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Welcome Back!
 

History

(Adapted from God's Hand of Blessing - History of Lutheran High School, written by Dr. Lyle Schaefer)

"It Came Alive in '55" as the result of the dedication, perserverancem faith and hard work of a small conscientious group of advocates of Christian secondary education.  Their initial success has been augmented by the efforts of many others in the fifty plus year history of Denver Lutheran High School.

The need to bridge the gap between the Lutheran elementary schools and LCMS colleges had been discussed for many years.  No action was taken until 1943 when Pastor Reinhold Hingst of Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church charged his congregation to present the plan to the newly organized Denver Lutheran Council.  It was hoped that this representative group of congregations would bring Lutheran secondary education to the Mile High City.

At that time, congregations of the entire Colorado District which comprised the states of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, El Paso County, Texas, had sixteen elementary schools with fewer than 1000 students.  St. John's and Emmaus of Denver and Immanuel, Colorado Springs had ninth grades but the rest were only kindergarten through grade eight.  There were only eight Lutheran high schools in the entire country in 1943, most of which were operated in conjunction with the synodical colleges.

Colorado was not a hotbed of Lutheranism at the time as the entire District has only 12,500 baptized Synidical Conference Lutherans with 8000 communicants in 59 congregations.  A majority of these were in Colorado with a dozen in the Denver area.

The Executive Board of the DLC appointed a committee of three pastors, two elementary school teachers and nine laymen to meet at St. John's Denver on February 6, 1944.  This group recommended that a Lutheran high school association be organized as soon as it was advisable.  Nothing happened and the DLC suggested in 1947 that "all congregations not operating a ninth grade add one as soon as possible."

The Committee was not ready to take action.  However, it did recommend that "if a high school were started, it might have a humble beginning but should prepare to meet all accreditation standards of the state."  A proposal at this time called for the purchase of the old Gove Junior HIgh School property at Fourteenth and Colorado Boulevard.

The Gove purchase failed so Emmaus congregation led by Principal G. W. Wesch petitioned the DLC for immediate action.  The rejoinder was the same old line, "Denver cannot afford to organize or operate a Lutheran High School."

Several Council members did not agree with this statement and with the consent of the Executive Board, called a general meeting in the fall of 1950.  This action led to the formal organization of the Lutheran High School Association at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church on January 29, 1951.  Membership was limited to the Synodical Conference Lutherans over 21 years of age who would be willing to contribute at least $1 per year.  The Association was incorporated on January 6, 1953.  Sigining the official document as the first board of directors were pastors M. E. Mayer and H. H. Hellsbuch, teachers G. W. Wesch and Milton W. Schmidt and laymen George Rauscher, Ralph Gnagy, Mark Junge, Gust Bahr, Carl Wilder, August Krenz, John Doyle and C. L. Schiller.

School opening was set for 1953 and Norman H. Brinkman of Immanuel Lutheran School in Kansas City accepted the call to be the first principal.  He arrived in Denver in October, 1953, but found no school or even any property on which to build.  The next month, a ten acre farm on West Arizona Avenue was purchased for $35,000.

A subsequent plan called for the use of the old Emmaus church for sudents from Grace, Mt. Calvary, Faith, Bethlehem and Emmaus congregations with an opening in 1954.  This again failed as "It was felt the school must be open to anyone."

"It's coming Alive in '55" was now the correct slogan and the temporary farm buildings would have to serve as the school plant.  The white house, still on campus today, was used as two classrooms and the school library.  With the hay mow sealed off, the small barn became Classroom Four, a short building that had all the vibrations of an echo chamber.  The Hobby House, a long narrow building officially designated Classroom Three, was affectionately known to the students as the "chicken coop."  A pump house became the boy's shower and would hold three or four athletes at one time.  The garage had hooks on the wall for the football uniforms as the team donned shorts and out on the pads out on open lawn.  The team had to pick sand burrs which thrived on the field an hour each day before practice began.  Three beeps on an automobile horn called attention to the first fire drill.  These rustic settings seemed to foster a spirit of uniqueness and unity rarely found on a modern campus.

Principal Brinkman and Robert Berger were the first full time faculty members with Dagmar Niesen and Rut Wattnem teaching part-time.  Enrollment on opening day was 49 freshmen and 28 sophomores for a total of 77.  Mrs. Niesen led the first choir and Bob Wetson was hired to be bookkeeper-secretary andd filled the need for the next 20 years.

The first salary schedule called for $2875 starting pay for teachers with bachelor's degress and $3025 for masters.  Married male teachers received an additional stipend of $350 with $65 annually for each dependent child.  Coaching a major sport netted $150 a year and sponosring a school publication $100.  Tuition was $15 per month for Synodical Conference Lutherans and $300 annually for all others.  the Board was authorized to "waive all or part of the tuition in special cases."

Rev. Oswald Hoffman, Lutheran Hour Speaker, delivered the sermon at the cornerstone laying ceremony.  President H. H. Hellsbuch represented the Colorado District with Chairman George Rauscher and Secretary Arthur C. Thoms acting for the Board.

Early in the first semester, the students body selected navy blue and gold as the school colors and Lights as the mascot.  Lights relates to the passage from Matthew 5:16: Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.  This appropriately expresses the philosophy and spirit of a Christian school.  "Hail to the Lights of Lutheran High" by John Mueller was adopted as the school song.

Tuition was changed during the second year with Lutherans assessed $150 for the first child, $100 for the second and $75 for the third.  A fourth student enrolled at the same time was free, a privilege used only by the Emil Eggert and Arnold Koeltzow families.  The J. W. Thaemert family enrolled eight students and the Rev. William C. Naatz's had seven.

By the second year, the first wing was ready for occupancy.  The grass had been seeded and the cows to the east and horses to the west were removed.  One old bay still resided in Mr. Sarconi's stable, which todayis the Arizona St. parking lot, but the place had almost lost its rustic atmosphere.

School publications began with the Lutheran High News, which was essentially a public relations periodical.  It was replaced by the Hi-Light, enabling sutdents to exhibit their literary talents. The school yearbook, The Lantern, has been published since 1958.

"It's coming alive in '55!" was the slogan for the opening of Denver Lutheran High School. It was as exciting moment for Lutheran Christians in Denver!

At a time when there were only eight Lutheran high schools in the nation, a mission-minded group at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church boldly stepped forward to make the dream of a Lutheran high school in Denver a reality.

Without land or a school building, the first principal, Norman H. Brinkman, came to Denver and the school "came alive" on a ten-acre farm on West Arizona Avenue. Some of the first classes were held in a small barn. The white house, which is still on campus today, was the school library and housed two classrooms. Students even had classes in a former "chicken coop." Enrollment on opening day was 77 students in grades 9 and 10 and tuition was $15 a month.

Over the past four decades there have been numerous changes. Denver Lutheran High School has been blessed with students, strong leadership, first-rate faculty, building additions, athletic championships, and national awards for academic excellence.

At Denver Lutheran High School, we thank God for our students and how they use the gifts God has given them in the classroom, on the stage, on the field, and on the court. We thank God for the parents who are committed to Christian education and are willing to prioritize that for their children. We thank God for faculty who are committed to the Lord and have strong foundations in their academic areas.