Calvary Baptist and New Hope Baptist Partnership

Mission & Vision

As two congregations that share Baptist heritage, New Hope (NHBC) and Calvary (CBC) partner together:

• to build relationships as we seek to be a part of the work of racial reconciliation in Denver

• to engage in our community around an area of shared social justice concern

• to learn from one another through meal fellowships, panel discussions, educational/artistic events, and shared worship experiences 

Both congregations are committed to this partnership for the long-haul. We understand that racial reconciliation is hard work and requires trusting relationships that develop over time. Through this partnership, our vision is to help break the silence about racial justice in our country, be a faith-based model of justice for communities within our city, and transform individual lives within our own congregations as we recognize and understand our implicit and explicit bi­ases. Learn more about New Hope: http://www.newhopechurchdenver.org/. 

Meaning of Logo:

West African Adinkra* symbols represent prov­erbs or aphorisms and can appear in architec­ture, as well as on cloth­ing and items used for rituals. This symbol – Mpatapo – represents the “knot of reconciliation,” and as such it is the sym­bol for reconciliation and peacemaking, especially after strife. The bond or knot binds separate parties to a peaceful, harmonious recon­ciliation.

*Ashanti is one of many languages spoken by the peo­ple of Ghana. It is from this language that Adinkra sym­bols are derived. 

The purple color combines elements from the logos of the respective churches (Calvary – Blue; New Hope – Dark Red). 

The logo is designed by Minister Javon Bracy of New Hope and Rev. Alice Horner-Nelson of Calvary.

 

2019 Timeline:

  • Pastor Eugene Downing (from New Hope) and Pastor Anne Scalfaro (from Calvary) continued their monthly coffee meetings and weekly prayer support of one an­other

  • January - Calvary and New Hope volunteers began read­ing with 3rd graders every other week at Stedman Ele­mentary School (continued throughout all of 2019)

  • 2019 Spring Stedman Volun­teers from Calvary included: Leigh Bessey, Norma Briola, Margie Jonell, Amy Ke­hew, Beth Kieft, John Kron, Kathy Kron, Cindy Pon­ikvar, Anne Scalfaro, Damon Scalfaro, Lorene Walker, Norma Wick, Susan Wirt 

  • 2019 Fall Stedman Volunteers from Calvary included: Jim Comstock, Alice Horner-Nelson, Amy Kehew, Beth Kieft, Walter Rowell, Anne Scalfaro, Damon Scalfaro, Raquel Walker, Lorene Walker, Becky Whitaker, Nor­ma Wick, Susan Wirt 

  • Pastors Scalfaro & Downing met with Principal Mi­chael Atkins of Stedman Elementary a couple of times to see how we could further the partnership; in the fall the reading group began meeting monthly in classroom 201 to get to know one another better

  • March 9, 2019 - Women’s Day Brunch at New Hope. The Women of New Hope Bap­tist Church invited the Women of Calvary to join them at their 67th Annual Women’s Day Brunch. The brunch, which was open to the larger communi­ty, featured a panel discussion on the topic of Women Working in Traditionally Male-Dominated Roles. Cal­vary had 20-25 women attend, including Pastors Anne Scalfaro, Alice Horner-Nelson, and Mary Hulst.

  • March 10, 2019 - Calvary joined New Hope for Wor­ship. This was an exciting day as our congregations joined together for the first time for a shared worship experience. As part of New Hope’s Women’s Day Weekend focusing on Deborah’s story in the book of Judges, Rev. Dr. Zina Jacque (a friend/colleague of Pastor Anne) preached. Pastor Anne Scalfaro brought a greeting from Calvary and Pastors Alice Horner-Nelson and Morgan Fletcher sat in the pulpit. An estimated 80-100 Calvary members attended. 

  • March 2019 – Article published in the first issue for 2019 of the Nonprofit Colorado Magazine: “Calvary Baptist, New Hope Baptist: Partnership Rooted in Re­lationships and Reconciliation” by Sarah Hogan. 

  • Friday, April 19, 2019 – Joint Good Friday Worship Service at Calvary - “Seven Last Words of Christ” with six short reflections from Calvary preachers Rev. Anne Scalfaro, Rev. Morgan Fletcher, and Rev. Alice Horner-Nelson and New Hope preachers, Rev. Eugene Downing, Rev. Rev Jerry Ochsner, and Rev Quincy Shannon. And a seventh reflection given by a combined Calvary/New Hope choir under the direction of Dr. Da­vid Farwig singing, “He Never Said a Mumblin’ Word.” 

