendships with fellow believers have offered as a treasure in my life, a gift that is a touchstone for what is true and what matters.”

Professionally, Stace has over 30 years of executive-level banking, business, and finance experience, in addition to being a practicing attorney. His comprehensive background in the banking industry brings a wealth of expertise in management, budget, and finance, while his primary areas of legal practice include commercial and contract law, tax law, property law, and regulatory compliance. He and Melanie have dedicated the past decade of their careers to improving the trajectory of underserved students’ lives through their nationally renowned SMART® Model (School Health Model for Academics Reaching All and Transforming Lives). SMART® is an educational solution that focuses on breaking the cycle of poverty and improving the trajectory of lives. Stace is instrumental in navigating the comprehensive scope of multiparty agreements with school districts, health systems, and other stakeholders, as well as the myriad of regulatory issues entailed in working in educational and health care settings. Stace has also served as a director on various corporate and community boards including the Jefferson County United Way, Madison Area Council on Aging, and the Madison Bank & Trust Co.

Currently, Stace is the Chief Financial Officer and Legal Counsel for Ginn Group Collaborative (GGC), SMART®’s parent company, supporting Melanie, who is President and CEO of GGC and architect of the SMART® Model, and their national team. The transformational impact of the SMART® Model, including the Model’s proven ability to increase graduation rates by 56% and decrease out-of-school suspensions by 93%, has been nationally recognized and is supported by Fortune 50 Companies, major academic institutions, and community stakeholders. The data collected from the SMART® Model has been presented to the U.S. Senate Republican Task Force on Hispanic Affairs and at Congressional Breakfast Briefings and Symposia in Washington, D.C. The SMART® Model has earned congressional endorsement from both sides of the aisle, with the support of congressmembers Teri Sewell (D-AL) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), as well as the late Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT).

Most recently, Stace has worked extensively with Melanie and an external law firm to set up the SMART® Foundation, where he and Melanie have focused their professional and personal resources to preserve and strengthen SMART®’s legacy, donating the SMART® proprietary business model to the newly established SMART® Foundation—a public, 501(c)(3) organization—to protect its integrity, growth, and scalability in perpetuity.

Stace earned his Bachelor of Arts in economics and business administration at Hanover College in Hanover, Indiana, and his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. He is admitted to the Kentucky State Bar.

Salvation Testimony:

I grew up in a Christian home as a “PK” … “Pastor’s Kid.” While I don’t remember a time when I didn’t believe there was a man named Jesus who died on the cross for my sins, I specifically recall making the decision to accept Him as my Lord and Savior as a pre-teen.

Because my father was a pastor in the Pentecostal church, much of my experience living a Christian life was under a doctrine that was quite legalistic. As a result, the manifestation of my faith was predominately filled with a lot of “do’s,” but even more “don’ts.” Although I was taught and truly believed that my “salvation” was not earned, and that it was received by grace alone through faith alone, I simultaneously believed that my “sanctification” had a physical appearance. I readily identified another woman as being “saved” if she, like me, didn’t wear pants; or adorn herself excessively with makeup or jewelry; if she didn’t go to dances or movies; or if she only listened to gospel or contemporary Christian music.

Unbeknownst to me, all of those legalistic beliefs would be greatly challenged as soon as I entered my dorm room in my freshman year at Messiah College, a Christian liberal arts college near Harrisburg, PA. There I shared a room with two beautiful Christian young women who did everything I didn’t do, but boy did they have a heart for serving the Lord! It became evident that their joy came from having a personal relationship with Jesus, and that manifested itself in their desire to serve others, study God’s word, pray for God’s direction in their lives, and to worship. It was clear to me that “one of these things was not like the other,” and that “one” was me! And thus began my journey to “find myself” spiritually … a journey that would include my gaining a greater understanding of what it means to have a genuine heart to serve the Lord, the importance of having a personal relationship with Him, and the necessity of continuing to develop that relationship throughout my lifetime.

