Our Story
RLP was born out of a yearning for a different kind of community from an education leader, Stephanie Saroki de Garcia (Co-founder and Managing Director at Seton Education Partners). Stephanie hungered for a community that brought her faith life and her vocational passion for educational equity into one space. She began to organize a diverse group of Christian leaders to gather virtually during COVID and RLP was born. The first in-person retreat was hosted in 2022. After a powerful convening and demand for more, Grove Collective agreed to act as RLP’s fiscal sponsor. A largely volunteer-led team was assembled, seed funding was invested from generous like-hearted partners, and two more retreats were hosted at Lone Rock. To date, over 40 leaders have participated in an RLP retreat.
Early Results
We are beginning to see the fruit of God’s work in our community.
98% would recommend to a friend of faith
100% experienced healing and restoration
88% forged new and deep relationships across differences
95% intend to act more on God's call for their lives
88% reported that their faith and/or relationship with God deepened
A New Kind of Community is Formed
“When it comes to my identity, there are so many dimensions. To name a few….I’m a husband, father, grandfather, and son. I’m also an educator, leader, philanthropist, and professor. At the same time, I’m a man of faith, service, and color. Just like everyone else, my identity is multidimensional, and one of my life’s goals is to exist in times and places where all of me is allowed to SHOW UP…at the same time. Such was the case during the inaugural RLP retreat in the Colorado mountains. I, along with 20 others, came together to SHOW UP, first – for ourselves, individually – then for one another. In two days, which were exquisitely designed, we came together to discuss, sing, grapple, worship and serve with one another. It is rare to find a place where ALL OF ME is welcome. Now that I have experienced it once, and prayerfully will again in the future; I suspect I will get better at creating similar spaces and places for those I serve.”
- Irvin Scott, Senior Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Education and author of Leading with Heart and Soul.
