WELCOME
Gathering together for prayer, worship, and learning in a friendly and loving atmosphere is the core of our life together at St. Peter’s Chapel.
In our services we hear God’s Word, give God thanks for our many blessings, and ask for God’s guidance and help. Outside of our services we are supportive of Leelanau Christian Neighbors, 5Loaves2FishNMI, and Grace Episcopal Church's Traverse City Food Pantry, which help those in our community who can use a hand.
The Episcopal Church's presence in Leland began in 1908, when the Rt. Rev. Charles Woodcock, Bishop of the Diocese of Kentucky, began holding services in his summer home, and later in the homes of other summer residents. St. Peter's Chapel began in 1964, with approval by the Diocese of Western Michigan.
As seldom before in our lifetimes, we have been reminded of how much we need each other, how much the world needs our witness, and how “neither death, nor life … nor things present, nor things to come … nor anything else in all creation, will separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
We hope you will join us!
WORSHIP WITH ST. PETER'S
St. Peter’s 2023 summer season goes from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. Dress is casual for all Chapel meetings.
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Outdoor Celtic Eucharist Saturday Services occur on the riverside lawn of the Leland Library on Saturdays from 5:00pm-5:45pm, with a bagpiper from the Grand Traverse Pipes and Drums playing before each service from 4:30pm-5:00pm, and Leland resident and guitarist Bill McCrory leading singing at the service.
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Eucharist Sunday Services occur in the Munnecke Room of the Leland Library at both 8:00am-8:25am (with no music) and at 9:00am-9:50am (with uplifting hymns led on organ by Interlochen’s Susan Day).
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In addition, Inquirer’s Table discussions, exploring each following Sunday’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew, occur on Wednesdays at 11:00am-Noon or at 1:00pm-2:00pm in the Munnecke Room. From Noon-1:00pm there is an optional bring-your-own bag lunch conversation on the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew’s Gospel. Come as you are, whether every week or as you are able!
We are led by Bishop Charles Bennison, and enthusiastic about welcoming people of all faith backgrounds, denominations, and ages to worship with us.
Jesus offers his followers the greatest gifts we could hope to receive: spiritual peace and eternal life. In these complex and uncertain times, it is our hope at St. Peter's to affirm and spread this good news, as well as the love that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have for each one of us.
The Rt. Rev. Charles Bennison
The Rt. Rev. Charles Bennison was born in Minneapolis in 1943 and raised in Illinois and Michigan. Ordained in 1968, he served as rector of parishes in Los Angeles and Atlanta (1971-1991), taught pastoral theology at the Episcopal Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts (1992-1997), and was the Bishop of the Diocese of Pennsylvania (1997-2012). His holds a B.A. in history summa cum laude from Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin, and graduate degrees in theology and philosophy from Harvard Divinity School, Claremont Graduate University, Union Theological Seminary of New York City, and the New School for Social Research. He is the author of In Praise of Congregations: Leadership in the Local Church Today. He and his wife now divide their time between Sea Island, Georgia, and Leland.
CHAPEL VESTRY
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Shep Burr
Senior Warden
Class of 2024
Shep has been Senior Warden of St. Peter’s Chapel since 2020. He and his wife Alice also are members of Trinity-by-the-Cove in Naples, Florida, and he previously served as Senior Warden of Christ Church, Georgetown, in Washington, D.C.
Most of Shep’s career has involved developing and managing institutional investment funds. He currently has a growth strategies consulting practice.
Shep and Alice have two daughters, Olivia Koller (Ross) and Campbell Paulsen (Jonny), and three granddaughters.
Shep’s great-grandparents began visiting Leland in the 1920s.
Kate Appel
Secretary
Class of 2026
Kate is a lifelong Episcopalian and member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church Indianapolis, where she has served as Junior Warden, on the Vestry and Stewardship Committee, and as a longtime member of the choir.
She helped found Faith, Justice & the Arts, an outreach project using the arts as a vehicle to talk about societal injustice, as well as University High School.
Kate and her husband Dan have three married children who live close by in Indianapolis. Their five grandchildren range from toddler to high schooler.
When in Leland, Kate and Dan reside in the house his paternal grandfather built in 1928.
Sally Buchanan
Website Manager
Class of 2025
Sally comes from a long line of Episcopalians, including her great-grandfather, who served as priest in the Diocese of Pennsylvania.
Raised, baptized, and confirmed in Coffeyville, Kansas, Sally’s career was mostly in the technology industry in Chicago.
While living in River Forest, Illinois, Sally attended Grace Episcopal Church and served on the Rector Search Committee.
Sally and her husband Dave retired from corporate careers in 2007, and for 13 years have owned and managed Shady Lane Market in Suttons Bay. They have one son, Trey.
Sally’s grandfather purchased the family cottage on North Lake Street in the 1930’s.
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Greg Workman
Treasurer
Class of 2025
Greg has been the Treasurer of St. Peter’s Chapel since 2021. He and his wife Susan also are members of St. Barnabas in Montgomery, Ohio, where he serves as a Eucharistic Minister.
