The Nederland Community Presbyterian Church (NCPC) celebrates 110 years of service and ministry to its members and to the community this year. With this milestone they have also welcomed a new pastor into their midst, Reverend Zachary Hancock.

Every denomination and place of worship has different methods of calling a minister or priest for their congregations. The Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA), of which NCPC is a part, has very precise ways a congregation must go about finding, or calling a new pastor to their churches. The process can be long, but the Pastor Nominating Committee endured as did the congregation.

Call it the hand of God, or great timing, or it was just meant to be, when Pastor Hancock heard that a church in Nederland needed a part-time pastor. Intrigued and interested he put his name on the list to be considered. Hancock had moved back to his home state of Colorado with his family during the pandemic and was not currently serving a congregation. He thought it was time to put on the pastor’s stole again when NCPC asked him to fill their part-time pastor position.

Pastor Hancock is a fourth generation Coloradan and third generation to be born in Greeley. He graduated from Loveland High School in 1992. The University of Colorado - Boulder recruited him to run track for them during his college years. He ran cross-country and track for the CU Buffs and was a four year letter winner in the 800 and 1500 meters. Hancock has many memories of Sunday morning trainings on Magnolia Road which he referred to as Outer Magnolia, a reference to Outer Mongolia. It was a high, remote, dusty route to run on Sunday mornings for those CU runners.

When he wasn’t running Hancock was earning a degree, and graduated with degrees in both history and education.

Hancock did not take the traditional route to become a pastor. He had become uninterested in the church he had to attend when he was growing up. After graduating from CU-Boulder he started teaching I.B. English and history at Poudre High School in Fort Collins. While there he decided to move to Canada to study theology at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He did not go there with the intent to become a pastor. However, sometimes God calls us in ways we least expect it and he graduated with a Master of Divinity and was then ordained in the PCUSA.

Not one to follow tradition Pastor Hancock went to Bend, Oregon, to serve at a different kind of church call Common Table, which was a non-profit pub. He was then pastor at Central Presbyterian in

Denver. Pastor Hancock also served at the Community Church of Lake Forest and Lake Bluff in the North Shore area of Chicago. Pastor Hancock is not afraid to test the waters of nontraditional and the traditional when it comes to church life.

Pastor Hancock and his wife wanted to move back to Colorado. They have family in the area. Pastor Hancock has had family living in Coal Creek Canyon since 1964. His memories of coming to the mountains as a kid are still fresh in his mind. He remembers well one of his first camping trips with his dad in 1982 to Brainard Lake. They climbed Mt. Audubon. He can still feel the crisp clear mountain air. And as he says see, “the precipitous rise of Audubon at such a young age.” The mountains made quite an impression on him.

Later when in his early 20s he thought, like many at that age, that he and a friend could hike into the Indian Peaks wait for the moon to come out and hike back down by moonlight. A fun trip they thought. They never saw the moon. They did not have warm clothes or a sleeping bag. They spent a cold windy night waiting for dawn before they were able to hike back down. The harsh reality of the mountains was learned.

Hancock leads an active lifestyle with his wife Lydia Holzman and their two children Henry and Frances. They live in Lyons and Hancock rides his bike these days in the mountains around Gold Hill, on Sugarloaf, Magnolia and on the Switzerland Trail. He will be riding in the Ned Gravel event on July 9 and the Leadville 100 MTB this year. He also enjoys fly-fishing in the local streams.

When asked about NCPC as a congregation and his plans Pastor Hancock says that he is here to listen to what the congregation and community have done well and the priorities they have. He wants to be a part of continuing to build upon their strengths. He wants to know what is important to the people. He wants NCPC to continue to be an asset and blessing to this community as they have been for so many years.

Pastor Hancock wants to be of assistance to the members of the church and to the community as they travel on their spiritual journey. He says, “We are here to help you on your spiritual path.” He understands that spiritual journeys look different for different people sharing that one of his personal and spiritual highlights was a close encounter with the Dalai Lama at the McLeod Ganj Monastery in India.

Pastor Hancock easily puts one at ease with his warm and kind personality. His sermons and conversations are thoughtful and thought-provoking. He is a humble man who wants to continue the ministry Nederland Community Presbyterian Church has brought to the community for so many years. He hopes the NCPC community can be a refuge for people and a place of joy and friendships.

Let’s all welcome Pastor Hancock and his family warmly into our community.

Nederland Community Presbyterian Church is located at 210 N. Jefferson Street, Nederland, Colorado. For more information check out their website http:// nederlandcpc.org/, call 303-258-3579, or take a look at their Facebook page https:// www.facebook.com/ Nederlandcpc. Sunday services are at 10 a.m.