This is the second installment in a short series of posts from people who are past Hatch-a-thon participants. This one highlights Meredith Mills, who participated in the 2015 Hatch-a-thon. She started a great ministry called gastrochurch.

Tell us a little bit about your project, please.

My project is gastrochurch: intentional conversation about spiritual things over really good food. Gastrochurch is a style of meeting that seeks to engage and create community among millennials across a spectrum of faith and church engagement. The gastrochurch evening is a two-hour meal of meaningful, directed conversation. From that evening, participants are invited to become a part of the gastrochurch community: a community that meets four times a month to serve, play, study, or host a gastrochurch dinner.

What happened with your project after the Hatch-a-thon?

Because of the Hatch-a-thon, I was able to begin experimenting with my project as soon as I returned. My experiments gave me enough information to create a business proposal to pitch to my conference leadership. I can’t emphasize that enough: Hatch-a-thon took me from a vague idea in my head to a concrete plan on the ground.

What are you doing now?

I’m now full-time on my Hatch-a-thon project. I received three years of funding to see if I can make it grow into something sustainable and fruitful.

Did your Hatch-a-thon experience help you?

Absolutely. I had a great idea, but no clue what to do next. If I hadn’t gone to Hatch-a-thon, I probably always would have just had that idea burning in my mind without the tools to make anything happen. Hatch-a-thon took me from idea to implementation.

You can find out more about gastrochurch at www.gastrochurch.org. You can also find them on Facebook as gastrochurch, on Twitter as @gastrochurch, and on Instagram as gastrochurchhtx.

Hungry for more? Sign up for our newsletter and stay up to date on our latest blogs and Ministry Incubators news! Or, are you ready to take action? Think about attending a Hatch-a-thon where you can start planning your own venture! Check out the next one happening March 29-31 at Princeton Theological Seminary.