Finally, this public stock trades

For the last 18 months, Kingdom

Ventures acted just like a public company.

It won approval from the Securities and

Exchange Commission to raise money

from the public and began reporting its

financial statements and significant corporate

events to the SEC.

Only one thing separated Minden-based

Kingdom Ventures then known as

Legends of the Faith from all the other

public companies in the world: It didn't have

a stock that was publicly traded.

That's not as strange as it seems.

Gene Jackson, the company's founder

and president, explained last week that

the small firm decided to avoid the gyrations

of the market as the dot-com bubble's

collapse was followed in short order

by the post-Sept. 11 downdraft.

Instead of worrying about the price of

their stock, company executives decided

to focus on the business at hand a

product line that ranges from inspirational

gifts and religious apparel to business

promotional items.

Now Kingdom Ventures believes

things have settled down enough for it to

open its stock to public trading.

The company applied to the National

Association of Securities Dealers for a listing

on the over-the-counter bulletin board system.

It hired The Marana Group to handle its

investor relations and public relations. It established

a relationship with Wachovia Securities

to facilitate trading. Its shareholders approved

the name change.

Last week, it was awaiting that stock

symbol that will allow its shares to begin

trading.

While he was waiting, Jackson was

getting the company's newest acquisition

a candle-making firm previously based

in San Jose, Calif. moved into new

quarters at Carson City. The Carson City

plant, he said, should begin production

within a few days.

Legends of the Faith the predecessor

company to Kingdom Ventures was

founded three years ago. Jackson, brought

15 years experience in the commercial

printing industry to the new venture.

In materials the company distributed in

its search for private-placement capital late

last year, Legends of the Faith said its sales

for 2001 were about $1 million. At the same

time, the company said it expected to add

about $2 million of annual revenues from its

purchase of majority interest in Xtreme

Notebooks Inc., an e-tailer of notebook

computers based in Carson City.

Its other products include:

* "iBelieve Bible Software," for which the

company reported sales of 10,000 copies

in its first 30 days on the market. The

marketing of the software focuses on

nonprofit groups that sell it as a

fundraiser.

* "Yahwear," a line of T-shirt, hats and the

like emblazoned with Christian messages

and sold at Christian music festivals.

* Bible character bears, including a "Jesus

Loves Me" bear and keychain. The company

said last year it had sold more than

700,000 of the plush animals. (Along

with his publishing experience, Jackson

once worked as a wholesale distributor

of plush bears.)

* Children's Bible story books.

* Food products such as Noah's Animal

Cookies sold as fundraisers by nonprofit

groups.