About St. Mary · Garden Plain, Kansas
St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, also known as St. Mary's Aleppo, is a small historic rural parish in western Sedgwick County, Kansas, situated in Garden Plain Township within the Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Founded in 1890 by 26 German-Catholic pioneering families, the parish has continuously served the agricultural community of 'Aleppo' (a tiny hamlet north of Garden Plain) for more than 135 years. The parish is currently clustered with neighboring St. Anthony of Padua in Garden Plain, sharing pastoral care and forming a tight-knit country congregation of about 79 families and 245 individual Catholics. Visitors will find a warm, faithful community where Sunday Mass routinely draws more than 100 worshippers to a church whose steeple can be seen from a great distance across the flat Kansas wheat fields.
- Established
- 1890
- Patron
- Immaculate Conception (Blessed Virgin Mary)
- Rector
- Reverend Joseph M. Gile
- Diocese
- Catholic Diocese of Wichita
Why belong here
St. Mary's Aleppo is a small but deeply faithful country parish where the steeple is still a landmark on the prairie and Sunday Mass routinely draws more than 100 worshippers. The community offers the fullness of Catholic life — weekday and Sunday Mass, regular Confession, weekly Eucharistic Adoration on Thursdays, and the sacraments — in an intimate, family-friendly setting. As a historic German-Catholic farming community founded in 1890, it offers newcomers the chance to be part of a continuing 135-year tradition of Catholic rural life in Sedgwick County, clustered with the neighboring St. Anthony of Padua parish in Garden Plain.
Mass times at St. Mary
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 9:30–9:50 AM (before 10:00 AM Mass)
- Wednesday 6:00–6:20 PM (before 6:30 PM Mass)
Adoration times
- Thursday 5:00–9:00 PM
About St. Mary's Aleppo
St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, often called 'St. Mary's Aleppo,' is a small historic rural parish in the unincorporated community of Aleppo within Garden Plain Township, Sedgwick County, Kansas. The parish belongs to the Catholic Diocese of Wichita and is currently served by about 79 families and 245 individual Catholics. It is clustered with the neighboring St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Garden Plain, sharing pastoral care and staff with that parish.
- Address: 25741 W. 13th St. N., Garden Plain, KS 67050
- Phone: (316) 531-2662
- Email: [email protected]
- Diocese: Catholic Diocese of Wichita
- Cluster partner: St. Anthony of Padua, Garden Plain
Parish History
The parish was founded in 1890 by 26 German-Catholic families. John Lies (Leis) donated the land in the northwest quarter of Section 15; while the building was constructed, Mass was said in the homes of Lies and fellow founder Michael Scheer. The school opened in 1891 with the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, who formally took over the school in 1901. A larger brick school with three classrooms was built in 1923; the school was incorporated into USD #267 in 1965 and finally closed in 1974 after the Sister-Adorers of the Precious Blood departed in 1972. The school building was torn down in 1986, and the grounds now serve as a gravel parking lot. The community continues today as a small but faithful rural parish, with Sunday Mass regularly drawing more than 100 worshippers.
- Founded 1890 by 26 German-Catholic families
- Land donated by John Lies (Leis)
- School opened 1891 (Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother)
- Brick school built 1923 ($20,000, three classrooms)
- Incorporated into USD #267 in 1965
- School closed 1974; building demolished 1986
The Name 'Aleppo'
The community took its unusual name 'Aleppo' shortly after the church was dedicated. The dominant local legend, recorded in the parish centennial book, credits founding pastor Father Loevenich with opening an atlas, selecting a map of Syria at random, and pointing at Aleppo. The name stuck because of its Biblical associations. A competing Wichita Eagle account has a settler spinning a globe, though historians note no Russian city named Aleppo appears to have existed.
