Stone Head Nature Preserve
~ by Paige Langenderfer
Mike Kelley describes the 122-acre Stone Head Nature Preserve, with its heavily wooded ridge tops and gently sloping terrace, as an unfinished novel. Each day reveals another chapter in its geologic history, but there are many more pages to write.
This story began many years ago when, as a young boy, Kelley fell in love with nature. On walks on his uncle’ s 40-acre property in Decatur, Indiana, Kelley developed an appreciation for plants, animals, and insects. In a high school zoology class, he was introduced to and fell in love with bird watching.
16 Our Brown County • Nov./ Dec. 2015
“ It was then that I became hooked on the game of watching birds,” Kelley said.“ I dreamed of someday having my own private wooded trails where I could enjoy my admiration for‘ odd birds.’”
But nature is much more than a hobby to Kelley.
“ It inspires me such that I tell people my church has trees and offers shade to those who seek it, even the logger who scars it in exchange for monetary gain,” he said.“ I worship there almost daily, in total awe of the many wonders of life.”
After a career as an orthodontist, Kelley and his wife Jan were able
Mike Kelley at Stone Head. Courtesy photos
to make his dream come true, purchasing the 122 acres that now make up the Stone Head Nature Preserve.
Kelley bought the land, not only to enjoy the beautiful scenery, but also to preserve the land in its original splendor.
“ Like all the different cells of a human body working in a coordinated fashion to make up the individual, I believe that all of nature is functioning together as one big organism called life. We all need each other for ultimate survival,” he said.“ The ego of man has us thinking of ourselves as superior to the rest of nature when