HISTORY

135 years of God's faithfulness

Calvary Bible Church has a long history of more than 135 years, beginning in 1889 by four families who came to Boulder from Sweden. Since then, Calvary has remained committed to building a Christ-centered communities of people, fully devoted to loving God and loving others.

1889

17th & Spruce

1889 – Inaugural Service: Swede Christian Tabernacle on 17th St. & Spruce

1892 – Name changed to Swedish Evangelical Free Church

1905 – Calling of first pastor – Axel Ohlson

1920 – Calling of first full time pastor – Oscar Bolander

1943 – Joined Rocky Mountain District of Evangelical Free Churches of America (EFCA)

1943 – Services first conducted in English

1949 – Name changed to Calvary Bible Church of Boulder, Colorado

1950 – Planted Calvary Evangelical Free Church of Broomfield

1952

Broadway & Balsam

1952 – Church moved to 2805 Broadway (Corner of Broadway & Balsam)

1961 – Called Senior Pastor R. W. Hauser (7 years)

1964 – Helped plant Southern Gables church in Littleton

1971 – Called Senior Pastor Bob Culbertson (22 years)

1972 – Purchase of 10 acres on Kalmia Avenue

1977 – Groundbreaking on our 10 acres on Kalmia Avenue

1979

Kalmia

1979 – Dedication of new church building on Kalmia Avenue

1982 – Helped plant Trinity Bible Evangelical Free Church of Lafayette, which later became Flatirons Church

1993 – Called current Senior Pastor Tom Shirk

1998 – Building addition completed in Boulder – adding our Fellowship Hall and expanding space for kids and student ministry

2003 – Launched the Kingdom Assignments to awaken our compassion for the world where over $100,000 and was given away outside the walls of our church and 400 Calvary members comitted to 90 minutes of service over 90 days

2004 – Final Kingdom Assignment – 700 Calvary volunteers refurbished three schools in Boulder in our first Sharefest

2005 – Sharefest expanded to include three churches and 1,400 volunteers serving at five schools

2006

Erie Campus

2006 – Launched our second campus, Calvary Bible Church in Erie, meeting at Erie High School

2009 – Sharefest grew to 45 churches and 4500 volunteers serving at 135 sites – estimating $1.5 million worth of labor from more than 14,000 volunteers over its six year history

2010 – Special Christmas Eve offering raised more than $170,000 for three organizations around the world: helping the Colorado Friends of The Lost Boys of Sudan build a School and Community Center in Dak Payuel, Sudan, partnering with Kids Against Hunger to provide thousands of meals for the people of Haiti, and supporting women and children in abusive situations through the Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence

2011 – Purchased 11 acres in Erie for the building of the permanent home of our Erie Campus.

2013

Erie Groundbreaking

2013 – Groundbreaking for the Erie Campus

2014 – Grand Opening at the Erie Campus

2019 – Celebrated our 130 Year Anniversary as Calvary Bible Church

2019

130 Year Anniversary

2020 – Grand Opening for the Thornton Campus

2021 – First indoor services at the Thornton Campus

2020

Thornton Campus Launch