What God is Currently Doing in My Life:

As I reflect back on my spiritual journey over the past two years, I have often paused to ask myself “How did I get here?” More specifically: “How did Brad and I come to visit First Boynton, eventually join that church, only to resign our membership there in less than a year, and subsequently join with David and Jennifer to plant Gospel City Church?”

I have resolved that the answer is simply that even when we didn’t know what was happening, God was always working in the background, moving the pieces of the puzzle together, to bring us to this place, at this time, for HIS purpose!

This year I have committed to responding to the call of becoming more like Jesus in my behaviors and in my desires. I realize I need God to change my heart so that I will have the desire to surrender to His will, even when I don’t know or understand what His will is, and even when His answer to my prayer is “no” or “not yet.” I know that God has brought me to Gospel City Church to serve His people. My desire is to give of my time and talents to serve in a capacity in which I am uniquely qualified, and in a manner that will ultimately be to the glory of God.

Family Description:

My husband, Brad (Sheares), and I have been married for 17 years, and we currently live in Highland Beach. Although we split our time between Ambler, PA and various locations in South Florida for most of our marriage, we have lived in Highland Beach full time for the past 7 years.

I have 3 adult stepdaughters, all of whom live outside of Florida. Our closest relatives here are my brother and his wife. They live in Tampa with their two boys.

Professional Background:

I am a retired lawyer and CPA. I started my accounting career as an auditor at KPMG (formerly Peat Marwick, which, at the time, was the largest public accounting firm in the world), auditing banks and financial institutions in Manhattan. Throughout my accounting career, I held various roles of increased responsibility in large and mid-sized accounting firms, as well as positions in the internal audit and finance departments at Merck, a multinational pharmaceutical company, supporting the manufacturing, sales, and marketing divisions.

While a Finance Manager at Merck, I completed my law degree, but ultimately left Merck to pursue a law career as a litigator, practicing in the product liability and employment law departments at Dechert, and in the antitrust law department at Latham & Watkins. My law career also included assignments supporting the corporate law department at Samsung Electronics.

Once I officially retired from practicing law, I decided to pursue my passion for all things fashion related, and launched a wardrobe styling business. My private clients ranged from entrepreneurs and small business owners to high-level corporate executives and local celebrities. I was the official wardrobe stylist for Fox 29’s “Good Day Philadelphia,” appearing regularly in fashion segments, and I served as the assistant fashion editor of a local magazine.

Although my chosen careers were certainly demanding of my time, I have always committed to allocating a portion of my time to serving others. For over 10 years I was actively involved with the Indian Valley Boys and Girls Club. In addition to serving on their

board of directors, I designed and gifted a teen girl lounge called “Club Glam,” which served as a safe space for the Club’s teen girls to develop a sisterhood with each other and meaningful relationships with their team leaders. Club Glam’s overall mission was to immerse the girls in activities, workshops and events that would enhance their social, educational and emotional development.

In addition to serving at the Indian Valley Boys & Girls Club, I was actively involved with the Support Center for Child Advocates, both during my years of practicing law and post retirement. There I served as a child advocate attorney, representing children in the foster care system on a pro bono basis, as well as serving as chair of their annual toy drive.

Biography:

Bob Adams and his wife Allison were married on May 27, 2000, and raised their family in Kearneysville, West Virginia.

Tired of the cold and miserable weather up north, the Adams’ sold their home and moved to Ocean Ridge, Florida in June of 2019. Our family is proud and blessed to call Florida “home”.

Bob is the President and owner of Opinion Strategies LLC, a digital media marketing company that specializes in online fundraising for conservative political candidates. After working at the highest levels of state and national politics for over 20 years, Bob started his business in 2011.

He has served as a board member for several organizations, most recently including the advisory board of Gospel City Church. In this role, he has served as an advisor to Pastor David McCaman.

Previously, Bob has served on the advisory boards of the Arizona Latino Commission and the Congress of Racial Equality, one of the “Big Four” historic civil rights groups. In addition, he has served as a founding board member for Birthright of Charles Town (WV).

Bob and his wife also own Solomon Results LLC, a real estate investment and management company. He is currently heavily engaged in managing the rebuild of a home in Fort Myers Beach, which was devastated by Hurricane Ian in late-September of 2022.

