A Short History of The ELTC

The Education & Life Training Center (ELTC) is one of Fort Collins' oldest nonprofit organizations. It began in 1966 as the Volunteers Clearing House to effectively coordinate a variety of community volunteer efforts to address many of the needs of people at poverty level. The organization was spearheaded by Marcile Wood and Reverend Robert Geller, a campus minister at Colorado State University, who donated space for VCH at the Ecumenical Foundation, 916 James Court. VCH later moved to the Viva House in Andersonville, and then relocated to 120 1st Street on Buckingham, and finally VCH moved to our present location in 1970.

Located in Old Town, our building has very colorful history: it once housed a chicken processing plant, a tortilla factory, and a meat market (this is probably why one of the computer labs slopes a bit...for good drainage). VCH's initial training focused on English instruction, driver education, childcare and pre-schooling, youth recreation activities, parenting, services for the aging, sewing, cooking, typing, and basic office skills. An array of community assistance programs such as Care-A-Van, Meals on Wheels, Home Helps, the Food Distribution Center, and Head Start grew from VCH support. Now First Call 211, a new subsidiary of the United Way of Larimer County, provides many of the volunteer referral services that VCH conceived and administered.

As the stature and demand for nontraditional adult education increased, a more formalized service delivery was developed. Expertise was attained from the administration of federal job and literacy training grants through the Women's Educational Equity Act and the Northern Colorado Refugee Services, respectively. In 1994, the name was changed to better reflect the changing needs of its clients.