Our History
In 1992, Ed and Cathi Basler, founders of Souled Out Ministries, could be found teaching high school Sunday school at their local church. As they raised two of their four children into teen-hood, they became more aggressive in working with young people, and began to re-discover God's heart for youth and youth ministry. Although there were many weeks when there were only a handful of teens attending, the Lord re-birthed a faith for what had been in Ed and Cathi's hearts for 25 years: a revival among teens.

Over the next two years, Ed and Cathi worked with many young people, and even obtained a warehouse to hold youth meetings in, but the lease soon ran out on the warehouse, and Ed and Cathi still had a heart to see the hunger in the young people filled. During the course of that year, while a small amount of teens were still regularly meeting together; they began to think of ways to build a type of ministry that would meet the needs of the youth. It was in the midst of a season of prayer and fasting that the concept of a "youth church" was born. The idea of having a church specifically for youth was important, because the church is God’s way of assembling His people, and if theirs was tailored towards youth, they could use the church as a foundation to bring young people together to receive the love of the Lord.

In February of 1997, HeaRt & SouL was officially opened. Soon they began to hold concerts every weekend for the purpose of giving the new young Believers a place to go, and something to do with their weekends in a non-threatening environment. The concerts were also used to introduce Christian music to both Believers and non-Believers. Souled Out services were held at HeaRt & SouL, as well as weekly Bible studies, and other events.
With a permanent residence for Souled Out, the ministry became more and more stable, and in 1998 more branches of ministry were developed, particularly the international aspect of Souled Out. It was in this year that God opened the doors for Souled Out to take teams to Denmark and Zimbabwe, Africa, in addition to the teams that traveled to the Middle East.

The expansion of Souled Out Ministries led Souled Out to acquire property in Northeast Iowa to be used as a retreat center for the youth. The Iowa branch of Souled Out has grown to include weekly S.O.S. meetings and outreaches, including overseas outreaches, a cafe that is owned and operated by Souled Out staff, and youth as a presence and service to the community.

Today, Souled Out is working to continue to grow and meet the needs of this particular generation. Construction for a performing arts center and headquarters which will also house the Souled Out Masters Commission school is under way in Mount Prospect Illinois. We need your support to continue to reach out to youth.

Please consider a tax-deductible donation today to support the work God is doing at Souled Out by visiting our on-line donation page. And sign up for our newsletter and email program to keep up with the latest SO events and news.