At his core, Bob is an entrepreneur. He has a proven track record of starting, growing and managing several for-profit and non-profit businesses and political organizations.

He holds a Master of Business Administration from Shepherd University, a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Towson University, and an associate degree in general studies from Essex Community College.

He is a veteran of the U.S. Navy, having served as a deck seaman aboard the U.S.S. Gridley (CG-21) in 1988.

Bob’s wife Allison is an accomplished equestrian jumper. After raising and homeschooling our children, Allison has been blessed to return to her young adult passion of riding horses. She competes regularly in the 1.1-meter jumper class at Wellington and also at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in Tryon, NC, where the Adams’ own a horse farm and spend their summers.

Bob and Allison have four children: Madison, 22, Caitlyn, 20, Albert 18, and James, 16.

Our oldest daughter Madison currently works on the assignment desk for the Fox News Channel in Washington, DC. In March, she’ll be moving back to Florida to take a position as an on-air news reporter for the local NBC affiliate in Fort Myers, FL. She graduated from the University of Central Florida with a degree in broadcast journalism.

Caitlyn is a senior at the University of South Florida studying politics and business. She’ll graduate in the Fall of 2023.

Our sons, Albert and James both attend Boca Raton Christian School. Albert plans to attend the University of Florida this Fall. James will be a junior in high school.

All of our children have served overseas in the mission field through church and a number of Christian organizations. This summer, James will be serving on a mission team in Brazil with Teen Missions International.

Testimony:

Before I came to know Christ in my early 20s, my life could be best described as a world of darkness and depression.

Throughout my teen years, I suffered from a deep depression and abused alcohol as a way to self-medicate. Unbeknownst at the time, I used the booze to fill a deep hole in my life. But of course, there was never enough alcohol to kill the pain… to fill the hole. The depression I suffered was so deep and painful that without alcohol, I believe I likely would have taken my own life.

After I graduated high school in 1987, I joined the Navy. During my brief time there, my drinking and my life had spun completely out of control. At the age of 18, I was a full-blown alcoholic. I couldn’t stop drinking nor did I want to. I loved drinking! But it was quickly killing me.

After a while, even the Navy, an institution that condoned and encouraged drinking, had enough of me. I was soon shipped back home.

For a number of reasons, shortly after returning home, I managed to white-knuckle my way into sobriety through Alcoholics Anonymous. From the standpoint that I didn’t drink, the program worked great for me! I had my last drink on August 26, 1988. I haven’t had a drink since.

Unfortunately, stopping drinking was the only thing that changed in my life. I still had all of the underlying depression and insecurities that I had used alcohol to cover up. I still had a gaping hole in my soul that could never be filled. I would spend the next three years in AA, going from meeting to meeting, lost and searching for something to fill that hole.

Then one evening after a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous, a man talked to me about how and why I needed Christ. Frankly, I couldn’t wait to get away from him. The guy had what I called the “trifecta”. He was talking about Jesus. He had dreadful bad-breath, and in a matter-of-fact way, he informed me that before Christ he had previously been “gay”. Not exactly my “cup of tea”! Nevertheless, out of politeness alone, I heard him out.

The man told me that I was powerless over my sin. While sin was an idea that I kind of scoffed at, I undoubtedly knew that at a ‘gut level” I was powerless over my entire life. No matter how much I wanted to change, I was doomed to fail. Life had convinced me the hard way -- that even when I wanted to do what was right, I inevitably did what was wrong. (Romans 7:21)

What I didn’t know at the time was that my personal reality was in fact an iron law of life, a law that the apostle Paul had written so convincingly about in the Bible.

It was this very law of nature - a law of personal powerlessness - that haunted me, and fed my hopelessness, low self-worth and depression.

The man also told me that God was NOT powerless – that Jesus Christ could change my life, if I only let Him. He said that “all I needed to do was to ask Jesus to come into my heart and my life”. It was that simple.

He told me that Jesus would take me “as I was”, full of sin and disgustingness. I didn’t have to “get good” to “get God”. Christ would take me exactly “as I was”. “After all,”, he said, “What did I have to lose?”

