Our Story

The ELHI Community Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that was established in 2015. The founders saw an empty building and a need for more business space along with space for the community. 

The name ELHI comes from two different origins: 1) being that the building was once an  elementary school and later a high school. The children in the community would call it the “Elhi” during the business transition, so the founders kept the name. 2) Once they had the name, it became clear that the acronym: Education, Literacy, Health and Inspiration would be the perfect fit for their vision of the building. 

Since the inception of the organization, the ELHI has been a home to local businesses and nonprofits all along the Southwest Colorado region. Located in the center of Ignacio, these businesses have found that the ELHI is a great location as it is also close to higher populated surrounding towns. 

Not only does it serve local businesses and the community, but it also has been used as the local venue for events. There have been large community events hosted at the ELHI, along with smaller events like birthday parties, family reunions, baby showers and even cooking classes.  

Bringing us back to its current state, all of these services are available and the board has been working tirelessly on building upon this foundation. By broadening our community reach, we have plans to bring the old school into a more urban look and feel to make it more attractive to our community. 

Be on the lookout for exciting updates as we enter into the new age of the ELHI. To hear more or to get involved, please contact us. We’d love to hear from you!