About The Chapel at Beaver Creek (Interfaith Chapel) · Avon, Colorado
The Chapel at Beaver Creek — commonly called the Beaver Creek Interfaith Chapel — is a Roman Catholic mission chapel in Avon, Colorado, located at the base of the Beaver Creek ski mountain. It is one of the worship sites of St. Clare of Assisi Parish (Edwards), part of the Catholic Parishes of the Valley under the Archdiocese of Denver, and is served by the parish's priests alongside Deacon Gelasio Velasco. The building itself is an interfaith chapel owned by the Beaver Creek Religious Foundation and shared with Episcopal, Lutheran, Baptist, and Jewish congregations, and it is a popular weekend and weekday Mass site for Catholics living in and visiting the Vail Valley.
- Established
- 1987
- Patron
- St. Clare of Assisi (the Catholic congregation at the chapel is served through St. Clare of Assisi Parish, Edwards)
- Rector
- Fr. Jose Maria Quera (Pastor of the Catholic Parishes of the Valley)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Denver (Catholic presence served through St. Clare of Assisi Parish, Edwards — part of the Catholic Parishes of the Valley)
Why belong here
The Chapel at Beaver Creek offers Catholics in the Vail Valley a beautiful mountain setting for weekday and weekend Mass, with daily 8:00 a.m. Masses Monday through Friday and a Saturday Vigil at 4:30 p.m. plus Sunday Mass at 5:30 p.m. The Friday morning hour of Eucharistic Adoration from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. is paired with the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and the chapel is also a popular site for weddings in the Beaver Creek resort. As one of five Catholic worship sites in the Catholic Parishes of the Valley, it welcomes both full-time residents and the many seasonal visitors who come to ski and worship in the Rockies.
Mass times at The Chapel at Beaver Creek (Interfaith Chapel)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Friday 8:30–9:30 a.m. (during Adoration) at Beaver Creek Chapel
- By request after Mass at Beaver Creek Chapel
Adoration times
- Friday 8:30–9:30 a.m. at Beaver Creek Chapel
History of the Chapel at Beaver Creek
The Chapel at Beaver Creek was built in 1987 on a site donated by Vail Associates, Inc. (now Vail Resorts), nestled in a grove of Balsam trees at the base of the world-class Beaver Creek ski mountain. It was conceived from the start as an interfaith worship space — owned and operated by the Beaver Creek Religious Foundation, an interfaith community of clergy and lay representatives from its member congregations. Designed by Zehren and Associates of Avon at a cost of roughly $1.3 million, it has served Catholics in the Vail Valley through St. Clare of Assisi Parish and has become one of the most photographed mountain wedding venues in Colorado.
- Built 1987
- Site donated by Vail Associates (now Vail Resorts)
- Architect: Zehren and Associates
- Owner: Beaver Creek Religious Foundation
- Construction cost: ~$1.3 million
Architecture & Building Features
The chapel is a Neo-Norman (Norman Revival) design by Zehren and Associates, built to evoke timelessness and lasting construction. Rough-faced stone walls, a slatelike roof, and round-arched windows with clear glass give the exterior its ecclesiastical character, while an off-center bell tower and a large creekside deck anchor the site. Inside, golden oak pews and a peaked ceiling with exposed beams define a simple nave. The sanctuary is famously anchored by a novel baptismal font — a Jacuzzi bordered by large slabs of native stone.
- Neo-Norman / Norman Revival style
- Rough-faced stone, oak, glass
- Round-arched windows, slatelike roof, off-center bell tower
- Jacuzzi baptismal font bordered by native stone slabs
- Creekside deck
The Interfaith Foundation & Member Congregations
The Beaver Creek Religious Foundation is an interfaith community that owns and operates the chapel; it is currently composed of five member congregations, each represented on the Board of Directors by a clergy member and a lay representative. Operations are funded through donor generosity and through wedding and facility-use fees. The Foundation's mission is to bring people of different faiths together in a shared worship space while honoring and respecting different beliefs and traditions.
