Our Location ·
Calvary is located at 1420 South Holly Street, in south-east Denver. The closest major east/west street is Florida Avenue, and the church is located one block north of Florida on the east side of Holly. The major north/south streets that Florida intersects are Colorado Boulevard and Monaco Boulevard. We are east of Colorado and west of Monaco. You’ll find plenty of parking in the rear of the church. For a map, click here.
our email: cpc@hypermall.net
Our Worship Times ·
Our regular weekly worship starts at 9:30 am each Sunday of the year. We have a sunny nursery/children’s room, and childcare is provided. Children are always welcome in worship. We serve Communion on the first Sunday of each month, and all are invited to participate.
We offer special worship services during the seasons of Lent, Easter, Pentecost and Advent. We publish the times of those special services in the Getting Involved sections of this site
Our Christian education program for children and adults begins after regular Sunday worship for most of the year. There are no education programs between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Our History ·
How old is Calvary?
Calvary was established in 1954 by a strong group of neighborhood families under the auspices of the Presbytery of Denver - www.denpres.org. In those days South Holly Street was in the middle of wide open spaces, and it was the right place to extend the ministry of Christ to all the young families building homes and moving into the area.
Has your church grown since its founding?
Yes. In 1974 under the strong leadership of Reverend Stewart Congdon, Calvary was one of the fastest growing congregations in the area and added a large modern sanctuary on its south side. We installed a state of the art organ and grand piano to offer our joyful praise to God.
What have been the highlights of your ministry?
Women were first ordained as Ruling Elders in 1963, and this began a long tradition of shared leadership at Calvary. We now have a woman pastor, honoring the call of God to all and celebrating the diversity of God’s people. Calvary had a radio broadcast of its worship service on KLZ in the early 1970’s. Its witness to the community led to its growth and influence.
Calvary supported three refugee families in the 1960’s through the Dutch Refugee Resettlement Program. This was a transforming time in our life, as we helped the family with housing, employment, life in America, education and socialization.
Has your building been used for community activities?
Has it housed other groups?
Yes, our building has a long history of service. We’ve been home to AA and Alanon groups, Widowed Persons’ groups, art classes, the Denver Opera Company, neighborhood organizations, schools and scout troops and many more. Our sanctuary is often used for weddings, funerals, as a polling place and concerts.
We are always eager for our building to be used by groups which help our community or individuals grow.
What has set your church apart from other Presbyterian churches?
Calvary is known for being a warm, open and welcoming congregation. We accept all kinds of people in all kinds of lifestyles. We are well-educated and thoughtful. Our small size gives us the opportunity to know each other well and to value each person for exactly who they are. Our longstanding financial commitment to the work of Christ has made us an example of discipleship.
Our Staff ·
Our Pastor
Rev. Dr. Holly Heuer came to Calvary in February, 2003. She received her Master of Divinity from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in 1980 and received her Doctor of Ministry degree in 2005 from Iliff School of Theology. She served most recently as pastor of the Nederland Community Presbyterian Church in Nederland, Colorado, from 1995 – 2003, home of the frozen dead guy and passionate community activists. Prior to that, she served as pastor of the University Presbyterian Church, from 1980- 1988, a church of lively theologians. She also serves as an adjunct faculty member at the Iliff School of Theology, teaching Preaching, Presbyterian Polity and the Presbyterian Book of Confessions. She is married to Peter Schneider who is a Professor of Achitecture and Associate Dean of the College of Architecture and Planning at the University of Colorado. They have two sons: Tom and David. She is double-blessed to have two stepchildren and four grandchildren. hollyheuer@ecentral.com
Our Administrative Assistant: Gail Mendrop
Gail was born in New Jersey but has spent her adult life in Colorado. She graduated from Colorado College where she met Rich, her husband of 37 years. They have a son, Andy, who is currently participating in Teach for America in Church Rock, NM. Gail spent 27 years as a medical technologist at St Anthony Hospital. Now you can find her at Calvary on Tuesdays through Thursdays from 9-2 answering the phone, publishing the bulletin and the newsletter, scheduling building use and maintaining church records. During the rest of the week she enjoys being in the pool and in the mountains and spending time with friends. cpc@hypermall.net
Our Music Director: Dean Stalnaker
Dean was raised on a dairy farm in northeast Nebraska. He always enjoyed music, and began taking piano lessons at 8. The church where we attended saw the importance of allowing young people the opportunity to develop their talents in a ministry setting, and so I was able to develop my abilities. In college, I first heard an organ played as an organ should be played. I began taking organ lessons and grew to love the instrument. After college, I taught high school English and was an assistant organist at a church near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania for 10 years. I moved to Colorado in 1996, and was organist/music director at a local church for nearly 10 years. In addition to his responsibilities at Calvary, he is a paralegal at a large law firm in downtown Denver
Our Newsletter ·
November 2008 Messenger
From the Pastor’s Study: At Calvary (and at many other churches) we spend several weeks in November thinking about stewardship. The obvious reason is that we are beginning to make plans for 2009 in all areas of the church’s work and we need to hear from you about your ability and desire to support our common life. This year is a particularly difficult one. Many of our investments have shrunk. Jobs around the country are less secure. None of us can be certain about how the economic situation may affect us personally. Still, we hope and pray that Calvary Presbyterian Church is a worthwhile investment of your time, talent and treasure. In fact, it may be the best time to invest your resources! Community and faith becomes more and more important in hard times.
