Windsor Elm Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church

The following is taken from the Home Page of Windsor Elm Haven SDA Church's site of Nov. 13, 2009.  It related some early information about the local group which formed our present Windsor Elm Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church:

As the picture above shows, the weather is turning, here in Colorado. And we are deep into November with winter coming quickly on the heels of fall.  The tree leaves have fallen, the grass, flowers, and crops are browning, including the once pretty flowers in the sign planter.  This rental site has been nice for our small Adventist church family.  I was not present for the earliest beginnings of the Windsor Elm Haven SDA Church group. But I was aware of an earlier time when Pastor John Martin had traveled from Denver to meet with a group in Ruby's country home.  So to learn more  I asked Twila Linker, our de-facto church historian, about our church history. And she was not present then either!  But, she had looked into our church beginnings when writing  a short piece about it, and here is what she wrote:

"Elm Haven Fellowship Church began in April of 2003 when 15 people began meeting once a month in the living room of Ruby Scheller’s home near Pierce, Colorado.  By June there was standing room only.  In talking about what to do, the group remembered that there had been several attempts over the years to plant a church in Windsor, Colorado.  So the group rented a funeral home chapel at 102 East Elm Street in Windsor, Colorado for their monthly service.  In 2005 the funeral home was sold to the Church of Christ and Elm Haven rented the Assembly of God Church at 416 Oak Street in Windsor, Colorado.  In May of 2005 the group began meeting every week and began to resemble a real church.  In the Spring of 2005 the Assembly of God Church was sold, so Elm Haven began to rent the Church of the Brethren at 33660 Cty Rd 15,  Windsor, Colorado for Sabbath Services."

Now, I had always been curious about the name they picked, "Elm Haven Fellowship".  Was it something about the location?  When asking Twila, she mentioned a historic figure in the Adventist Church named E.G. White that lived in a place called Elmshaven, but she really didn't know what the church was actually named for.  So she went "straight to the horse" to find out.  Pastor John Martin was one of the "horses" so she asked him, and this is "straight from the horse's mouth".  He related that when the group started they met only once a month on the 3rd Sabbath of the month. ("third Sabbath"? - that triggered a little light bulb in my head, because that is when the members still bring food and invite everyone to eat with them after church - it is beginning to make sense now!)  There were some of the group who felt events had been a little rough on them.  They came together there at Ruby's place on the 3rd Sabbath every month.  And later they met at the funeral home chapel on 1st and Elm street. That meeting was a real "Haven" of rest for their weary souls.  Around  that chapel were many large Elm trees.  So there you have it!  "Elm Haven Fellowship".  

Twila went on to explain in her piece:  

"Looking for a new model of local church governance Elm Haven has created a weekly, quarterly, and open-ended volunteer system that does not need a church board or nominating committee.  The new system has created an incredibly loving, open and caring environment.  At Elm Haven no one ever says, "they never ask me!",  because the volunteer sheet for every ministry from vacuuming the floor to being church leader is in front of every member every month.  If a member at Elm Haven feels the call of God to a particular post they can put their name on the line for that position next month.  Elm Haven has grown from the original 15 meeting monthly to an average attendance of 85 meeting weekly since we first began meeting in Ruby’s living room in 2003."

On March 7th, 2009  the President of the Rocky Mountain Conference, James Brauer, presented to Juan Moran (our Church leader for that Quarter) a Communion set.  We are now officially part of the sisterhood of Seventh-day Adventist Churches.  You see, previously we had been a "Seventh-day Adventist Church Company".  But when properly voted by members of  the Rocky Mountain Conference of Seventh-day Adventists we became an official Seventh-day Adventist Church.  A  document was signed by all who wanted to be charter members of the Windsor Elm Haven Seventh-day Adventist Church.  And "the rest is history".