Seven guys

They were young, rich and well-connected men who liked to do something behind closed doors:

Pray.

Then one day these seven young men felt the call to leave the world behind and dedicate themselves to God. So they made sure their earthly obligations were taken care of and then set up a hermitage for themselves away from the city.

Their reputation for holiness spread and they were asked to speak at churches throughout the region.

They were not always well received. At one place, a heckler actually got violent (he subsequently became one of their most devoted followers).

They and their followers called themselves the Friar Servants, others called them Servites. The last of the seven founders died on this very day in 1310. The Servites continue to serve the Church in many parts of the world.