Our beautiful mid-century modern church stands at the corner of 14th Street and Mapleton Avenue in the heart of the bustling Boulder community. A constant witness to the Catholic faith for almost 150 years, the Church offers a quiet refuge to the passerby; our nearby schoolyard is filled with joyful sounds of children. Founded July 19, 1875, by Denver’s first bishop, Joseph Machebeuf, Sacred Heart of Jesus serves Catholics from around the region.

Our original building was not complete by 1877, so the first Christmas services were celebrated in a nearby tent. In less than 30 years, we outgrew the original church and a second one was constructed in 1907. Over the years, our community outgrew that church building.

In 1963, the current structure was built and dedicated. The 1963 design, a spare, mid-century modern aesthetic, reflects the simplicity espoused by the Benedictine Fathers who shepherded our parish until 1985.

In 2025 we will joyously celebrate 150 years of bringing Jesus to the heart of Boulder.

In 1900, 25 years after the founding of Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary opened the doors of its new parochial school. The school became the primary ministry of the parish, a tradition that continues to this day. With humble beginnings in the remodeled rectory built by the Benedictines, the school charged $1.50 for tuition. In 1918, the parish constructed a three-story white brick school and convent at 13th Street and Mapleton Avenue, which served the community into the post-war era. From 1950 to 1980, as Boulder’s population nearly quadrupled, the school overflowed with students. A second school was replaced in 1959 by a larger, third school building. In the 1960s, more than 700 students enrolled, breaking attendance records year after year. In 1976, a new junior high school building expanded the school even further. In 1983, the convent on the northeast corner of 14th Street and Mapleton Avenue was converted to the parish center you see today.