“My grandad lived to be 102 years old. He lived with me when he died. He was sitting in the living room of our house, and he looked out the window holding a cup of coffee. It was a beautiful fall day, and he said, “I wish it could just stay like this forever.” And I said, ‘Grandaddy it will. It will.’ He didn’t know about the Foothills Land Conservancy, but I did so I am going to do my best to preserve it for the family. It’s just my turn to watch the farm. It’s not my farm – it’s just my turn to watch it.”

Mike Suttles is a 7th generation farmer in Sevier County, TN. He was incredibly fortunate to spend 40 years with his grandfather and 50 years with his father learning about the history and practices of the farm. Both instilled a deep pride for this property within Mike, which has been in his family for over 150 years. The farm also received a Tennessee Century Farm designation, which is part of a state-wide initiative to recognize individual farms owned by the same family for at least 100 years.

The Suttles family settled along Walden’s Creek in the mid-1800s, and their property’s deeds go back to the original land grants. Mike’s 206-acre Sevier County farm is one of the last remaining working farms and cattle producers in the Walden’s Creek valley, a quintessential and majestic East Tennessee area that’s adjacent to the fast-growing cities of Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg and Seymour. Just recently, Mike noticed that 24 small overnight cabins are being built that he can see from his property. Development is getting closer, but the farm has been under a conservation easement with FLC since 2009. This means the Suttles property is protected and stewarded forever.

“I realized early on that it was important for me to support the efforts of FLC in many ways, including through annual giving and service on the Board of Directors. Over the years, this organization has given me, my family and community the tools and resources we need to preserve our rural character,” Mike said.

(You can hear Mike share his story in our ‘Introduction to Foothills’ video series.)