Mission of God?

KWWL TV, Iowa/October 7, 2005

Many people have never heard of Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission, and that's not surprising. Even though it's been around for more than ten years and has more than one hundred faithful followers in Iowa ..it is very secretive. It is also very controversial.

19 year old Ashley Fahey of McGregor dropped everything, including an $18,000 college scholarship to join the group. She said she felt called by God, and if she didn't join, when she dies she would go to Hell. Ashley's family says in one weekend her personality did a 180. She went from a soon to be college student to a so-called "sister" in a matter of hours. She lives in Chicago now, and her mother is bound and determined to bring her home.

"I call her everyday and leave a message on the answering machine", said Lora Knott-Ashley Fahey's Mother. Lora Knott lives in a state of confusion and grief everyday. She looks through pictures and cries as she remembers the daughter she had before Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission came into their lives. "I can't explain it. Definitely not our daughter, no absolutely not", said Lora. 19 year old Ashley Fahey dropped everything to move to Chicago and join the Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission. Signs outside the front door at the group's headquarters in Chicago say the group is "within the Catholic Church", but it's not.

Lora Knott went to Chicago two times in one week...searching for answers and a chance to maybe talk to her daughter or see her even for a second. No one came outside, and no one answered the phone. The group's headquarters in Chicago is surrounded by at least six surveillance cameras. There's even one in the intercom system outside the front door. The cameras are on nearly every corner, and the building is locked and fenced in. You'll find the same type of security at two other locations in Chicago where the "sisters" of the group live. We found the same set up at the group's farmstead outside Bellevue, Iowa. A gate blocks people from driving down the lane. No one came to the door at any of those places.

Ashley's mother wasted no time in Chicago. She wants neighbors to know her daughter's face, and went door to door showing pictures to people in the neighborhood where she believes Ashley is living. Lora Knott considers her daughter "missing". Ashley was attending Wright College in Chicago, but her family has learned she's apparently not showing up for classes.

Donna Backstrom grew up in Dubuque and now lives in Davenport. She is very familiar with Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission. She's been researching the group for a year and a half, and is now helping Lora Knott on her mission to get Ashley back. "My sister has not spoken to her daughter since she moved here at the end of May, so it's been over four months that a mother can not speak with her daughter. That absolutely breaks my heart and that is not of God", said Donna Backstrom. Members and leaders of the Catholic community in northeast Iowa agree. How could a Godly group tear families apart? "It's wrecking my marriage, we're like seconds away from divorce", said Tamee Fahey-Ashley's Step-Mother. Those outcries are part of the reason why the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Dubuque stepped in and refuses to recognize the group as Catholic. Monsignor James Barta says the group is definitely "cult-like". "There seems to be a very extreme authority vested in one person, this is characteristic of a cult", said Monsignor James Barta-Archdiocese of Dubuque.

The group's secretiveness also raises red flags. Father Jim Dubert from Saint Mary's Parish in Eldora and Saint Mark's in Iowa Falls was once a part of the group's Bible studies for priests. "They're trying to be quiet and not talk to the press because they want to not stir more things up", said Father Jim Dubert. He no longer endorses Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission, but still defends it. "My experience with the mission is it's not a cult, it's just simply a group of people who are trying to spread a message of holiness", said Dubert.

You might think Lora Knott's faith has dwindled through all of this, but it hasn't. She still wears a cross around her neck and prays every night that her daughter will come home.

Ashley is 19-years-old and considered an adult, so there's not much her family can do legally, but they're not giving up. Love Holy Trinity Blessed Mission is also not giving up. KWWL has learned the group is taking its request to be a recognized Catholic organization all the way to Rome. Meanwhile, families affected by this group are working on forming a support group in northeast Iowa.