Why Our Maple Syrup

In 2011, Gary Shepherd stood on a piece of land most people had written off. The fields were tired. The buildings had seen better days. But the land had a story—and Gary knew it wasn’t finished being told.

The only farm to foreclose on a bank

Years earlier, this farm had played an unexpected role in Michigan history, serving as winter housing for the Mackinac Island horses. When times got tough, the previous owners fell into foreclosure. The bank took possession… and then failed to pay the property taxes. In a twist almost too strange to make up, Gary ended up foreclosing on the bank itself & purchased the entire farm at an auction, claiming the land and giving it a second chance.

What caught Gary’s attention wasn’t the buildings or the boundaries—it was the trees. Maple trees everywhere. He had always been curious about making maple syrup, and walking among those maples felt like an invitation.

With a background in farming and machine repair, Gary rolled up his sleeves and got to work. Piece by piece, the land was brought back to life through grit, persistence, and long days that didn’t end when the sun went down. This wasn’t about shortcuts—it was about doing things the right way.

Just as important as the work was the man behind it. Gary’s easygoing, outgoing nature made the farm feel welcoming from the very beginning. Around town, he became known as the guy who would stop what he was doing to help a neighbor—no questions asked.

Bonz Beach Farms was born in 2011 not from a business plan, but from hard work, curiosity, and a deep respect for the land and the people around it.

In 2013, Bonz Beach Farms crossed an important threshold: the sugarbush officially came to life.

Bonz Beach Sugar Bush Launched

After years of observing the maples, learning the process, and putting in the groundwork, Gary tapped the trees for the first true syrup season on the farm. It wasn’t theoretical anymore. Sap flowed. Evaporators ran. Long hours turned into something tangible.

That first season yielded 30 gallons of pure maple syrup.

By commercial standards, it wasn’t massive—but to the farm, it was monumental. Each gallon represented learning curves, cold mornings, late nights, and the satisfaction that comes only when effort turns into results. The sugarbush wasn’t just an idea anymore—it was real, productive, and proven.

These first few years, all maple syrup was made using a wood-fired evaporator... years later an all-natural gas evaporator made its way to the farm an skyrocketed efficiency and quality of product.

More than the number itself, 2013 marked the moment Bonz Beach Farms became a working maple operation, rooted in patience, craftsmanship, and respect for the process. The land had spoken—and syrup was the answer.

In 2017, Bonz Beach Farms reached a milestone that marked a clear turning point: the first recorded 1,000-gallon maple syrup season.

This wasn’t luck, and it wasn’t overnight. It was the result of years spent learning the trees, refining the process, and putting in the kind of work that rarely gets noticed outside the sugarhouse. Season after season built toward this one.

A Maturing Operation

Crossing the 1,000-gallon mark didn’t just mean more syrup—it meant the operation had matured. Systems were working. The sugarbush was performing. The farm had moved from early production into a truly established maple operation.

For those involved, 2017 wasn’t about bragging rights. It was quiet confirmation that the effort, patience, and respect for the craft were paying off—one gallon at a time.

In the fall of 2019, Bonz Beach Farms faced the greatest challenge in its history.

West Nile Virus

While driving his father, Lee Shepherd, to his winter home in Yuma, Arizona, Gary contracted West Nile Virus—a rare and devastating illness that struck quickly and without warning.

>> Read the story from MaryFreeBed.com

After returning to Michigan, flu-like symptoms appeared, then worsened. What followed was a cascade of hospital stays, severe neurological complications, surgery, intubation, and ventilation. Over the course of 65 days in three different hospitals, Gary fought for his life.

Around Christmas of 2019, Jeff Shepherd went to visit Uncle Gary in the hospital. Gary had been debilitated—barely able to move, barely responsive. But when he saw Jeff’s face, everything changed. A smile spread from ear to ear. And then, against all expectations, Gary sat up in bed on his own. It was a moment of hope no one in the room would ever forget.

And on January 8th, 2020 — Uncle Gary finally stepped outside that hospital and made his way back home. Just a few weeks ahead of the COVD-19 pandemic.

>> Read the Full Story from the Presque Isle Advance

How The Farm Stayed Alive

While Gary was hospitalized, the farm never stopped... all because a group of incredible people refused to let it.

Dave Morgan & Sue Madden stepped forward and carried the weight. They didn’t treat the work like a favor or a temporary duty. They operated Bonz Beach Farms and the sugarbush as if it were their own.

Gary's 3 daughters: Heather Beyerlein, Misty Shepherd, and Amber Anders had no choice but to step up to the plate and begin making extremely tough decisions while they themselves were preparing for (what they thought) what would be the loss of their father.

Heather corralled the finances to ensure a smoothly run operation, Misty insisted that syrup would be produced this year and rounded up help to get the 2020 season's trees tapped and ready to go, and Amber took the reigns to make some of the most difficult medical decisions on behalf of their Dad.

Elmer Shepherd and Tyler Shepherd made the trip 3 hours north (from Hemlock) & spent 3 sun-up to sundown days in the woods to get all the old taps cut off the lines so that fresh, new taps could be put on for the upcoming season.

It didn't stop there — even more of these selfless, goodhearted people stepped into the ring to ensure a productive season was had.

• Wayne Tucker
• Bill Dymond
• Jim Dymond
• Steve & Tammy Grandstaff
• Tom Zemke

The entire Onaway community in some way lent a hand and graciously offered their time to help make this comeback a reality.

Through grit, long days, and selfless leadership, these fine folks kept the operation running during its most uncertain season.

And its because of this formidable group of incredible humans, Bonz Beach Farms and Sugar Bush didn’t just survive...

It thrived.

2019 was not defined by production totals or expansion. It was defined by resilience, friendship, and the strength of people who showed up when it mattered most.

It remains one of the most powerful seasons in the farm’s story. One that we all can learn from.

In March of 2020, like countless small businesses across the country, Bonz Beach Farms faced a moment that required difficult but necessary decisions.

Each spring, the farm looked forward to welcoming the public into the sugarbush during maple syrup season—an open house that allowed people to see syrup being made in real time, smell the steam rising from the evaporator, and connect directly with the people behind the product. It was a short, special window each year, and one the community deeply valued.

COVID-19 Coronavirus

But COVID-19 changed everything.

At the heart of the maple operation was a top-notch boiling crew, many of whom were in their mid-70s—experienced, dedicated, and irreplaceable. Protecting them, along with the broader community, became the clear priority.

In March 2020, Bonz Beach Farms made the difficult decision to cancel its open house for the remainder of the season, limiting public interaction during a time of widespread uncertainty.

The farm continued operating. Syrup was still made. Food was still produced. But the way business was done shifted overnight.

Like many small farms and family-run operations, Bonz Beach Farms had to adapt—learning how to serve customers without the face-to-face connection that had always defined it. The pandemic reshaped how people gathered, how businesses operated, and how communities supported one another.

The decision to close the doors temporarily was not made lightly. It was made out of care—for the crew, for neighbors, and for the belief that doing the right thing mattered more than doing the easy thing.

The years that followed demanded flexibility, patience, and resilience. For Bonz Beach Farms, COVID-19 became another chapter that reinforced a core truth: this farm has always been guided by people first—before profit, before tradition, before convenience.

In 2021, Bonz Beach Farms continued a multi-year and one of its most meaningful efforts yet: a large-scale reforestation project focused on sugar maple trees.

Major Reforestation Project

Guided by a simple belief—the best day to plant a tree was yesterday, the second best is today—the farm committed time, labor, and land to rebuilding the forest itself.

Over the course of the project (that actually began in 2019), well over two thousand (2,000+) sugar maple trees were planted across the property, with Uncle Gary's famous lore remembering the effort as closer to three thousand (3,000) trees in total.

This was not a symbolic gesture. It was real work... planting, protecting, and committing land to trees that take 20–25 years to mature. A portion of the project was supported by funding from the Department of Agriculture, recognizing its role in strengthening forests and reducing the long-term impacts of climate change.

Those involved understood something important from the beginning: the people planting these trees would likely never sit in their shade or taste syrup made from their sap. And yet, they planted anyway.

This project was not about immediate return.

It was about stewardship.

It was about responsibility.