  • Becky Whitaker led a group of bread bakers (Norma Briola, Barb Carter, Margie Jonell, Lynda Pelton, Tom Waymire, Pam Chapman) in making “hot cross buns” to give out to all who attended the service as an act of hospitality. 

  • May 5, 2019 - Introduced meaning of new logo at the Signing of our New Baptist Covenant on May 5.

We covenant be­fore God and with each other “to an­nounce that this is God’s year to act” (Luke 4:19) in metro-Denver: 

  • by building relationships as we seek to be a part of the work of racial reconciliation, 

  • by engaging in our community around an area of shared social justice concern (education, generally; Stedman Elementary School, specifically), and 

  • by learning from one another through meal fellowships, honest conversations, panel discussions, educational/artistic events, and shared worship experiences.

 

 

 

  • Saturday, June 22, 2019 - Pastors Eugene Downing and Anne Scalfaro were keynote speakers at the Amer­ican Baptist Home Mission Societies Luncheon at the American Baptist Mission Summit in June 2019 in Vir­ginia Beach, VA. They presented about their partner­ship and work together. (Pastor Downing had a funeral and could not attend; Pastor Scalfaro presented for both of them in his absence)

  • Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019 - Pastors Eu­gene Downing and Anne Scalfaro were keynote speak­ers for a “Fireside Chat” for Colora­do’s Civic DNA Fellows Leader­ship Program

  • In December of 2019, both churches had a GIVING TREE with a list of culturally diverse books that Sted­man Elementary requested; those books were presented in Dec and more will be presented in January 2020

  • Summer/Fall 2019 - Calvary member Charlotte Mil­lion and New Hope Member Traci Jones work on article for the Baptist Peacemaker magazine (published in Jan. 2020)

  • Spring/Summer/Fall - Pastors Scalfaro & Downing be­gan recording a podcast on race (not yet released)

Ongoing Community Engagement Emphasis: EDUCATION

 

We partner with Denver Public Schools (DPS) and related organizations to support students, families, and teachers in a variety of capacities. Our long-term goal is for CBC and NHBC to adopt a school together. The current volunteer opportunities in our partnership with DPS include:

1) One-on-one reading with students through the POWER LUNCH literacy program. After discussion and discernment with various opportunities within Denver Public Schools, Calvary and New Hope are pleased to announce that we began our partnership with Ms. Romero’s 3rd grade class at Stedman Elementary School in Denver, Colorado on Friday, January 11, 2019. This opportunity allows Calvary members and New Hope members to build relationships as part of the work of racial reconciliation through engagement with our community. The POWER LUNCH literacy program unites 30 Calvary and New Hope volunteers every other Friday to read with a classroom of 3rd graders. Each volunteer pair (one Calvary volunteer and one New Hope volunteer) is paired with a child, allowing us to model relationship building across generations and diversities.Training provided; background check needed. Learn more here. Interested in being a POWER LUNCH reading volunteer? Contact Christine Flug or Pastor Anne Scalfaro. They will put you in contact with DPS Volunteer Coordinator, Brenda Vasquez, and POWER LUNCH literacy coordinator, Katie Wienecke.

See more pictures here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1KnUHALYeOX1hagROL_0ol5FNZ7APcGZ1

2) Serving as a host at CBC or NHBC for a Parent Teacher Home Visit: Home visits are meetings between school staff and families focused on building positive relationships. Home visits are 20-30 minutes long, voluntary for both staff and families; hosted somewhere outside of school (home, park, library, faith community, etc.); and based around the question – what are your hopes and dreams for your child? When a home visit is scheduled at CBC or NHBC, a host from the respective church will greet the parents/guardians and the teacher, show them to their room, and provide basic hospitality for them before and after the visit. The host is not involved in the visit itself, rather the host serves as point of welcome and hospitality for the church. No background check necessary; training provided. Learn more: http://face.dpsk12.org/family-programs/parent-teacher-home-visit/. Interested in being on a list of those willing to serve as a host? Contact Christine Flug or Pastor Anne Scalfaro.

3) Joint Group Projects with CBC and NHBC Volunteers: On occasion, Denver Public Schools has need for a larger group of volunteers to assist in a variety of projects such as staffing a field day, painting a classroom, cleaning up a playground, etc. No background check necessary; no training necessary, just a willingness to serve! To sign-up to be notified about group project opportunities contact Christine Flug or Pastor Anne Scalfaro.

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