Our History
| In 1968, one year before the first house was built in the Vista Grande subdivision; the Pikes Peak Association of the Colorado Baptist General Convention purchased a 3.9 acre tract on Flintridge Drive between Crestwood and Mira Loma. The land cost $24,000. Northside Baptist Church (now Anchor Way Baptist) accepted the role of parent church for the newly organized mission. |
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William A. Dodder was called as the first pastor in late 1971 and the first services were held at Helen Keller Elementary School on February 13, 1972. A year later, on February 18, 1973, Vista Grande Baptist Church was constituted into a church with 48 charter members. Sunday School attendance was averaging around seventy people. |
| A year later, on February 18th, plans were made for building future church facilities. Construction began in 1973 and on September 16th, services were held in the basement of the first building. The first service in the new sanctuary was conducted in October 1973. |
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By 1975, additional Sunday School space was necessary. A larger wing to the west of the existing facility was completed on May 9, 1976 and by the next year Sunday School enrollment was up to 325 people. |
| A few years later, the sanctuary was remodeled, removing the dark paneling and replacing the theatre seats and red carpet. The white walls, along with new teal pews and carpet, really brightened up the sanctuary. |
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In March 1979, Gary Christopherson accepted the call to pastor the church. His first Sunday was on March 11th. Vista Grande Baptist has also acted as the sponsor church for two local Southern Baptist missions that became churches, Rockrimmon and Gateway Baptist Church. |
| The position of Minister of Music and Youth was filled on August 18, 1984. We were uniquely blessed to have him serve as Minister of Music for 21 years. In July 2005, he and his wife began preparing for new careers with the International Mission Board in an area of the world closed to the gospel. To protect their privacy, and the people they will be working with, their names have been removed from this website. The music ministry grew significantly with the establishment of youth and fully graded children's choirs. The hand bell choir began in October 1985 and Evangelism Explosion began in the fall of 1990. |
| Bobby Holt accepted the call as Vista Grande Baptist's third pastor on the first Sunday of March 1994, and continues to serve as Senior Pastor. Cliff Jackson joined the church as Minister of Education and Administration in 1995, serving until he retired in September 2004. |
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| The church purchased 13 acres for $850,000 in May 1996, at Stetson Hills and Powers Blvd. The church approved a master plan for the property in November 1996. The AWANA ministry began in September 1997. In October 1997, the Minister of Music and Youth position was changed to Minister of Music, and we began seeking a Minister of Youth. Dave May joined the church as the Student and Family Minister, serving from October 1997 to September, 2001. |
| During this time, the church had three Sunday Morning Worship Services at 8:15, 9:30 and 10:45 AM. Sunday School enrollment was over 650, with almost 400 in attendance every Sunday. On February 7th, 1999, our congregation voted overwhelmingly to go ahead with proposed building plans. |
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Our existing building at 5075 Flintridge was sold in July 1999. On August 1, 1999 we returned to one Sunday morning service, held at Mitchell High School. Just over two years later, on September 30, 2001, we held the first worship service in the new building at Stetson Hills and Powers Boulevard. |
| We went to two worship services on October 14th, 2001 to accommodate the growth that had occurred during our transition time. |
| Tobey Williams came to serve as our Interim Youth Minister in November, 2001. Tobey began full time ministry here in September, 2002 as Minister of Administration and Evangelism, and served until April, 2007. |
Following an extensive search process, David Boncler was called to serve as our Minister of Youth in July, 2003. Please visit the Youth News page for the latest events, and to listen to David's messages online.
In September, 2003 we returned to three morning worship services. |
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When we met for the first time in our new facility in September 2001, there was little thought of breaking ground for the second phase of construction in just 33 months, but worship attendance had increased by 130% and Sunday school enrollment by more than 90%. |
| We broke ground in May, 2004 and completed a 13,000 square foot Phase II education wing in January, 2005, providing 20 new classrooms and additional space for youth activities. The wing is an interim step toward the final phase for the site, which will be a 1400-seat sanctuary. VGBC is on the Master's plan, and the unprecedented growth is more than the prime location on the Powers Boulevard corridor! |
| Following Cliff Jackson's retirement in September 2004, Todd Belmear joined the staff in October as the third Minister of Education in our church's history. |
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| In January 2006 we welcomed Jay W. Hill (left) as our Minister of Music. In July 2006 Greg Teel (center) began a new position as our Minister of Childhood Education. Daniel Wiginton (right) accepted a call as Minister of Singles, College & Career in November, 2008. Learn more about all of our ministers on the Staff page. |
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