Kait Springsdorf didn’t plan to stay when she came up to Glen Arbor in 2020 for a summer job. Six years, a fiance, a dog and a new job later, she isn’t planning on going anywhere.
“I always envisioned myself growing up here, like moving up here, being here,” Springsdorf said. “And it’s kind of crazy to see that come to fruition.”
She grew up downstate in Owosso, as a self described “stubborn, lively, happy kid” who could just as easily be found playing outside among the trees as twirling around in a dress and heels. Summers spent visiting family friends in Frankfort planted the love of northern Michigan early and got her dreaming of maybe one day calling the region home.
She studied parks, recreation and tourism at Michigan State University (MSU), drawn to the idea of sustainable tourism that extends beyond simply bringing visitors to an area.
“How can you help a small town with sustainable tourism, not just through the environment, but year round…for people to enjoy where they live,” she said. “Like, when was the last time you were up in Northport just to visit?”
Just out of college, in June of 2020 Springsdorf and a few of her classmates found summer jobs in Glen Arbor. While her friends got positions at the Crystal River Outfitters Kayak Livery, she poured wine on the M-22 patio. By the end of the summer, she was offered a position as the event and wine manager and eventually became the manager of the store.
That summer also introduced her to her fiance, Ross Guilbeau, whose brother had worked at Crystal River and introduced the two of them at booth five at Art’s Tavern.
Looking back, Springsdorf said the experience at M-22 helped her discover that she enjoyed more than simply working in hospitality, she loved helping people make the most of their time in Leelanau.
“Some of my greatest experiences there were helping people plan their trip,” she said. “Just helping them find wineries to go to next, or just really helping people have a good experience while they’re up here and a memorable one so they want to come back.”
That skill and interest in connecting people to northern Michigan has remained a common thread through Springsdorf’s life. This year, she joined Sleeping Bear Forever, formerly known as Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear, as its first programs and events coordinator. Her biggest project so far has been helping to launch the organization’s new Folk & Field School which teaches and breathes new life into practical traditional skills and crafts such as basket weaving and leather work.
Working at the intersection of community, tourism, history and conservation was a natural fit for someone that grew up around living history. Springsdorf’s mother was the executive director of the Steam Railroading Institute in Owosso, where she grew up watching people dedicate themselves to preserving historic railways and engines, including the Pere Marquette 1225 steam locomotive featured in “The Polar Express.”
“That’s another thing I’m passionate about too, is history and connecting it to the future. You had these men fixing up this 1940 steam train that could’ve just been a pile of rubble,” Springsdorf said. “And with this new job, it’s amazing to see these people’s passion for wanting to preserve traditional trades.”
The Folk & Field School is not the only way Springsdorf has found herself working to preserve what makes the area special. Her years working in the heart of Glen Arbor have also given her opportunities to become involved in ways like being a former member of the Glen Lake Chamber of Commerce. She is also a founding member of the Glen Arbor Beautification Committee, which helped plant trees toward the town’s Tree City USA designation, a perfect fit for someone who readily admits, “I just really love trees.”
“This is an amazing community,” she said. “And the thing is, it doesn’t just stop at the end of November or October. This is a year-round community full of very passionate and hard working people that come together for the love of the community. It always feels like home.”
When she can, Springsdorf tries to still be a tourist. She’ll head off with her dog Archie, to a different town with no plan but to explore. But even after six years, she said it can be easy to take the place she once dreamed of for granted.
“Sometimes I just need to go for a walk in the woods to have a refresher,” she said. “To go to the water and touch Lake Michigan and remember, ‘Oh wow, this is my backyard’.”
In a way, Springsdorf has become the type of tourist she imagined when she was studying sustainable tourism at MSU someone who doesn’t just visit a place, but takes the time to know it.
“It’s crazy to think that six years ago, in 2020, I came up here for a fun summer job and never left,” she said.