- Roman Catholic — St. Clare of Assisi (Fr. Jose Maria Quera, Pastor)
- Episcopal — Church of the Transfiguration (Fr. Brooks Keith; Fr. Mike Thomas)
- Baptist — Trinity Church (Kurt Pressler, Pastor)
- Lutheran — Mount of the Holy Cross Lutheran
- Jewish — B'nai Vail Congregation
Catholic Parishes of the Valley
The Chapel at Beaver Creek is the Beaver Creek worship site of the Catholic Parishes of the Valley, a cluster of Catholic communities in Eagle County under the Archdiocese of Denver. The parish office is at St. Clare of Assisi in Edwards, and Beaver Creek Chapel is formally a mission of that parish (per GCatholic).
- St. Clare of Assisi — Edwards (parish office, 31622 US Hwy 6)
- St. Mary — Eagle (215 Capitol Street)
- St. Patrick — Minturn
- Vail Interfaith Chapel — Vail
- Beaver Creek Interfaith Chapel — Avon
Clergy & Staff
Catholic worship at Beaver Creek Chapel is served by the priests of the Catholic Parishes of the Valley, with Fr. Jose Maria Quera as Pastor. Parishioners at Beaver Creek can also reach Fr. Joe Bui directly by phone or text at (720) 496-1956, including for sacramental emergencies. Deacon Gelasio Velasco coordinates Religious Education and the Hispanic Ministry across the parishes. Liturgical coordination for the Beaver Creek site itself is handled by Nancy Clarke.
- Fr. Jose Maria Quera — Pastor
- Fr. Jesus Murillo — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Joe Bui — Parochial Vicar (720-496-1956, [email protected])
- Fr. Irek Kuźmicki — Parochial Vicar (970-446-1099)
- Deacon Gelasio Velasco — Religious Education & Hispanic Ministry
- Nancy Clarke — Beaver Creek Chapel Liturgical coordinator (970-390-1995)
Liturgical Ministries at Beaver Creek Chapel
Parishioners from Beaver Creek Chapel serve in the liturgy as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, Altar Servers, Music Ministers, and Ushers. Liturgical coordination at Beaver Creek is provided by Nancy Clarke, who serves as the on-site contact for these ministries at the chapel.
- Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion — Nancy Clarke (970-390-1995, [email protected])
- Altar Servers — open to boys and girls who have made First Communion and are in third grade or older
- Music Ministry
- Ushers
Parish-Wide Ministries & Faith Formation
While the chapel itself is a relatively small worship site, Beaver Creek parishioners are part of the wider Catholic Parishes of the Valley and participate in a full slate of ministries and faith-formation programs coordinated across the cluster. These include the RCIA/OCIA process for adults becoming Catholic, ongoing Religious Education, the parish youth group, the Knights of Columbus, a food pantry, and a Hispanic Ministry that serves the large Spanish-speaking Catholic population of the Vail Valley.
- RCIA / OCIA (Becoming Catholic) — coordinated by Fr. Joe Bui
- Religious Education — coordinated by Deacon Gelasio Velasco
- Youth Group — Wednesdays at St. Clare (Edwards), Fridays in Eagle
- Knights of Columbus — parish council
- Food Pantry — outreach ministry
- Hispanic Ministry (Ministerio Hispano) — Carmen Fragozo
Weddings & Facility Use
The Chapel at Beaver Creek is one of the most popular wedding venues in the Vail Valley, set against the slopes of Beaver Creek Mountain and surrounded by Balsam trees. Chapel operations are funded in significant part through wedding and other facility-use fees, which help sustain the interfaith Foundation's ministry to both residents and resort guests.
- Wedding venue at the base of Beaver Creek Mountain
- Bookings and calendar on the chapel's official website
- Operations partly funded through wedding and facility-use fees
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Jose Maria Queracurrent
Pastor of the Catholic Parishes of the Valley (St. Clare, St. Mary, St. Patrick, Beaver Creek and Vail interfaith chapels); listed as pastor in the 2024 parish bulletin.