Our Leadership and History

River Rock Vineyard History

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Tim and Pam Dolan – pastors

Tim and Pam Dolan have been Vineyard pastors since 1998. Much of their early years were spent  on ranches. They now live in the Gallatin Valley near Belgrade. They have two grown daughters, two wonderful son-in-laws and an awesome grandson. Tim has been bi-vocation with various skills and enjoys connecting with people outside church in the workforce. Pam is an artist, teacher and prayer minister.

Leadership: River Rock Vineyard is led by an Administrative Team and Core Families. The Administrative Team leads in financial responsibilities and decisions. The Core Families is a group of families who help lead the direction and decisions of the church through prayer and prophetic listening & response, through creative ideas and implementation of those ideas.

History of RRV

In the spring of 1994 the Dolans moved from Grass Range, MT  to Dillon where Pam completed her college degree in Art and Elementary Eduction. Tim was employed on a ranch breaking colts and working with cattle. They immediately became involved with a small Four Square Church plant there pastored by Gary Smith, which later adopted into the Vineyard in 1995. Here Dolans grew in their own spiritual lives and ministry leadership,  eventually returning to Grass Range to plant a new church in the small ranching community.

Several families from the Grass Range community helped to form the new church plant team, Community Christian Fellowship. The first service was October 11, 1998. Sunday services, youth group, home groups, and children’s church continued to develop. Pam was employed as a teacher at the Grass Range K-12 school while Tim day-worked for various ranches, loggers, and the school as a bus driver and custodian. Both Tim & Pam experienced the life in ministry as bi-vocational pastors.

After seven years  in Grass Range, Tim sensed God’s leading to plant a new church in the Belgrade area. Pam was born in Bozeman and both graduated from Bozeman High School but never dreamed God would lead them back here to live. Through many months of prayer and confirmation, the transition came to pass the Grass Range church on to another pastor who was officially accepted by the GR congregation as the new pastor in August 2005.

Dolans moved to the Belgrade area in June 2005 where Tim accepted a job with a plumbing company and Pam accepted teaching positions at a Christian school and later Belgrade High School. They began to meet with a few couples in October 2005 to build and prepare a leadership team. The River Rock Vineyard Church plant was finalized in April 2006, a few days before the first public service. They first met Sunday evenings at Foothills Fellowship on Spring Hill Road. Later, gatherings were held in Dolans’ large garage, anticipated just for the summer months of 2007. In the spring of 2008,  Dehaun Construction made  accommodations to Bridger View Storage for new site of River Rock Vineyard Church.  As the church grew, Dehauns continued to remodel in order to expand space and necessities. It is the present location of the church today.

Church planting is never easy. It’s a process much like pioneering. It is a leap of faith to leave all that is familiar in order to venture out into the wilderness of the unknown. Since the leap of faith to move back to the Gallatin Valley, God has shifted much of the Dolan’s perspectives on church. He has stripped away old mindsets, religious perspectives (formulaic or agenda oriented) and a pragmatic manner of “doing” church. He continues to teach River Rock Vineyard about His Presence. He is the focus. Everyone is welcome to participate in this experience of growing closer in relationship with Him in an environment of freedom and permission, to be empowered by and for His goodness. River Rock Vineyard Church has become an organic growing place where we all are encouraged to fan the flames of each individual’s personal identity and celebrate relationship as a big family.