It’s been a long time coming, but Marty and Darla Kaarre’s outdoor ministry has taken hold in the mountains of Northwest Montana.

The Eureka couple founded Athelas Outdoor Ministry in 2003 with a base camp at Pinkham Creek on a portion of Darla’s great-grandfather’s homestead. And while some activities for the nonprofit ministry are staged there in canvas wall tents, much of what they offer reaches into backcountry wilderness.

“We use the wonders of God’s amazing mountain creation to teach Christians to serve and to rely on their creator, and provide a place to be refreshed and renewed in a community of believers,” Marty explained.

The seed for an outdoor Christian ministry was planted in the 1990s when the Kaarres lived in Wisconsin and would take youth groups on camping trips to Northwest Montana. Marty was a pastor in Ashland, Wis., for 10 years before the family moved to the Flathead Valley in 2001 with their dream in tow.

He spent seven years as pastor of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Whitefish while the family continued to chip away at developing the ministry.

In 2008 he resigned from his pastoral duties at St. Peter to pursue Athelas Outdoor Ministry full time.

Darla was raised at Pinkham Creek, so it made sense from the get-go to locate the base camp there. Her parents, Harry and Claire Workman, are horse outfitters who handle trail rides for the ministry program.

Athelas is very much a family affair. The Kaarres’ five children — Nikki, 27, Erika, 25, Randy, 22, Krista, 19 and Elly, 9 — all have helped out as needed. Nikki and her husband, Jeremy Meyer, lead the rock-climbing excursions for the ministry.

The unusual name of the ministry comes from J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. The Athelas is a lovely and rare flower that grows only in the high mountains, bringing with it healing and refreshment when sought by those willing to journey for it, Marty explained.

The ministry accommodates a wide range of groups, from mother-daughter retreats to hunting trips for men in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. This month Athelas is hosting a vacation Bible school at the old Pinkham School near the base camp.

“It really depends on what needs the group has,” Darla explained.

Some arrive wanting to tackle mission or service projects. Others use the outdoor recreation for team-building. A group of Kalispell sixth-graders participated in a “Rock On” retreat to study rocks.

Away from the rigors of daily life, there’s ample time for Bible studies and worship around the campfire with Marty strumming his guitar. There’s time to write in journals and “space to grow in your faith,” he said.

The Kaarres use their website, Facebook, word of mouth and networking through churches to market their ministry. They recently started a website teaching arm of Athelas called climbinghigher.org. The Internet service provides daily printed devotions, a weekly video of Marty preaching a sermon and teaching a Bible study and short weekly video recordings in other areas of interest to Christians.

For more information about Athelas, go to www.athelasoutdoor.org.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com