Greg spent 30 years in consulting leadership positions at Deloitte Consulting and several other firms, working in healthcare. He retired in 2017.
Greg and Susan raised triplets - two daughters (Alyson and Elizabeth) and a son (Greg). They have owned a house in Leland since 1993.
Susan’s family is originally from Traverse City. Her parents, Tom and Alyce Hoban were long-time members of St. Peter’s Chapel.
Jack Biggs
Class of 2026
A native of St. Louis, Jack is a lifelong Episcopalian who has served as Senior Warden, a Vestry member, and Chair of the Rector Search Committee. In addition, he served as Chairman of the Board of a local Episcopal hospital.
Jack’s career included senior executive positions in food equipment, footwear, and community banking businesses.
He has been active in numerous non-profits, both in St. Louis and in Leland, where he and his family first visited circa 1950.
When not in Leland, Jack and his wife Betsy reside in Vero Beach, Florida. They have three children and five grandchildren.
Nina Claytor
Class of 2024
Nina, a cradle Episcopalian, served as Eucharistic minister, head of the Altar and Flowers Guilds, and on the Long Range Planning Committee of St. Francis of the Fields, Harrods Creek, Kentucky.
Nina and her husband Preston are members of St Paul's, Delray Beach, Florida.
Nina's career was in banking before she retired in 2000,
In Louisville, Nina raised two daughters, Caroline McMillen (Bryan) and Houghton Hyatt (Ben), each of whom has two children.
Nina's connection to Leland began in the 1920s when her maternal grandparents began coming to Leland to escape the hot Kentucky summers.
Lee Cory
Class of 2025
Lee Cory has been a parishioner at St. Peter's for many years. She and her husband, Neal, are members of St. Francis in the Fields in Harrods Creek, Kentucky, where she has served as Vestry member, Daughter of the King, and Sunday School teacher.
Lee is an attorney who left the active practice of law when her first daughter was born. Since then, she has worked as a volunteer legal advocate for preservation, conservation, and smart land use.
Lee and Neal have two daughters, Stewart Cory-Kline (Eric) and Preston Cory, who are the fourth generation of their family to have Leland roots.
Alex Curchin
Class of 2026
Alex is a life-long Episcopalian and has attended St. Peter’s Chapel for many years.
He and his wife Cindy also are members of St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, Joplin, Missouri, where Alex served on the Vestry.
Alex is an attorney who has practiced law for 50+ years and served as a judge for 20 years. He currently serves as chief legal officer for Crossland Construction Company.
Cindy and Alex have three children, Louise Secker (Eric), Alex IV (Anne), and Graham. They have 7 grandchildren who all love Leland.
Alice Neild
Class of 2024
Alice has been Assistant Treasurer for St. Peter’s for the last 6 years.
She is a member of Christ Church, in Bronxville, New York, where she has served on the Altar Guild for many years.
Alice considers herself lucky to have married into Leland some 60 years ago. She was absent for a few years but returned about 30 years ago.
Alice has three children and nine grandchildren.
Steve Owsley
Class of 2026
Steve Owsley and his wife Cabrina are members of Christ Church Cathedral in Houston, Texas.
Steve is a trial lawyer, and has a small firm named Owsley Law Firm, PLLC.
Steve and Cabrina have three children, Mansfield, Luciana, and Finnian.
Steve’s family connection to Leland began when his great grandfather first came to Leland in 1904.
Phil Scherer
Class of 2026
Phil and his wife, Kathy, are members of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Louisville, where Phil has served on the Vestry and the Finance and Endowment Committees.
A graduate of the University of Alabama and the University of Kentucky (MBA), Phil just celebrated fifty years in the commercial real estate brokerage business.
The Scherers bought a cottage on Good Harbor Bay in 1980.
Their daughter Langley is a Physician Assistant in Salt Lake City. Their son, E.P., is a partner in Phil’s real estate business and frequent visitor to Leland along with his wife, Abby and their three children.
John Wellborn
Class of 2024
John has been on the Chapel Committee since 2022 and leads the Usher program.
He is a member and Usher at Christ Presbyterian Church in Edina Minnesota.
John has spent 30 years in Bank Risk and Security.
John and his wife Kelly have been married for 30 years and are parents to sons Ben and Sam, 22, and Grace 16.
John family has been coming to Leland for five generations.
OTHERS IN LEADERSHIP
Neal Cory
Photographer
Having grown up in Louisville, Kentucky, Neal has been coming to Leland since he was born, and he became a Michigan resident in 2010.
When not in Leland, Neal returns to Louisville for a few winter months. Neal has been married to Lee for 45 years. Their two daughters, Stewart Cory-Kline (Eric) and Preston, are fourth generation Lelanders.
Neal is a former Senior Warden and lifelong member of St. Francis in the Fields in Louisville. He graduated from Washington & Lee University and has worked in the investment management business his whole career for Hilliard Lyons, now R. W. Baird.
