Bring Pizza Ranch to Colorado Springs

QUICK SUMMARY: For the past 2 years we have been working on the details to open a Pizza Ranch franchise in Colorado Springs. We did not envision that we would be opening a restaurant, but God keeps opening doors, and we want to be faithful to His leading. This is a family buffet restaurant, with pizza, chicken, salad bar, and desserts. We see this as a way to hire and impact youth, as well as offer a great place for the community to gather. There will be rooms to reserve for family gatherings, meetings, and birthday parties. There will also be a Fun Zone with games to enjoy with family and friends.

MORE DETAILS:

If you know us, you know that we continue to want to help kids in their teens/early 20’s. In June 2022 we were driving home from a road trip and wanted to check out the Pizza Ranch in Pueblo. Allison’s mom had recommended that we visit this place years earlier. This visit made a huge impact on our lives. By the front door was the Pizza Ranch corporate vision statement: To glorify God by positively impacting the world. We saw many youth working and doing a great job. We saw people enjoying their time at this family restaurant. As we left, we knew we needed to investigate this more. What a great opportunity to employ high schoolers, and college kids, and build up their confidence. Help them become leaders. Offer career advancement as assistant managers.

Pizza Ranch started in Iowa in the 1980’s, and they now have over 200 restaurants, mostly in the Midwest. If you haven’t heard of Pizza Ranch, ask someone that has lived in Iowa, because everyone we know from Iowa can’t say enough about how much they like their food. Pizza Ranch is a family-friendly buffet restaurant offering pizza, chicken, salad bar, along with dessert pizzas and ice cream!

We are partnering with the owners of the only Pizza Ranch in Colorado, down in Pueblo. Glen and Bambi Grady opened their restaurant over 8 years ago, and it was visiting their restaurant 2 years ago that started us on this journey to open one in Colorado Springs.

We visited the Pizza Ranch corporate headquarters located in Orange City, IA, back in March 2023, and have been approved to be a franchise owner of Pizza Ranch. We have also secured a location to lease space in town. Once we have signed the lease, we will share the location. But I am told that it could take up to a year to renovate the space, so it won’t be open before next summer.

The question will be asked if we need another pizza place in town. Colorado Springs is growing, but lacks family-friendly places to gather for food and fun. Last May, the Colorado Springs Gazette newspaper asked people what they would like in Colorado Springs. #5 on the list was Pizza Ranch! We see this as a great place for people in the community. There will also be rooms available to reserve for family gatherings, meetings, and birthday parties.

To open a restaurant is expensive. Real expensive. Millions of dollars expensive. That’s why we’re doing this crowdfunding idea. The more we raise here, the less we need to borrow. New restaurants have a high fail rate, because it’s so expensive to start one. We have also learned that a restaurant has a lot of revenue, but a lot of expenses as well. There’s not a lot of profit, especially at the beginning. We see this as a self-funded ministry opportunity to provide jobs for young and old alike, and a place for people to enjoy a meal with family and friends.

Before we ask you for your donation, let me tell you what we are investing into this project. On May 1, 2024, Tim sold his insurance agency of 20 years, to have the time to get this restaurant going. We also own the building where my insurance agency was located, and are selling the building to help fund the restaurant. Allison and I will be operating the restaurant, with help from the Gradys. We are in discussions with lenders for money to start this restaurant. It’s been great to partner with the Gradys, who have restaurant experience. When Tim has gone into banks to discuss business loans, and the bank asks him what his background experience is with restaurants, his best answer is that he have visited a lot of restaurants! That doesn’t encourage the bank to give us a loan to open a restaurant. But joining with Glen and Bambi has helped with our loan options.

When you click the "donate button" you will have an option to tip on the donation amount. This does not go to us, so please be aware of that tip being added to your donation. This platform does collect a fee for all money they receive before sending to us, so a tip from you is not necessary.

We need to be clear that if you donate to this project, you will not receive anything in return. If we give you a hat, or a shirt, or a free pizza, then the donation is taxable income to us. If it’s a gift, with nothing given to you in return, then it is truly a gift. With your donation, you will allow us to hire youth, and you will have a great place to eat. So there is a benefit to your donation.

Our fundraising goal has been listed at $200,000. I really believe that we can raise more. Many have asked us how they can help us with this project, and this is a great way to help. If you can donate $50, $100, or more, please join us on this adventure. Once we do hit our goal, please continue to consider donating, as the more we raise, the less we will need to borrow.

You can also mail a check to us at Tim Kealy, P.O. Box 88210, Colorado Springs, CO 80908. You can make the check out to Tim Kealy, or 10DASH31 LLC. This name ties into a verse that we saw on a poster in a Pizza Ranch, 1 Corinthians 10:31, which states “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God”. And the DASH represents our life, between our day of birth, and our last day on earth. What we do with our life is represented in the dash. It is also a tribute to Tim’s parents, DAvid and SHaron Kealy, who have variations of DASH for things like their geocache name.

There will also be an opportunity to be an investor in our restaurant, as well as a private lender with a fixed rate of return. If you are interested in more information, please contact Tim Kealy.

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Thank you!

Thank you for reading this far, and for considering to join us in this adventure!

Sincerely,

Tim & Allison Kealy