Our first worship service was held October 8, 1961 in the basement of Alumni Hall on the Iowa State University campus. Participants included students, faculty, and staff from ISU, as well as families from the Ames community. By June of 1964 a parsonage had been built at 3624 Ontario Street in west Ames, and worship services began to be held in the basement of the parsonage.
The congregation grew steadily, and in December of 1967 we dedicated our new worship center at 3626 Ontario Street. Additional classroom space was added to this building in 1971 to make room for our growing outreach to families and children of the neighborhood. During these years we were a “campus ministry” and a “local congregation” integrated into one ministry.
In 1980 the ministry was re-structured to make some distinction between the campus ministry, under the leadership of Rev. Fred Walhof, and the parish ministry, under the leadership of Rev. Art Stienstra. About this time we also became the host congregation for the Ames Korean Christian Reformed church.
In 1997 we completed a major addition to our building, giving us a new kitchen, fellowship hall with fireplace, and additional classrooms. This space has revolutionized our Vacation Bible School, our refreshments and fellowship time on Sunday mornings, and our hosting of groups from the broader community.
In 2004 the campus ministry was reconfigured again and Areopagus was born, with the support of Christian Reformed Home Missions and the four Christian Reformed classes in Iowa. Trinity continues to be the host church for the Areopagus ministry.
In 2011 we undertook a major sanctuary renovation project to make our worship area a bright, inviting place, and to make newer audio and video technology available. We are excited about continuing to serve Christ by helping students and long term residents of Ames grow in their faith and knowledge of God’s Word.