How it all Began - The history of Latreia
We have had many requests for our story of how Latreia started and evolved into a non-profit service ministry. So here is our story.well, it's actually God's story but we feel privileged to have been along for the journey - both spiritually and physically.
In March 2004, during a week-long service trip to San Antonio , TX , the Latreia vision was born. Each spring break, Wartburg College sends students on service trips to locations all across the United States . The four of us, Kelly, Laura, Stephanie and Jesse, had all been on service trips before. Our service trip experiences had changed our view of God, ourselves, others around us, and the world in general. On this trip, we were the oldest and had the honor of watching the transformation in about twenty underclassmen who were experiencing all of this for the first time. On the twenty-four hour van ride back to Iowa , the four of us were talking about the impact that service ministry has on the lives of individuals. We were brainstorming ideas of how we could tangibly take the short-term service trip experience and turn it into a long-term ministry. One of our statements was "Wouldn't it be cool if we could travel the United States and volunteer for one week in each of the 50 states?" God took this "Wouldn't it be cool if." comment and turned it into a reality.
Three days later, we mapped out the year-long route (which remained virtually unchanged), Jesse quit his job at the college and applications to law school, seminary and the Peace Corps were put on hold, and we all jumped aboard. Little did we know how little we really did know! But God knew, and He placed amazing servants in our path to help us along the way, and all for free..a web designer, several graphic artists to design our logo and brochures, a lawyer to help us fill out our incorporation and non-profit papers, an accountant to help with taxes, and hundreds of spiritual and financial supporters who believed in Latreia. Our 15-passanger van was even sold to us by our college for $1.
The origin of our name is also an amazing story. As soon as we decided to put our future plans on hold, we began discussing name ideas. Several weeks went by but nothing was clicking. We were beginning to get frustrated. It is impossible to start an organization if you do not have a name for it! During this time, two of us went to a Christian Artist's concert (Shaun Groves). Because our dilemma was fresh on our minds, we joked with a friend of ours that it was officially his problem to come up with a name for our organization. And, we wanted him to have it by the end of the concert. It was less than ten minutes later when Shaun stopped singing and started to talk about how we, as Christians, perceive worship only as singing on Sunday mornings, selling ourselves short of the true nature of worship. He continued to say how true worship is a lifestyle and its primary roots are in service and offering yourself as a living sacrifice (Rom 12:1). Finally, he revealed that the Greek word for "worship through service" is Latreia. Our friend turned to us and said, "There's your name"!
Our initial idea was in March of 2004 and by July '04 we became incorporated as an organization. By August '04 we had raised enough money (about $10,000) to begin our year of travel. Funds continued to pour in as we drove from state to state speaking in churches about the meaning of Latreia. After we received our non-profit status in two months (it typically takes 4-6 months) and were blessed with more than what we needed for our year of travel, we realized that God had more sustaining goals in mind for this ministry. We finished the year on the road in August 2005 and opened the home office in Minneapolis with our left over funds. God continues to sustain us with His provision.
Thanks for listening. God's provision and faithfulness never cease to amaze,
—Co-founders: Kelly Dotson, Stephanie Fisk, Jesse Henkle and Laura Nielsen
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