History of the Augustana Heritage Association

The Rev. Reuben T. Swanson, one of the founders and the first president of the Augustana Heritage Association.

The Rev. Reuben T. Swanson, one of the founders and the first president of the Augustana Heritage Association.

Given the heritage left by the Augustana Lutheran Church and the appreciation of it by many of those who were members or whose forebears were, it was not surprising that an organization should come into being that would facilitate gatherings for giving thanks and reminiscing, and that would plan and implement projects that would serve to perpetuate the heritage of Augustana.

Beginning in the early 1990s, regional gatherings, "Festivals of Faith," were held in various places where the members and friends of Augustana could worship, remember, and fellowship together. These were the forerunners of a "Sesquicentennial Heritage Gathering" in Chautauqua, New York, in September of 1998. It was followed by Gatherings at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois in June of 2000; at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas in June of 2002; at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota in June of 2004; at the Chautauqua Institution in Chautauqua, New York in September of 2006; and at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas in June of 2008. Additional Gatherings are planned for June of 2010 at Augustana College in Rock Island and for June of 2012 at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter.

The Augustana Heritage Association came into being formally in 2000 at the Gathering in Rock Island. It has as its purpose to "define, promote and perpetuate the heritage and legacy of the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church" and to assist in identifying and remembering the values and commitments of that church body.

The AHA is fulfilling its purpose and mission by distributing a semi-annual newsletter, planning gatherings, publishing books, and affirming the ministries of the educational institutions and social service agencies that were founded by and/or were related to the Augustana Lutheran Church and that continue to serve today. A new history of the Augustana Lutheran Church, The Augustana Story: Shaping Lutheran Identity in North America, by Maria Erling and Mark Granquist, has recently by published under the auspices of the Augustana Heritage Association and is available from Augsburg Fortress Press. It is the first book since the early 1960s to chronicle the history of the Augustana Lutheran Church.

The Augustana Heritage Association exists so that members and friends of the Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church and their descendants can join together in lifting up the legacy and in sharing its values and commitments with the Church of today.