I continue to be amazed at the quality of leadership here and the willingness of your officers and staff to engage in significant discussions about the changing nature of the church. I also continue to be grateful that Calvary is place where we can explore new adventures in worship. I rarely hear grumbling about our efforts to bring glory to God, even when they may be awkward or unpolished. Rarely do I see you turning away from an opportunity to experience the presence of God, even if it means moving out of your area of comfort. I am grateful to serve in a place with such generous hospitality.
During this season, I hope that you will have an occasion to ponder the deeper questions of stewardship. Maybe the Time and Talent sheet will provoke some reflection. There is a new question at the end of the questionnaire, which asks a deeper question about your passion and calling. We hope to learn from you all what yearning God has planted within you all.
Holly
Katrina Partnership Mission Summary 2008: Between October 11 – 18 members of Calvary joined with people from Covenant Presbyterian Church and Evergreen Presbyterian Church to offer our many and varied talents to assist the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance of the South Louisiana Presbytery in New Orleans. Our combined team of between 12 and 15 people worked through the week on two different job sites. Our tasks included tiling and grouting, hanging kitchen cabinets, extensive yard work and scraping paint. If that wasn’t enough work we also demolished a dilapidated car porch, a room addition to a house and removed the roof in preparation for new shingles.
Why do we do these things? There is no easy explanation. It takes a year to organize one of these trips and it takes a deliberate effort to travel there to work for a week. Calvary has assisted there for three years. We have seen a lot of amazing changes take place. We can sense that the city is coming back and that people are being served. Rest assured there is much left to be done.
Perhaps the thing that is harder to put a finger on is this. Our efforts directly touch the lives of ordinary people. I feel that the Holy Spirit works through us in this way and much more. It is truly a blessing to be able to serve in this way and we look forward to further opportunities to serve.
Sincerely,
Frank Campbell
FIAT: Beginning in November, Calvary will begin celebrating the fifth Sunday of a month (4 times/year) with a "Hands On Worship." For several years, we have worked side-by-side in Hands On Mission, sharing our passions about community service in a Christ-centered setting. We will no longer record our Hands On Mission hours as we have in the past, but we will have many opportunities for you to tell the congregation about your work. Now, we move into a new phase of combining our mission work with our worship. On November 30, we celebrate our first Hands On Worship with a shorter service, combined with an activity to help those in our community. For this first month, our activity will be at the church for everyone's convenience, and the activity will be accessible for all. In coming months, we might go out into the community to share our compassion and the love Jesus has shown us. Stay tuned for more details!
Did you know that the Home of Neighborly Services of Denver does much more than run a second-hand thrift store? HNSD seeks to minister to children and families in concrete ways and through partnerships with other organizations. Now housed in First Avenue Presbyterian Church, the group provides childcare and enrichment programs for parents in the church's English as a Second Language class. More children can attend the classes now that childcare is offered. HNSD has two other partnerships, both involving the Denver Inner City Parish, to provide after-school childcare. Much of HNSD's funding, however, does come from the Neighborly Thrift Shop at 3360 S. Broadway. You can help HNSD continue these marvelous programs by shopping at the store and donating items to be sold (we keep a bin in the narthex for your contributions). You may also volunteer to work at the store for a 3-hour shift: 10 am to 1 pm, or 1 pm to 4 pm. The group welcomes volunteers, even if you can only work as little as once per month.
This little piggy went to ...Nicaragua? Rafael Corea lives in a tiny community in La Corona, Nicaragua. Before Heifer International stepped in, Corea earned ony about $2 per day. Then, Heifer provided his community with 60 sows and boars. Within two months, his sows delivered litters of piglets. Through the sale of the piglets, Corea has doubled his income and is prepared to "pass on the gift" of piglets to another individual in need. Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, and almost half the population lives below the poverty line. There are roughly 8,500 families on the Heifer waiting list for livestock and training right now. Your gift of $120 will help buy a pig and change someone's life forever. Please plan to participate in our Heifer Market in December.
Session Highlights, October 16, 2008
The Rev. Holly Heuer convened Calvary’s Session on Thursday, October 16, 2008 at 6:30 p.m.
