Our Story

Our Story On January 18, 2015 the members of Calvary Baptist Church had a motion on which to make a decision: With the unanimous support of our Deacons, I move that the Calvary Baptist Church donate our assets and ourselves to Northwest Hills Community Church and file appropriate dissolution papers with the State of Connecticut so that we can become one church with the Northwest Hills Community Church. As the members of Calvary voted, the members of NHCC prayed. Each church desired God's will in this momentous decision. Both churches wanted nothing more and nothing less than to heed the call of Christ. Overwhelmingly the people of Calvary said YES, and the two congregations began worshiping together weekly on March 1, 2015. Of course, that is just part of our story. In 1896, Calvary Baptist Church was planted in downtown Torrington. Over the years, as the City changed, Calvary stayed faithful as a Gospel witness. With over 100 years of history, the church experienced the normal ups and downs, and in 2014 while the congregation was stable, it was small. The church building was proving to be much to steward. In the meantime, when Christians from Valley Community Baptist Church (Avon, CT) joined together to pray and seek a pastor, their search led to a pastor from Texas who was praying for his place of ministry in New England. When the two connected in October 2006, Pastor Scotty Neasbitt began building a team and the Northwest Hills Community Church was launched on Easter day 2007. In June 2014 the pastor of Calvary Baptist Church for over 25 years, Mike Ambrose, made a visit with Scotty. Amidst the hustle and bustle of Vacation Bible School the two pastors sat and talked about the possibility of these two congregations becoming one church together. Pastor Mike said, "I know Northwest Hills has been searching for a more permanent place for ministry in downtown Torrington. Calvary's deacons and I believe that our church building may be your church building." It was this kingdomminded spirit which started a 9-month process in which the two churches got to know each other -- prayed for God to show them how it could be done -- and explored a vision in which the two churches would be one new church made stronger together for Gospel ministry in Torrington and beyond. Since its early days in the Torringford School and the old Off Track Betting facility on East Main Street, Northwest Hills had been praying and actively searching for a place of ministry in downtown Torrington, believing it would be a hub from which to reach the people of Northwest Connecticut, New England, and around the world. God had already gathered and grown NHCC to be a church of many young and growing families with a heart to disciple the next generation. When doors were closed with each new prospective location, NHCC decided to stop looking and refocus on the ministry God had given them. It was then the miracle happened. Today, Northwest Hills Community Church meets in the historic Calvary Baptist Church building on the corner of Prospect and Church Streets in downtown Torrington. We are a multi-generational church of people from towns all across the greater Torrington area on mission together following Christ and leading others to Him.