History

Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church of Cheyenne, Wyoming has been part of the fabric of the state's capital city since 1922, the same year the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America was established by the Ecumenical Patriarchate as its first overseas Eparchy. That shared founding year is no small coincidence. The parish and the Archdiocese grew up together, representing the hopes of Greek immigrants who came West determined to plant their faith as firmly as they planted their lives in frontier soil.

Greek immigrants had arrived in Wyoming well before the parish was formally organized, drawn by the railroads and the mining and ranching industries that shaped the state. Prior to the establishment of Saints Constantine and Helen in 1922, Cheyenne had been served by two separate Greek Orthodox congregations, Holy Trinity and an earlier Saints Constantine and Helen community, which were ultimately unified into the single parish that stands today. The Very Reverend Gerasimos Elias served as the first priest of the newly organized Saints Constantine and Helen in 1922, a man who would go on to become the Greek Orthodox Bishop of Chicago, serving there from 1943 to 1954.

The parish's commitment to preserving the remarkable story of Greek Orthodox life in Wyoming is embodied in its Hellenic Heritage House and Cultural Center, a museum situated adjacent to the church that documents more than a century of Hellenic history on the frontier. Its four rooms, the Greek Orthodox Church Room, the Wedding Room, the Wyoming Hellenic History Room, and the Library and Archive Room, trace the journey from the railroad beginnings of Wyoming's Greek settlers to the present day, including the Cheyenne Greek Festival, which has grown into one of the largest annual events in the state.

Today, Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church stands at 501 West 27th Street in Cheyenne as the premier Orthodox Christian parish in Wyoming's capital, a member of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver, and a community whose steadfastness of faith, dedication, and hospitality have made it a cornerstone of Cheyenne's religious and cultural life for more than a century.