David Lee is Director of I AM ART, and has led over 15 trips to Guatemala with Athentikos since 2015. He’s a graduate of Belmont University in Nashville, TN who began playing music after watching old-timers playing the blues on the front porch as a child in Mississippi. I Am Art allows David to combine his passion for creativity with his desire to help other people.

Amelia Moore was introduced to the beautiful country of Guatemala in 2005 through the adoption of their two sons. Her formal background is in art and graphic design, and from these creative fields, she discovered a love of photography in 2003.She’s now a full-time award-winning photographer working in events and portraits whose been featured in People Magazine and numerous websites. You can see examples of her work at ameliajmoore.com.

Hi, I’m Kathlyn Chan, wife of Noé and mother of our precious daughter Hadassah. We live and serve in the artistic country of Guatemala. I’ve been an “artist” for as long as I can remember. Whether it was sketching during classes, creating bicycles out of twisty-ties or painting rocks, I always had my artistic eye on the search for something to transform, create or embellish. As an adult, the art forms have matured as well into painting, drawing, baking exotic things and photography. I’m passionate about showing people that they are special and seeing their faces light up when they realize it. Moving to Guatemala, in 2013, I knew my life would be dedicated to service. God’s love and word to be spread through my willing hands and mouth, was my desire, however, I lacked real direction as to HOW I would go about that. When I was fairly new to the country I had the opportunity to participate in one of Athentikos’ first I AM ART camps. It was life-changing for not only the “campers” but for me and the others that formed part of the team. I experienced a fusion of art and ministry like I never dreamed possible or even thought of before. It sparked something in me that I had to pursue. At this time Athentikos was in need of someone to work from “on the field” in preparing for their art camps. Knowing of my interest in becoming more involved they proposed that I join the leadership team. I willingly agreed and assumed the title of IAA In-Country Coordinator. I’m thankful to be a part of the Athentikos team and look forward to seeing how God will use us to continue spreading His love through our program!

Hi, I’m a proud missionary in my own country, Guatemala. I volunteered for the first time with Athentikos in 2016 and my experience at my first I Am Art camp was life-changing! After that, I decided to be part of this for as long as God wanted me to. Now I’m part of I Am Art camp staff preparing our national (Guatemalan) team from translators to artists to materials to the large group! I love it all and encourage every Guatemalan to expect the unexpected from our God!

Kati Korosuo is a dance artist based in Finland. She has been working in the contexts of contemporary dance, theatre and performance art for the past 15 years. In addition to her devotion as a performer, she keeps busy by developing her own artistic practice called Dances to a Beat (DTB) and teaching it all over the world. Teaching this practice brought her to Guatemala and to work with Athentikos for the first time in 2016. Since then a part of her heart has stayed in the country, and she kept coming back attending IAA camps teaching workshops yearly. Since 2019 she’s taken the responsibility of being a team leader as well.

Hi! I am a senior English-Writing major and Design Communications minor at Belmont University and I got connected with Athentikos through their Belmont on Missions. I spent a little under two weeks in Guatemala with a few lovely students and a powerhouse team led by Scott, Bobby, David and Meaghan (Belmont professor). After my experience on the trip, I immediately knew I wanted to do more with and for this organization and now I have the incredible opportunity of being the intern! I started in August so I am still very new here, but everyone has made me feel so welcome and appreciated and I feel so grateful to be apart of such a special organization doing such important work for the kingdom! I love camp because it was a way for me to use the creative talents God has given me to help others and be a witness to the work He was doing in each of the campers’ hearts. It is such an amazing glimpse of God’s glory to see a child smile and marvel at the work they have done and there is truly nothing better in the world than that.

I first heard about Athentikos from a family friend of ours, Vince. Vince has known Scott and Amelia for some time now, and he couldn’t stop saying great things about their organization! Since finding out about Athentikos this summer, I have been one one I AM ART trip to Casa Bernabé. I fell in love with the intertwining of faith and creativity all over again during this trip! I think Athentikos’ approach to spreading the truth of Jesus through the arts is such a unique and important way to share the power and love of God. From the intentional curriculum to the openness to so many various projects, I Am Art offers healthy outlets, learning experiences, and metaphors for the ups and downs of life. Creativity has had a great impact on me (I like to write and journal), and I feel so honored to be able to share the beauty of creativity with others. I will be serving in Guatemala this Jan – June 2020 in two communities developing ongoing I AM ART programs and preparing and participating in two week long I AM ART camps.

I got introduced to Athentikos when Scott came to speak at my church in Colorado about the I AM ART camps. I walked in at the end of his presentation yet felt an immediate sense of passion for what Athentikos does. Art holds an immense piece in the healing parts of my story, and I know myself how powerful of a tool it can be for a broken soul. As a Spanish speaker myself, these camps spoke directly to my heart. I’ve always had a dream of doing art therapy around the world with victims of trauma, so I’ve been involved ever since I heard about the camp in 2017, filling the ‘Storyteller’ role during my time at camps + running the social media for Athentikos. My specialties reside in hoppin’ around the mountains as a Colorado wedding + portrait photographer and partnering with global nonprofits as a humanitarian photojournalist. I’m all about pairing nostalgic whimsical, photography with thoughtfully curated words.