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Our History

The Beginning

In 1977, a humble servant of the Lord answered God’s calling to open a Christian gift and bookstore in Bellevue. Ann Farrell opened The Shepherd’s Door hoping it would be a blessing to the community and indeed it was. After 30 years of owning and managing the store, Ann decided to retire. But she didn’t want the store to close its doors for good. In November of 2007, Bellevue Christian Church loaned the money to Shepherd’s Door, Inc. to purchase and relocate the store and our ministry was born.

The Past

For the next five years, from 2007 to 2012, The Shepherd’s Door continued to provide so much more than Christian products to the North Boroughs. The meeting room at the store was used weekly to hold prayer meetings, job training groups, after school tutoring, Bible studies and other various community events. In addition to supporting local organizations by allowing use of meeting space, The Shepherd’s Door donated 5% of its monthly sales to a local charity each month. The money spent in the store directly supported the local community.

The Future

At the beginning of 2011, The Shepherd’s Door contracted with the Bayer Center for Non-Profit Management and began redefining its goals and mission. After completing a community survey and working with many local residents, businesses and community leaders, The Shepherd’s Door decided to shift its focus to establishing quick, convenient access to community resources and providing adequate safe havens for children and youth. In 2013 we launched our new vision and mission and are continuing to unfold God’s plan for this ministry.