Lynne Lyons
Eucharistic Minister and Facilitator of the Interpreters’ Table
Lynne was born in New York and grew up in Woodbridge, Connecticut. She has a BA in Political Science from George Washington University and spent fourteen years as an aide to US Senator Howard Baker of Tennessee.
Lynne and her husband Mark have been married 42 years and have a daughter, Molly. They have been worshipping at St. Peter's since 2014.
Mark’s career with Citigroup took the family to Chicago, New York, and London. Since Mark's retirement, the Lyons live half the year in Leland and the other half in Williamsburg, Virginia, where they are members of Bruton Parish.
Leslie Maclin
Eucharistic Minister
Leslie is a year-round Leland resident who formerly was active at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church (Evanston, IL) and St. Mark's Episcopal Church (Kalamazoo, MI).
She’s the Principal of Isthmus Innovation, a strategy consulting practice that develops investment stage food technology. Prior roles included Breakthrough Innovation at Kellogg’s and Kraft-Heinz Foods.
Leslie and her husband, Bill McCrory, have two children: Carlie (Beto Brown) and Will.
She is an avid runner, XC skier, hiker, biker, and paddle boarder, and proud to be a Fayette County Fair Grand Champion (Clover Leaf Yeast Rolls if you must know!), delighting in preparing the communion bread for St. Peter’s Chapel.
Walter Schmid
Chair of Outreach and Liaison to Leelanau Christian Neighbors and 5Loaves2Fish
Walter is a Leland resident and enjoys many of the wonderful opportunities and activities the community has to offer. He is retired and lives in Leland with his wife Leslie. They enjoy traveling and tear themselves away from Leland once or twice a year.
Jackie Tyler
Facilitator of the Interpreters’ Table
Jackie's Bio coming soon
CHAPEL MUSICIANS
Susan Day
Organist
Susan has held church organist positions since she was 13 years old, beginning at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in her hometown of Blairsville, Pennsylvania, and most recently at Traverse Bay United Methodist Church.
Susan studied both piano and organ at Oberlin Conservatory of Music and has a master's degree in Collaborative Arts from the University of Southern California.
Susan has had a career as an accompanist and/or piano teacher at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the University for Music in Vienna, Austria, the Colburn School in Los Angeles, and the Interlochen Center for the Arts.
Bill McCrory
GGuitarist
Bill McCrory grew up in Lathrup, Michigan, and is a year-round Leland resident.
He is proud to be a Cradle Episcopalian, and his great-grandfather was Dean of Christ Episcopal Church (Waukegan, Illinois).
Bill is an accomplished musician and has played at a variety of venues, from the Chicago House of Blues and Navy Pier Sound Stage to local venues like Bel Lago Winery and summer residencies at The Homestead and Northport Farmers Market.
Bill and his wife, Leslie Maclin, have two children: Carlie (Beto Brown) & Will.
Jennilynn Oster
Bagpiper
Jenn comes from Traverse City, where her parents and brother still live. While growing up, she and her family were missionaries in Hungary.
Jenn attended Ferris State University where she obtained a masters degree in Criminal Justice Administration.
She traveled considerably while working as a Special Agent for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and is now a Traverse City Police School Resource Officer.
In Jenn's free time, she competitively plays with the Grand Traverse Pipes and Drums and Muskegon Regional Police Pipes and Drums, along with serving as the Traverse City Police Honor Guard piper.
Roderick MacNeil
Bagpiper
Bio Coming Soon
Stephen MacNeil
Bagpiper
Stephen has a 25-year Stephen piping career, plus 34 years’ experience in Grade 1 pipe bands. He was Pipe Sergeant with the Windsor Police during their four top five finishes at the World's in Grade 2.
Stephen is a PPBSO and Midwest Pipe Band Society adjudicator, and founder of the Northern Michigan School of Piping. He is a member of the Celtic Folk group “Glengarry Road,” the Irish folk/rock band “Wild Sully’s,” and the Bagpipe Professional at Henderson Imports in Traverse City.
Stephen was raised in the Detroit area and now lives with his family in Manistee, Michigan.
Colleen Tennant
Bagpiper
Colleen's grandparents immigrated to America in 1922 from Scotland. She grew up listening to Scottish music, enjoying the food and listening to her grandfather read poems from Burns.
Gabrielle started bagpipe lessons from the Grand Traverse Pipes & Drums when she was 13 years old. She now has played pipes for more than 40 years.
Coleen is married and has two adult sons. She works as a Registrar for the Career Tech in Traverse City.
CONTACT US
Fill our contact form to get in touch with a member of our Leadership Team.
We will return your message as soon as possible.
St. Peter's Chapel
203 Cedar Street E
Leland, MI 49654
We meet in the Munnecke Room of the Leland Library, next to the Old Art Building in Leland.
Phone Contacts:
Bishop Charles Bennison - 215-519-3669
Shep Burr - 202-577-5288
Visit the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan.