Our History
1960’s– Priests from Our Lady of Peace in Greeley visit Catholic homes located in the 100 block of Chestnut in Windsor to celebrate Mass. The Victory Knoll Sisters from Our Lady of Peace drove to Windsor once a week to teach Catechism to the Catholic children in the homes of the Apodaca, Diaz, Gallegos, Medina, Velasques and Voegler families.
1969– Father Kenneth Erin from St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Ft. Collins would travel to Windsor once a month to teach Adult Education classes at St. Albans Episcopal Church located at 6th and Walnut in Windsor. He would occasionally celebrate Mass in the homes of Catholic families from the Windsor Community.
1970– Father Roca from Our Lady of Peace in Greeley came every Saturday to celebrate Mass in the Windsor home of Rosemary and Felix Medina located on the corner of 1st and Chestnut in Windsor. Later that year, St. Albans parish hall was rented from Father Warner an Episcopalian priest for weekly Satruday Masses.1971– The Community begins to grow and soon the Masses are too crowded. Joe & Patty Pike offer the rooms above Camelot Cleaners located at 426 Main Street for weekly Masses. The kitchen in the hall upstairs is used to make Mexican dinners to raise money in an effort to start a building fund for a Catholic church in Windsor.
Nov. 1972– Father Tom McCormick is assigned acting pastor of the Windsor church which becomes a mission of St. Peters in Greeley.May 1973 – The parish votes and chooses “Our Lady of the Valley” to be the name of the parish
Oct. 1973 – Masses return to St. Albans because the increasing number of parishioners is a strain on the 2nd room floor of the Camelot Cleaners.
March 1974 – Our Lady of the Valley becomes a mission of St. John’s Catholic Church in Loveland. Fathers McGuire and Jasinki assume pastoral duties
Dec. 1974 – The community moves to the Storefront Church on Main Street
Feb. 1975 – The Denver Archdiocese approves the purchase of the Storefront Church
Labor Day, 1975 – A concession booth located on 5th Street just north of Main Street is opened during the Windsor Harvest Festival to raise money for a new church. Bazaars and craft booths are also used to raise funds the following year.
Summer 1975-76 – Parishioners run the concession stand at the Cemetery ball fields as fundraisers for the new church.
Aug. 1977 – Windsor becomes a mission of St. John the Baptist in Johnstown
July 1979 – The Storefront building is sold and the parish purchases the Baptist church building located at 129 Walnut St. from Terry Bird. This becomes our home for the next 21 years.
June 1990 – Father Stephen Adams is assigned as the new pastor of Our Lady of the Valley and stays until December 2001.
Jan 1997 – As the Windsor community continues to grow, Our Lady of the Valley launches the “Believe…and it Will Be” building campaign. The purpose of this pledge drive is to secure contributions to construct a multipurpose building for the community at 7th Street and Eastman Park Drive. Mass is held at this site later that spring.
See the construction of our current Church here.
Nov. 1999 – Ground is broken at our new property on the corner of 7th Street and Eastman Park Drive.
Dec. 2, 2000 – The first Mass is said at 6pm in the new building
Jan 28, 2001 – Archbishop Charles Chaput celebrates the dedication Mass for the new multipurpose building
Sept 2007 – Our Lady of the Valley is given approval by the Archdiocese of Denver to begin a Capital Campaign for a new church building
2011 – Church Addition is complete
2013 – Fr. James moves into his next parish and Fr. Gregg Pedersen is named new pastor of OLV.
2014 – Small Groups launched in a new way
2015 – Begin Capital Campaign to build bigger hall, classrooms, offices and a nursery.
2017 – Began construction on the Evangelization Expansion
2018 – Completed construction and dedication by Archbishop Aquila of the Evangelization Expansion
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2020-21 - OLV Navigated through the restrictions of the COVID pandemic and ultimately resumed normal liturgical celebrations.
2023 - OLV celebrated the 50th Anniversary as an established parish in Northern Colorado.
2024 - OLV hosted large scale Encounter and Unveiled conferences in partnership with the John Paul II Healing Center.
2025 - Father Gregg was assigned to Light of the World in Littleton. Father Samuel Morehead was installed as Pastor of Our Lady of the Valley and St. Mary's in Ault.
2026 - Archbishop James Golka was installed as the new Archbishop of Denver, and celebrated a special Confirmation Mass at OLV in May before receiving his pallium from Pope Leo XIV in June. Religious Education, Small Groups, and many ministries continue to expand throughout the life of the parish.