A campground is a sacred place. It provides a sacred shift from the places we regularly inhabit. There is a voluntary vulnerability in camping. A campground is where we increase our exposure to the elements and refocus on the basic human experiences of shelter, fire, and food. Camping creates a container of time distinct from our regular schedules. The pace affords deeper personal and relational connection. It is a place where we choose to live closer to the earth and each other.

Inspire Ranch is a sacred place. Located near Mount Blue Sky, Inspire Ranch is the vision of Millie Cline, a woman who courageously re-risked in her second half of life to create a place for others to be inspired. The word “Inspire,” Millie shares with her effervescent passion, is the story of both the tattoo on her wrist and the story of creating a retreat center. “In-spire is to breathe in,” it is the origin story of God breathing life into humanity. “Inspire Ranch is a place to breathe—to really breathe deeply.” Millie shares her hopes for this place as a place where people come to breathe deeply, as we walk through the dense forest of towering pine and aspen trees. 

A mountain town is a sacred place. At the western edge of Rocky Mountain National Park is the mountain town of Grand Lake. It sits on the banks of Colorado’s largest and deepest natural lake, covering over 500 acres and reaching nearly 400 feet deep. It boasts the highest elevation yacht club in the world, and yet there is little polished about this mountain town. The one block of shops, called “The Boardwalk” by locals, is a collection of locally owned shops and diners without a single chain store or restaurant in sight.

The art market is a sacred place. It is a place to celebrate the diversity of artistic creativity within a community. It is a market for the endless mediums that reflect the innate creativity inside each person. The Summer Art Market was founded to provide a place for local artist to show and sell their work, and to begin to build relationships with patrons as they developed their craft.

An airport is a sacred place. Airports serve as the crossroads of the modern era, moving people across the country and around the world. Serving more than points of departure and arrival, they are engines of economic development.

Adrian points out Roaming Buffalo is like many Bar-B-Que restaurants that have limited seating space. Although small, it is conducive to beginning conversations with nearby tables of regulars, out-of-towners, home-sick Texans, and those enjoying “Colorado Craft BBQ”

A splash pad is a place for children to expend energy, parents to encourage adventure and connection, and together celebrate the coolness of water during the warmth of summer. A splash pad is a sacred place.

The Table Urban Farm is a unique intersection where people are invited to “feed your body, feed your soul, and feed your community.” The urban farm is a sacred place.

The pool is a place to be present and play. It is a place of risk and courage. The pool is a place for people to enjoy being together and belonging to one another. The pool is a sacred place.

Little Man Ice Cream is sweet reminder how a business can create good for both people and place. It is an ice cream shop that cultivates wonder and extends welcome for everyone. The ice cream shop is a sacred place.

A walk, run, or ride on a trail is an opportunity to travel through the city at a different pace. The trail is manmade and mediated interaction with creation, but it offers an experiential reminder of the natural landscape and wildlife that have existed long before us in the place we call home. The trail is an invitation to realign our perspective and pace. The trail is a sacred place.

The farmer’s market is more than a seasonal way of purchasing raw and prepared foods. It provides a place to cultivate an embodied connection to those who grow our food. The farmer’s market is where we learn to value the farmer and the food. The farmer’s market is a sacred place.

The park is the place where we reconnect with Creation and community. The park provides a place to play and pray.