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The Catholic Church in the Vail Valley has outgrown its places to worship, and has launched an ambitious plan to accommodate the estimated 10,000 members of the faith in the valley.

After a quiet start has raised $10 million, the local church is ready to go public with a $20 million capital campaign to build two new chapels, one in Edwards and one in Gypsum.

The planned Edwards chapel will snuggle between the St. Clare of Assisi school and the Family Learning Center. Father Jose Maria Quera, pastor of the valley’s parishes, said a chapel was always planned for the campus. But those plans never came to pass, in part because a loan needed to be repaid to the Catholic Archdiocese of Denver.

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As the moment, the St. Clare parish holds mass in the elementary school gym. That’s not ideal, and a number of parishioners find themselves attending services at either the interfaith chapels in Beaver Creek or Vail, or the historic St. Patrick’s chapel in Minturn.

The St. Mary’s Chapel in Eagle has long been stretched to its limits for services in both English and Spanish. In all, about 65% of all Catholics in the valley are Spanish speakers and about half of all the services in the valley are conducted in Spanish. Parish members often watch services via video in the church’s basement. Many have decided to attend services at the St. Stephen parish in Glenwood Springs.

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Plans for that parish call for a move to Gypsum’s Airport Gateway center near Costco, at a 9-acre site against the hillside on the south side of the property.

Capital campaign member Jenn Bruno said in addition to providing space for worship services, a new chapel will also provide community space, including for weddings, funerals, youth groups and other functions.

And, she added, some people are “turned off” by attending mass in an elementary school gym.

Before launching the public phase of the capital campaign, there was a low-key effort that began in the late summer of 2022. That effort started with a lot of prayer and conversation, including meetings at the homes of some parishioners.

Steve and Janet Burmeister hosted some of those meetings at their home in Cordillera.

“Before you sign off on a $20 million campaign, you do a study,” Steve Burmeister said. Interest was found in a 50-family study group, all of whom agreed to provide financial and other support. A total of 125 families got the fundraising drive close to $10 million. The current roster of supporters is now more than 260 families strong.

But, Bruno said, support has come from families from different income levels. “We’ve had million-dollar gifts and $25 gifts,” she said. “It’s inspiring — there are people who have pledged $5,000 over five years. They come in with cash gifts. It’s a real sacrifice for them.”

When the fundraising drive hits $15 million, the campaign will hit another stage, with drawing up detailed plans then going to the archdiocese for approval. The plans will also require approvals from Eagle ¾Ã¾ÃÈȾ«Æ·ÊÓƵapp and the town of Gypsum.

Quera said the idea now is to find one contractor for both projects.

“We hope there would be economies of scale to offer (a contractor) two projects,” Steve Burmeister said.

For those who want to participate without opening their checkbooks, Bruno said there opportunities to volunteer with fundraising. There’s a website, . That handle is also being used on Instagram and Facebook.