He sure was right about that!

The man also spoke to me about my need for a personal relationship with Christ, which I definitely didn’t have, and I absolutely knew nothing about. Sure, I grew up as a Catholic. BUT I didn’t REALLY KNOW him. I knew nothing of a personal relationship with Jesus. That was a new concept for me. One thing is for sure, I most definitely had never asked Jesus “into my heart and into my life”.

When I got home that night, I did as the man suggested. I got down on my knees and asked Christ “into my heart and into my life”. I admitted to Christ that my life was a mess. At the same time, I also told him that I wasn’t ready to give up certain sins. BUT I was willing to let him work with me on that, IF he would take me. I then asked him to forgive me for my sins, and to take over my life. At that I moment, I had what I can only describe as a deep spiritual experience. I didn’t know it then, but my life was forever changed. I would never again walk alone. I would never again be without the power of Christ in my life.

With Christ, I was no longer powerless. He was my power source for everything – EXCEPT for the worldly things in my life that I wasn’t willing to give up.

But over the next 25 years of my life, including through my marriage to Allison, those worldly things would come back to haunt me.

I spent my adult years careening through life, constantly feeding my worldly-carnal desires.

With a career in national politics, I chased after wealth, power, and pleasure. Hypocritically, I lived a double life.

I lived a secret and dark life of sin outside of my marriage.

At home or at church, I was a Christian and a family man.

I was a successful business leader, and a respected member of the community.

I was the ultra-marathon man -

I was great, and I would never get caught in my sin, or so I thought in all of arrogance.

But away from home, often travelling away for business, I lived like a pagan.

I was a Christian, but in name only.

It was only a matter of time before God would call me to account – to chasten me. When he did, my life spun completely out of control – literally.

After a violent car accident and the exposure of my double-life in sin, God brought me emotionally and spiritually to my knees.

I learned through pain -- almost losing my marriage, family, and life – that my relationship with Christ could not be conditional. I fully gave my life to the Lord without reservation.

I was born in Brazil and was raised on a remote farm in a Roman Catholic home. I rode horses, swam in rivers and was a “nurse” to our many farm helpers. At 11, I was sent to boarding school and decided there I didn’t want any part of religion.

But God had different plans.....

At 20 years old, I was saved while attending First Baptist Church of Joao Pessoa, Brazil. Life took many turns from that point on — some really good (had two daughters), and others really painful.

Pain was something I became familiar with. But God in His Mercy used it all to reveal Himself to me and bring me to my knees and to use me—brokenness and all—for His Glory!

Several years later, I moved with my two teenage daughters to Florida, USA in May 2000. I met my husband Darryl, and his two children, Adelia and Dominic in 2001. We married two years later and joined our blended families as best we could. Although Darryl wasn’t a believer at the time, I continued to attend church.

In January 2006, my world was permanently changed with the death of my oldest daughter Pryscilla. She was 21 years old and died in a car accident in Brazil. But God so mercifully carried me every step of the way through that agonizing and time and reminded me of His abundant grace. Praise God for my joy in knowing Pryscilla was saved before she died! I was comforted even though this was the hardest thing in my life.

Yet, God has bestowed on me many blessings through Pryscilla’s death. My youngest daughter Vanessa was saved. My mother was saved a few months before her own death. My husband Darryl came to Christ shortly afterwards. Pryscilla’s testimony is still speaking!

My greatest joy is to help others to come to know Christ, and to help them grow in Christ. Darryl and I have hosted a Bible study in our home since August 2006.

Professionally, I’ve been a realtor since 2003. I love to help people with their real estate needs.

God has blessed us with three wonderful grandchildren: Steven (7), Luiza (6) and Nicolas (1), who live in Virginia with my daughter Vanessa and her husband Jefferson. Time spent with them is precious — we are close, and visit as often as possible, but it’s hard to be so far away. My prayer for them is 3 John 4, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”

It is a joy to be a part of Gospel City Church. I’m excited to serve this church in any capacity God presents to me.