Tre Ministries relocates near downtown

Nov. 19, 2019

After losing its home, Tre Ministries has moved into a new space closer to downtown.

The nonprofit, which is open to all faiths and serves as a gathering space for college students and young adults, is leasing the former Brennan Rock & Roll Academy at 11th Street and Walts Avenue from Black Hills Federal Credit Union. The owner of its original home, the former Tre Lounge at 33rd Street and Spring Avenue, has listed that property for sale, precipitating the move.

“I really love the location,” said Becky Blue, a Tre Ministries board member. “We’re still close to the colleges but yet I remember when the mayor came to our last place, he said, ‘What are you doing for the kids that aren’t in college, they’re maybe working downtown or whatever.’ This is just a great location to capture both of those groups.”

Founder Sandy Berven, who’s also the youth director at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, said adults also are welcome to use the space.

“It’s a really beautiful space,” she said. “It just really lends itself to have study rooms for kids or Bible study rooms or meetings, business meetings, and they can all happen at the same time.”

The gathering spaces come in a range of sizes.

“The practice rooms for instrumentalists now are the perfect size for small group projects,” Blue said.

There’s still a large lounge space, but the only loss in the move was Coffee Bar 605.

“There’s no kitchen space, so there’s no coffee shop, but people can bring their own,” Berven said. “We do have a Keurig and cups, and a pot of coffee, so it’s much more homey.”

Tre Ministries is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, and users can reserve the space outside of those hours as needed. Students and young  adults can use the rooms for free, while businesses that hold a meeting or retreat there pay a fee. And donations are never turned away.

With the move, Lloyd Cos. donated the furniture for the new space, and some of the other relocation expenses were covered with a grant from Sammons Financial Group.

A donor recently challenged the ministry group with a $50,000 matching gift, and a fundraising campaign will kick off Dec. 3, which is Giving Tuesday, an international day of charitable giving. The goal is to raise the money by the end of the year.

Tre’s mission is “creating a purposeful space intended to unlock the potential of youth and young adults spiritually, physically, socially and academically.” It’s meant to work in partnership with churches, not replace them.

“We encourage churches to use this space to get to know those kids so they can say come and join us at our church,” Berven said. “They can get to know people and then invite them into their ministry or their church or if they’re a business. That’s what this space is for, to make those connections and build relationships with those in college or young adults.”

Businesses are invited to use the space for educational workshops such as teaching young adults about financial issues, Berven said.

“We’ll still continue our Tre Talks,” she added. “We’ll have business leaders, leaders in the community come in and share their journey and open up, and have that available to kids.”

Tre will hold free open houses Dec. 1 from 3 to 5 p.m. and Dec. 3 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. The building is accessible to all and has free parking.

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Tre Ministries relocates near downtown

After losing its home, Tre Ministries has moved into a new space closer to downtown.

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