Leelanau is a great place to slow down and appreciate the things that so many take for granted. They didn’t show up in this picture, but I was surrounded by a swarm of mosquitoes while taking the picture.  It was worth it.

My wife Hillary and I live in Olathe, Kansas.  She’s spent every summer of her life in Leelanau, and probably always will.  It’s hard for most people to understand the connection she has with the place.  It’s almost like it’s magical to her.

Her grandparents, Raymond and Flora Heine, have lived on Lake Leelanau for years, until her grandmother passed away last October.  Her grandfather is still there.  His house is just north of the Narrows, on the west side.  He was the pastor at Bethany Lutheran Church in Northport for a while.  I took the picture on the lane that runs to his house.

– Brad Raple, Olathe, KS