- Name chosen (per tradition) by Father Loevenich from an atlas
- Allegedly named after Aleppo, Syria
- An 'Aleppo' post office existed here from 1891 to 1903
Cluster with St. Anthony of Padua, Garden Plain
St. Mary's Aleppo shares pastoral care with St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Garden Plain, the larger parish just a few miles south. St. Anthony's website (stanthonygardenplain.com) maintains a dedicated St. Mary home page, and the two parishes cooperate on stewardship, faith formation, and youth ministry. The St. Anthony parish staff — including the parish secretary, bookkeeper, Director of Religious Education, Director of Youth Ministry, grounds/maintenance, sacristan, church cleaning, bus drivers, and cemetery maintenance — supports the combined community.
- St. Anthony of Padua contact: 316-531-2252
- St. Anthony mailing address: P.O. Box 275, Garden Plain, KS 67050
- St. Anthony also offers Monday Eucharistic Adoration (after 7:30 AM Mass until before Tuesday Mass)
- Shared staff include Joyce Ridder (Parish Secretary), Marilyn Helten (Bookkeeper), Julie Puetz (Director of Religious Education), and Sarah Beying (Director of Youth Ministry)
Clergy & Staff
St. Mary's Aleppo is currently led by Reverend Joseph M. Gile, who was appointed Pastor of St. Mary, Aleppo, by the Diocese of Wichita effective July 1, 2025, while also continuing as spiritual director of the St. Joseph House of Formation. He succeeded Reverend H. Setter, who concluded his appointment as pastor of St. Mary, Aleppo, on the same date and continues as Pastor of St. Anthony, Garden Plain. Day-to-day parish needs are handled through the parish office at (316) 531-2662.
- Rev. Joseph M. Gile — Pastor (effective July 1, 2025); also spiritual director, St. Joseph House of Formation
- Rev. H. Setter — immediate predecessor as pastor; remains Pastor of St. Anthony, Garden Plain
- Parish office: (316) 531-2662; [email protected]
Parish Life & Ministries
Although small, the parish maintains an active liturgical and faith life. The parish website hosts the latest bulletins, daily Mass readings, and a calendar of events, and it welcomes new and returning altar servers (with summer practice available by contacting coordinator Barry). Through the cluster with St. Anthony, Garden Plain, the parish also benefits from joint religious education and youth ministry programs.
- Weekly parish bulletins (online)
- Daily Mass readings posted online
- Altar server ministry (with summer training)
- Cluster-wide youth ministry and religious education (via St. Anthony, Garden Plain)
- Stewardship and parish announcements shared across the cluster
Visit & Location
The church sits in the heart of the unincorporated hamlet of Aleppo in Garden Plain Township, north of the town of Garden Plain in western Sedgwick County, Kansas. The parish's tall steeple is a landmark visible from a great distance across the surrounding flat farmland. The site includes the church, a community building to the south and west (built around the time the school was demolished in 1986), and a gravel parking lot on the former school grounds to the west.
- 25741 W. 13th St. N., Garden Plain, KS 67050
- (316) 531-2662
- [email protected]
- Website: office40283.wixsite.com/stmaryaleppo
- Also linked from stanthonygardenplain.com/st-mary-home-page.html
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Loevenich1890s (founding era)
Early founding pastor who encouraged the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother to staff the school and is credited with choosing the name 'Aleppo' from an atlas.
- Father Manz
Predecessor to Father Siebrandt.
- Father Siebrandt
Persuaded school district authorities to close Schools 37 and 73 and consolidate students at St. Mary's.
- Father Colin Boor
Pastor at the time of the 2015 Chapman Center study of the parish.
- Reverend H. Setterthrough June 30, 2025
Served as pastor of St. Mary, Aleppo (and St. Anthony, Garden Plain); concluding assignment July 1, 2025, remaining as Pastor of St. Anthony.
- Reverend Joseph M. Gileeffective July 1, 2025
Appointed Pastor of St. Mary, Aleppo, concluding his role as Associate Director of the St. Joseph House of Formation; remains spiritual director for the House of Formation.