The story of Covenant Heights is one that started in the early 1930's in the activities and Christian fellowship of the Covenant Young peoples and Sunday School Conference of Colorado and Wyoming. The Covenant churches of Colorado and the Laramie and Cheyenne churches of Wyoming joined together in a concerted effort to provide inspiration, Christian fellowship, and evangelism for the young people of the churches. For many years, a camping program was held at Geneva Glen, just west of Denver. These camps continued until 1945. For the 1946 summer conference, the YMCA "Friendship Lodge" at Estes Park was rented, since this location was more centrally located for all the churches.

During the spring and summer of 1946, Mr. and Mrs. Carl Danielson and Rev. and Mrs. J.D. Broman of Denver traveled extensively in the Estes Park and Boulder areas searching for land that might be available as a camp site. Camping was becoming popular and many conference leaders felt a Covenant conference campground in the beautiful Rocky Mountains would be advantageous. At the Estes Park 1946 conference, it became known that a Mr. Kjeldgaard of Brush, Colorado, owned about 80 acres of land on Highway 7 at the foot of Long's Peak in south St. Vrain canyon. He had offered the property to his own church (Lutheran) as a possible location for a youth camp. Several of the Covenant conference leaders and Rev. Paul Rood, who was the 1946 speaker, visited the camp site and were much impressed with the possibilities. Late in the summer, word was received that the Lutherans had turned down Mr. Kjeldgaard's offer. Immediately, contact was made, negotiations followed, and the present campsite of 65 acres was purchased for $24,000. Terms of the purchase included a small down payment with additional payments continuing for three years with no interest charged. Indeed, history was made in the Rocky Mountain Covenant Conference.



After this momentous decision, the challenge of building a camp faced the conference and in particular, a group of men and women who committed themselves to the enormous task of developing a camp on the grounds just purchased. First of all, a financial campaign was launched in which bonds were sold to members of the Covenant churches. Also, part of the land was sub-divided into lots (100' X 100') which were offered for sale at $75 to $125. By November 1948, almost $21,000 had been raised in the churches of the Rocky Mountain Conference.