L’Abri Fellowship began in Switzerland in 1955 when Francis and Edith Schaeffer decided in faith to open their home to be a place where people, whether Christian or not, might find satisfying answers to their questions and a practical demonstration of Christian care.

It was called L’Abri, the French word for “the shelter,” because they sought to provide a shelter from the pressures of a relentlessly secular 20th century.

As time went by, so many people came that others were called to join the Schaeffers in their work, and more branches were established.

​The Rochester branch began in the late seventies when the Schaeffers first came to the Mayo Clinic for medical care.  In 1990, a beautiful 9-acre property a couple of miles from downtown was donated to L'Abri, and the work has continued there ever since.  After Francis Schaeffer's death in 1984, Mrs. Schaeffer continued to reside in Rochester for many years.