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Overnight Reservations: 269.344.1827 Meetings, Events and Weddings: 269.343.9242  |
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| Our Mission: The mission of the Henderson Castle Bed & Breakfast, Meetings & Banquets business is to offer guests a place in which to celebrate their most important events with friends and family, as well as offer businesses an opportunity to conduct meetings in a unique and intriguing atmosphere rich in integrity and meaning. The Castle is an arts venue, a place to gather and share that which allows us to fully experience what it means to be human. Additionally, the Castle is seen as an agent for positive social change, an instrument to further the work of other organizations whose primary focus is to support others in the local, regional, national, and international communities. |
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About the Proprietors... |
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 Peter Livingstone-McNelis grew up in a military family that moved many times throughout his childhood to include two tours in Germany and his high school years in Hawaii and Virginia. In 1983 he moved to Kalamazoo to attend Kalamazoo College because of the strong foreign study program which would provide an opportunity to study abroad in Germany. A 1987 graduate of Kalamazoo with a major in Psychology, he decided to pursue a Master Degree in Clinical Psychology from John. F. Kennedy University where he specialized in Sports Psychology. A four year letter-winner and three year Captain on the Kalamazoo College Cross Country Team, he became a Graduate Assistant Coach for the University of California-Berkeley Women’s Track Team.
Upon graduation, he returned to Kalamazoo and was married that same year to Laura. He began working at Lakeside Boy’s and Girl’s Home where he became a senior administrator and was also hired by Kalamazoo College to eventually become the Men’s and Women’s Head Cross Country Coach. As a result of the couple’s daughter’s many health problems, he quit both professions to become a landlord to stay home to take care of their daughter and later, an infant son. Many of the properties that he managed served the low-income population in Kalamazoo and these properties were substantially upgraded under his care. In 2003, he led a movement to have the Men’s Track program at Western Michigan University reinstated and dedicated two years to raise consciousness and awareness of this issue as President of the Bring Back Track Association. After learning the Castle was for sale, Peter was able to convince his wife that starting a business at the Castle would allow them to, in a round-about way, do social work and teach--both professions they had given up to provide the necessary care for their daughter. It was felt that because of the Castle’s ability to attract people that the Castle could serve as a catalyst to further the works of other social organizations and causes while at the same time being a venue to support and showcase the arts in Kalamazoo. Peter offered a different perspective to his wife when discussing the venture –the idea that turning what had been a private residence for 111 years into a bed & breakfast and meeting and banquet facility without any experience would be stressful but positive since people would be coming to the Castle to celebrate their most special moments. Further, given their daughter’s health problems, he and his wife felt that any stress they experienced would not be any greater than what they had already handled, and hope that through their efforts, they might make a lasting contribution to the City of Kalamazoo. |
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Laura feels she is fortunate to have the best of many worlds: she can teach through children’s camps (Knights and Princesses Camps), engage in the visual arts coordinating exhibits for the monthly ArtHop in the Hayward-McNelis Gallery (located in the ballroom), host ballets in the ballroom, develop Castle-sponsored events such as Mother’s Day teas and murder mystery dinners, and more—while maintaining a degree of flexibility to be there when their children need her. Laura has many other plans for using the Castle as an agency for positive social change, and looks forward to working with others who share this vision. |
Laura Livingstone-McNelis knew from elementary school days that she wanted to teach—and that theatre was a venue she loved. After obtaining her degree and teaching certificate from Kalamazoo College, Laura taught high school and middle school for seven years and worked as a teaching artist before starting the business at Henderson Castle.