Success Stories

Pastor Tracy Hilts was looking for ways to make her church more visible to their neighbors after having become pastor of Living Hope Covenant Church (“Living Hope”) in Colorado Springs, Colorado, during COVID and following long-time pastor Greg Ralston, who had planted the church. Living Hope has a beautiful campus which abuts a running/biking path that runs along the Cottonwood Creek. For years, the church had been allowing walkers/runners/bikers to use the church’s parking lot, but they had never found a way to connect with those visitors and invite them into the church.

Living Hope also had a long-time tenant which provided daycare to disabled adults, using most of Living Hope’s facility Monday through Friday. While Living Hope felt good about this partnership, it did limit what the church could do with their facility outside of evenings and weekends. When this tenant informed Living Hope that they would be purchasing a facility and would not be renewing their lease, Living Hope, though disappointed, recognized an opportunity to give their building, which was over 20 years old, new life.

Pastor Tracy also saw the tenant’s departure as an opportunity to more fully utilize their facility as a lighthouse for the community. They had already begun to use their wooded campus to provide space for their neighbors, whether it be a remote-control car racetrack, named Ralston Raceway in honor of founding Pastor Greg Ralston, or a low ropes course for team-building or picnic tables for neighbors to sit and enjoying the views of the creek.

Still, none of these improvements to the campus had resulted in more visitors entering the church. Pastor Tracy then looked at the church’s lobby and thought it would be perfect for a coffee house. She did research on starting a coffee house, and the leadership team approached National Covenant Properties (“NCP”) about whether the church would qualify for a loan to refinance their current debt and help them pay for an updated kitchen and the installation of a coffee counter. NCP approved their loan request and in October 2024 Living Hope began renovating their lobby to create Creekside Coffee House.

On an unseasonably warm October 2025 morning, Peter Hedstrom, president of NCP, and Rob Hall, vice president of NCP Real Estate Services, were able to visit Creekside Coffee House and enjoy a delicious cup of coffee. Creekside Coffee House employs students from Living Hope’s youth group as baristas, and when we visited, they were hosting a meeting of a local civic organization in their conference room.

There were also several walkers/bikers from the Cottonwood Creek Trail taking a break and enjoying coffee and community.

It is still early in the life of Creekside Coffee House, but Pastor Tracy is encouraged by the impact their renovations are having. “We are seeing people who used to walk or bike by the church, stopping and coming in for coffee, allowing us an opportunity to share our values and mission,” Pastor Tracy said. Creekside Coffee House chooses a new ministry each month to which they donate a portion of their proceeds. This is clearly displayed on the chalkboard that is part of the coffee counter. This further demonstrates Living Hope’s commitment to the community beyond their church building.

After our visit in October, Pastor Tracy sent an email thanking NCP for its support. “I so appreciate you all taking the time to see and celebrate with us all that God is doing at Living Hope Creekside Church. NCP has been a cornerstone for moving our ministry forward, and your support will help us serve our community better. Please know we are deeply grateful.”