384 Sybil Kolon: A Lifelong Commitment to Legacy and Conservation

For nearly fifty years, Sybil Kolon has devoted herself to protecting 79 acres of family land in Michigan’s Irish Hills. Originally owned by her grandparents, the property was placed under option with Legacy Land Conservancy in 1976 with the hope that it would someday become a nature preserve.

Now 72, Sybil spent her childhood exploring the farm’s woods and fields, developing a lifelong love of nature. After attending Michigan Tech and Michigan State University, she returned to live on the land with her husband, building a home there in 1983. Over time, she became the family’s caretaker of the property and felt deeply responsible for preserving it for future generations.

In 2015, Sybil and her husband created a living trust with Legacy Land Conservancy to ensure the land would eventually become a preserve. But Sybil decided there was no reason to wait. She began working to transform the property into a public nature preserve during her lifetime, including carefully deconstructing the old farmhouse so its materials could be salvaged and reused.

In June 2025, Iron Creek Preserve officially opened to the public.

Today, Sybil is leading yet another conservation effort after nearby land was sold to a gravel mining company, threatening both the preserve and surrounding wildlife habitat. What began as a personal commitment to family land has become a larger mission of environmental stewardship and community advocacy.

"Taking care of the land is important — but we have to take care of each other, too.” - Sybil Kolon

CONNECT WITH SYBIL:

Email: sybil.kolon@gmail.com

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