It was about leaving the land better than it was found.

In 2021, Bonz Beach Farms didn’t just produce from the forest.. it INVESTED in one, building a maple legacy meant for the next generation of syrup makers... before they even knew who they'd be.

In late March 2025, Northern Michigan was struck by one of the most severe winter events in recent memory—a historic ice storm that spread across the region from March 28 through March 30, 2025.

Northern Michigan's Catastrophic Ice Storm

Communities, farms, and small businesses throughout northern Lower Michigan felt its effects deeply.

View the regional storm impact overview

This storm wasn’t typical winter weather. Freezing rain coated everything in thick, heavy ice.

Power lines and trees snapped under the weight, leaving tens of thousands of homes and businesses without power and entire roads blocked by fallen limbs and debris.

Read coverage on storm damage and outages

Local authorities declared states of emergency, and resources from across the state were mobilized to respond and begin recovery efforts.

Official Michigan State Police emergency response summary

The damage was widespread and long-lasting:

• Power and communication infrastructure suffered extensive failures, leaving many without electricity or phone service for days.
  
  Michigan emergency infrastructure report
  
• Fallen trees and ice-covered roads made travel dangerous or impossible in many rural areas.
  
  Interactive damage map and story
  
• Cleanup and restoration continued for months as utility crews and volunteers worked to restore essential services.
  
  Bridge Michigan follow-up on long-term impacts
  

State and federal responses followed. Federal disaster assistance was approved for certain emergency and infrastructure repairs, though later appeals for expanded aid were denied.

FEMA decision and state appeal outcome

For Northern Michigan—and for farms rooted deeply in the land.. this storm was more than a weather event.

It was a reminder of both vulnerability and resilience, and of communities that came together in the face of extraordinary challenge.

In 2026, Bonz Beach Farms remained exactly what it had always been—a family farm—as it entered a new chapter under the leadership of Dr. Jeff Shepherd, nephew of founder Gary Shepherd.

Jeff didn’t arrive as an outsider or a buyer looking for land. He arrived as someone shaped by it.

A Family of Organic Growers

The son of Jerry and Debbie Shepherd, Jeff grew up on Shepherd Organic Farm LLC in Hemlock, Michigan, where farming wasn’t just work—it was identity. He comes from a long line of organic farmers who believe the soil should be treated like family, not a resource to be used up. That same stewardship runs deep throughout the Shepherd family. Jeff’s cousin Tyler Shepherd (son of Elmer and Nancy Shepherd) and his wife Hannah operate Shepherd Organic Produce and Poultry, carrying forward the same values with best-in-class farming practices rooted in care, responsibility, and respect for the land.

Dr. Jeffrey Shepherd, DVM

Jeff graduated from Hemlock High School, spent two years at Delta College, and went on to earn his veterinary degree from the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine, graduating in 2015. That same year, he joined the USDA FSIS, beginning his federal service in Hanford, California, working at Central Valley Meat (CVM). For five years, Jeff served on the ground—learning the realities of food systems, regulation, and public health firsthand.

U.S. Department of Agriculture

His dedication and leadership led to a promotion into the USDA APHIS division, where he supervised more than 20 veterinarians across the nation. That role brought him to Huntersville, North Carolina, a move that unexpectedly reunited him with family—living just half a mile from his Aunt Sally Shepherd, who had moved there more than 20 years earlier. For Jeff, it was a rare gift: serving nationally while being rooted locally.

The Homesteading Dream

In the fall of 2024, something shifted. Jeff began seriously dreaming of homesteading and returning to Northern Michigan, back to his home state and closer to the land. He toured several farms, but deal after deal fell through. Finally, he approached Uncle Gary—not with a plan, but with a question.

That conversation changed everything.

Gary shared that he, too, had been quietly thinking about an exit and retirement—but had no idea where to begin. In that moment, two paths collided in the best way possible. The farm could stay in the family. Gary could continue working the land he loved, on his terms. And Bonz Beach Farms could move forward in hands that understood both its history and its responsibility.

For Gary, it was peace of mind.
For Jeff, it was coming home.

And for Bonz Beach Farms, it was the continuation of a legacy—not replaced, but carried forward.