When an ice storm struck northern Michigan, Empire Township resident David Noonan, along with a dozen volunteers from the Michigan Maple Syrup Association, went to the aid of maple syrup farmers in the Posen area who were devastated by the storm.
Noonan is an avid crop and maple sap farmer who traveled to the northeast side of the state.
“You can’t imagine what it looks like. It’s like a tornado went through,” he said. “Trees were blown over, mainly the tops broke off and the limbs ... There was a lot of them that did get back in business, but there’s some that got hurt so bad that they’ll probably never make maple syrup again.”
The northeast side of the state produces roughly a third of the state’s maple syrup production. As helpers spread across the area, David and others helped farmers with as many as 5,000 to 14,000 taps.
For reference, Noonan has roughly 1,200 taps in Empire Township.
“There were not just maple syrup members; they were anybody who wanted to help,” David said. “Many of them don’t have power; they figure it’ll be another week, maybe two weeks before they have.”
For many people, maple syrup production is mainly a hobby that can be lucrative and provide a livelihood for small farmers.
Over 14 years ago, Noonan and his wife, Sandra, started diving into the ancient farming practice that has supported life on the peninsula for hundreds of years.
Some of Noonan’s maple forested lands are lined with blue tubes attached to a vacuum pump carefully placed on a slope with nearly six miles of line.
This year has been a record year for Noonan, with around 396 gallons of maple syrup produced. On average, they make 330 gallons per year.
Last year, they started on February 14 and finished by March 7. In 2025, they didn’t get started until March 7 and wrapped up last week.
“This is more normal ... It’s about five to six weeks. It’s been a good year for us,” Noonan said. “It all depends on the sugar content.”
Making a gallon of maple syrup takes 40 to 46 gallons of maple sap.
“The thing with maple syrup is that years ago, it was the first crop that the farmers got ... It’s almost like a disease because you just can’t stay away from it once you get started. It’s amazing how you can take something out of a tree, boil it, and make a preserve, and it’s all-natural. There’s no additives ... It’s just like honey with bees, you can’t get anything more natural than honey or maple syrup ... It’s just pure sweetness.”
Noonan mainly sells the syrup called “D&D Farms” to local restaurants, but it can be purchased at 2801 W. Armstrong Rd., Empire Township.
Noonan’s grandfather moved to Leelanau in 1917 after migrating from Pennsylvania and Chicago.
His father, Glen M. Noonan, began farming on the peninsula when he returned from World War II. He served in the Merchant Marines. He was gone for about a year before meeting David’s mother, Ella, in Oregon.
“They came back here and started farming. Ever since then, my brother (Roger) and I went in partnership with my dad, and we farmed together until he passed away (in 2014). Then we split up kind of went our own ways ... he still has cattle, and I have cattle, and we help each other out when we can,” Noonan said.
Noonan’s father passed away 11 years ago, and he admits it hasn’t been easy since.
“He taught us a lot, but he always taught us to always look ahead and keep going,” Noonan said.
David raises corn, oats, rye, and hay on about 800 acres, with more than half of that being corn (470 acres), hay (150 acres), oats (60 acres), and rye (60 acres).
“The sad part is that there’s not many of us left, but we’re lucky we have our sons. Hopefully, they’ll take over and keep going,” Noonan said.
The Noonans are getting ready to plant oats in the next week or so as the weather is expected to reach the 60s.
The original farmhouse property of the Noonans was named “Barn of the Year”’ in 2017.
“We applied for it two or three different times, and finally, my wife (Sandra) was about ready to give up, and they called us and said, no, apply one more time. And we did and got barn of the year,” David said.
He reports that they recently replaced a portion of the barn’s roof that is still used to store a large amount of hay, straw, and cattle.
