About Us
The Augustana Heritage Association was dissolved in 2016. Records and writings are retained here for archival purposes.
The Augustana Heritage Association was organized on the campus of Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, in June of the year 2000 at the second of what have been nine biennial Gatherings. An AHA Valedictory event was planned for June 24-26, 2016 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansdale, Pennsylvania.
The purpose of the Augustana Heritage Association was to define, promote and perpetuate the heritage and legacy of the Augustana Lutheran Church (1860-1962) which merged with the American Evangelical Lutheran Church (AELC), the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church (Suomi Synod) and the United Lutheran Church in America (ULCA) in 1962 to form the Lutheran Church in America (LCA). In 1986 the LCA - Canada Section and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada merged to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC). In 1988 the remaining portion of the LCA merged with the American Lutheran Church (ALC) and the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC) to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
The fulfillment of the purpose of the Augustana Heritage Association was made possible through its many volunteers and members.
After its organization in 2000, the purpose of the Augustana Heritage Association was carried out in a variety of ways:
- Subsequent Biennial Gatherings at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas in 2002 and 2008; at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota in 2004 and 2012; at the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, New York in 2006; and at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois in 2010; at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota in 2012; and at Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska in 2014.
- The semi-annual publication of the Augustana Heritage Newsletter, edited for many years by Arvid & Nancy Anderson, then by Ron Englund, and currently edited by George Meslow.
- The publication in 1999 of The Augustana Heritage: Recollections, Perspectives and Prospects, presentations from the 1998 AHA Chautauqua Gathering, edited by Arland Hultgren and Vance Eckstrom.
- The publication in 2000, with a revised edition in 2002, of Songs of Two Homelands: Hymns and Liturgy of the Augustana Lutheran Tradition edited by Ronald Englund, Glenn Stone and John Swanson.
- The publication in 2002 of The Heritage of Augustana: Presentations at Rock Island and Lindsborg, edited by Hartland Gifford and Arland Hultgren
- The production in 2002 of the CD, Bright Gems for His Crown: 44 Hymns from the Augustana Lutheran Church, by Jack Swanson, Organist, and Amy James, Soprano; and in 2004 of the CD, Nearer, Still Nearer: Liturgy and Music from the 2004 Gathering at Gustavus Adolphus College.
- The publication in 2004 of The Heritage of Augustana: Essays on the Life and Legacy of the Augustana Lutheran Church, edited by Hartland Gifford and Arland Hultgren.
- The publication in 2007 of The Augustana Lutheran Church in Print: A Selective Union List with Annotations of Serial Publications Issued by the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church and its Agencies and Associates, 1855-1962, with Selected Serial Publications after 1962, by Virginia Follstad.
- The publication in 2008 of a new history of the Augustana Lutheran Church, The Augustana Story: Shaping Lutheran Identity in North America, by Maria Erling and Mark Granquist, the first book since the early 1960s to chronicle the history of the Augustana Lutheran Church.
- The development, under the guidance of Elisabeth Wittman and David Lindberg of the Augustana Heritage Association Archives at the Archives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.
- An Oral History Project chaired by Dr. John Benson of Moorhead, Minnesota.
- An Historic Churches Project by Dr. Bruce Johnston of Chicago.
A.H.A. Officers and Others
Officers and Members of the Board of Directors of the Augustana Heritage Association for the 2010-2012 Biennium were:
- President - The Rev. Hal Nilsson
- Vice-President - Ms. Ann Kohler
- Secretary - Ms. Helene Leaf
- Treasurer - The Rev. P. Gerald Leaf
- Board of Directors - Mr.Loran Bohman, Mr. Terry Denley, The Rev. David Hurty, Ms. Marilyn Jackson, The Rev. Ted Johns, Ms. Sonya Lindquist, Ms. Janet Novak, The Rev. Curtis Olson, The Rev. Donald Sjoberg and The Rev. Dale Skogman
- Advisors to the Board - The Rev. Arland Hultgren, and Ms. Kathryn Segerhammar Swanson
- Executive Director - The Rev. David Baker
- Newsletter Editor - The Rev. George Meslow
- Office Manager - Ms. Ruth Ann Deppe
For additional information, please contact the Augustana Heritage Association at the following address:
Augustana Heritage Association
C/O Augustana College
Rock Island, Illinois