Treasurer Sheryl Campbell reported a checking account balance of $9,845.95.
The next Presbytery Assembly will be Tuesday, October 28, 2008, at Wellshire Presbyterian Church.
The Session made plans to meet on November 1, to consider ideas generated by our breakfast chats.
Upon the recommendation of the Calvary Community Committee, Session APPROVED the purchase of several more Sing the Faith books.
Upon the recommendation of the Faith in Action Team (FIAT), Session approved offering sales of Heifer International animals in December.
Facilities, Administration and Budget (FAB) presented a draft of the 2009 budget. After study and discussion, the Session APPROVED the budget draft for presentation to the congregation.
Holiday Potluck 11/23
Ham provided
Bring side dishes: vegetables, salads, desserts
If you are over 80, you do not have to bring anything.
Join in the fun and fellowship
Gather and give thanks
Youth Group: Sunday, November 23rd, the gals will be going horseback riding. You will gather at PCOC at 11:45 a.m. Please bring $ for lunch at a fast food joint. The cost of the ride is $20.00. You will be back to the church at 3:00 p.m. Youth will need to wear boots or lace up shoes, wear long pants and wear clothes appropriate for being outside in November. If the weather is really bad, then the gals will be going to play laser tag. Be watching your mail for more information. Youth MUST RSVP no later than Sunday, November 9th.
CROP WALK:
Thank you to Men’s Breakfast and all who participated in the CROP walk on October 18th. Approximately $6000 was collected in total; Calvary contributed about $2000 of that. We had about 20 volunteers working and walking. Calvary got the prize for the church with the most participants!
Deacons’ Corner
Pilgrimage Walk to Bethlehem for Advent: Come join your fellow church members in a virtual pilgrimage walk from Denver to Bethlehem. As a congregation we will "walk" to Bethlehem from Denver, a distance of 6,881 miles, starting on September 1st and ending on December 24th. By tracking our steps and exercise we hope to travel about 60 miles each day as a group. Every 2,250 steps is about 1 mile and 20 minutes of exercise also equals 1 mile. Pedometers are readily available for about $5-10 in most stores with sporting goods. We will keep track of the total miles walked each week on cards and plot our progress as we travel. If we have a good group of walkers, we might even make it back. As of October 19th we have completed 2229 miles!
Holiday Collection for Colfax Community Network: The Deacons are sponsoring a collection of toys for tots for the Colfax Community Network. Donations that would be appreciated include new or gently used toys for all ages, stocking stuffer items including candles and knick knacks. They can also use items for adults such as bath sets, gloves, inexpensive watches, etc. that a child might select to give to a parent. This collection will continue through November 30. Containers are available in the Narthex.
FREE BABYSITTING IN TIME FOR HOLY-DAY SHOPPING! Do you need some extra time for that Christmas shopping? Or do you just need a break from the kids to spend with your significant other? WELL YOU'VE GOT IT!!! The Calvary and Presbyterian Church of the Covenant Youth Group will provide FREE, that's right FREE, babysitting! On December 6th from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. the Youth Group will be offering babysitting for any and all members of Calvary and Presbyterian Church of the Covenant with children between the ages of 6 weeks through 5th grade. There will be games, activities, movies, stories, and even lunch. All free of charge. All children must be registered on or before November 30th. Registrations may be limited due to space. Please fill out a registration form and mail it to PCOC at 5400 S. Yosemite St., Greenwood Village, CO. 80111. One registration form per child please. Registration forms may be found on the narthex table. No donations will be accepted by the Youth Group. If you would like to make a donation, please make a donation to Covenant Cupboard (a mission of PCOC) on behalf of the Youth Group. The babysitting will take place at PCOC.
Calvary Creations Craft Sale: This is the event that you all have been waiting for. Shop for God! Calvary Creations will be participating in the Fall Craft Fair at Salem United Church of Christ on Friday, November 7 from 2 – 7 pm and Saturday, November 8 from 9 am – 3 pm. Any items that are not sold will be available here at Calvary on Sunday morning. Items that will be available include baby blankets, dishcloths, scarves, cross-stitched items, jams and snacks. All of the proceeds from the sales go to projects here at Calvary. The Calvary Creations has contributed to Habitat. They bought the brass cross in the sanctuary. They bought the coffee cart and new pots. They are also making contributions to our library. If you have any items that you would like to donate to include in the sale, the ladies would be most grateful. Contact Pat Herring.
Email Messenger?
If you are receiving your Messenger in the mail and would rather have your Messenger delivered by email to your computer, please let Gail in the office know. Put “email Messenger” in the subject line of an email and send the request to Gail at cpc@hypermall.net
Calvary Website www.calvarypresdenver.org