The following is based on accounts from Marjorie Reade, a Lakewood resident from 1947 to 2010 and a founder of the Sister Lakes Association.

The three Sister Lakes, two of which are within Dolph Park, are small kettle lakes left from the glacial period 12,000 years ago. The third lake is in Saginaw Forest, a quarter mile or so to the west off of W. Liberty Rd., which is owned by the University of Michigan and used as a research station.

Lakewood Subdivision was developed by Ray Dolph, who purchased the area from the Allmendinger family in 1925 and installed two wells, a water tower, and a sewer system with septic field. It was divided into 287 lots, with the Dolphs taking a large lot over looking First Sister Lake. Twenty-six homes were started in 1928, but the crash in 1929 stopped any further development. In a subsequent year, the state of Michigan forbade further building development using septic fields and so further development halted until the subdivision was annexed to the City of Ann Arbor in 1953.

Ray dedicated the lakes and the land around the lakes as park land for the subdivision. He lovingly cared for the two Sister Lakes in the neighborhood, stocking them with fish and putting a pump in First Sister Lake to enrich its oxygen content. Shortly after the neighborhood annexation, Ray became terminally ill. His widow, Olive, then made a gift of the park to the city. At a dedication ceremony, the city honored Olive and named the park lands around the lakes Dolph Park.

When the time came when it was necessary to pave the roads and put in storm sewers, the neighbors learned too late that the city planned for the storm sewers to empty into the First and Second Sister Lakes. The storm drains went directly into the 60-foot deep lakes without the benefit of settling basins. In the years since, tons and tons of silt have washed into the lakes so that now they are now only 10 to 15 feet deep, and the water has spread into a third pond between the two lakes.

Soon after, a plan was proposed to turn the parkland around the lakes into an intensive recreation area with swings, ball parks, tennis courts, and other amenities. This time, the Lakewood residents were organized and a delegation of five neighbors took a petition signed by every neighborhood resident to City Council and to the City Administrator, asking that the park be left a natural area. Marjorie Reade recalled the head of the Parks Department, George Owers, said to the group, “We don’t know what to do. No group of citizens has come before us like this.”

With a start in activism and community action, the neighbors officially organized into the Sister Lakes Conservation Association (later the Sister Lakes Association), wrote by-laws, elected officers, and was recognized at the state level by the Department of Natural Resources.

The City of Ann Arbor eventually made Dolph Park a Special Use Park Area (Wildlife Sanctuary and Conservation Area) after many conferences with residents. One dock was built on First Sister Lake, wood chip paths were laid out, and lake overlooks established with several benches. The park is well used throughout all four seasons, especially by bird watchers.

After several studies on lake health, it was understood that suspended salt in the water prevents the lake waters from turning over and the normal breeding process for fish, amphibians, and more in the lake. These studies helped convince the city to not use salt on neighborhood streets in the winter and helped inform residents to be cautious using fertilizers and weed killers to limit contaminants in the runoff.

In early 2018, the City Planning Commission approved the Lockwood of Ann Arbor Site Plan for a three-story senior independent living facility on the 3.50-acre parcel located at 3365 Jackson Avenue. Beth Collins coordinated efforts to disseminate information to neighbors and opportunities to comment on it. Many Sister Lakes neighbors responded, voicing concerns the plan would severely harm the community. City Council considered and eventually rejected the proposal.

Inspired by the Lakewood Book Club reading On Being Mortal by Atul Gawande, Jean Long suggested creating a group to support those who are aging in place in our neighborhood. In 2019, the Lakewood Support Network (LSN) was established by founding members Jean Long, Sue Cartman, Carol Hovey, Barb Eagle, Pat Jessup, Lynn Nybell, Annie Rose, Beth Collins, and Priscilla Cheever. The group began holding regular monthly meetings and even hosted a speaker from the Area Association on Aging. With the outbreak of Covid-19 in March 2020, the group moved their meetings online using Zoom.

Given ongoing neighborhood concerns—including street deterioration, maintenance of the rain garden designed to improve water quality in First Sister Lake, and the Gelman cleanup—LSN members decided to attempt re-energizing and supporting the Sister Lakes Association. The contact lists generated by the Lakewood Support Network, efforts to respond to Lockwood, and concerns regarding the Gelman cleanup were consolidated. Neighbors were called to establish a volunteer Board with the purpose of guiding the first year’s efforts.

Beginning in May 2020, the volunteer Board began meeting monthly. Board members included Pat Jessup (President), Matt Naud (First Vice President), Lynn Nybell (2^nd Vice President), Ariel Ryan (Secretary), Beth Collins (Treasurer), and Jason Chaput, Annie Rose, Barb Eagle, Carol Hovey, and Lenny Kafka. In 2021, Annie Rose and Lenny Kafka resigned (after making important contributions) and Therese Perlowski and Jim Osborn were appointed to fill those seats. In February 2021, the Board voted to approve revised bylaws and sought approval from the Sister Lakes Association members, who voted and approved them on April 22, 2021.

And here we are, today, with many special interest groups and initiatives in the pipeline to make our neighborhoods and community a welcoming place for all.

The revived Sister Lakes Association and its Board are actively looking to include more neighbors in our efforts to improve and enrich our community.

We would love to see you at our monthly Board meetings and at the other special interest group events that fill our calendar (see Upcoming Events page).

If you would like more information on how to join any of these efforts or events, please reach out to us at a2sisterlakes@gmail.com.