Generous benefactor to Oracle State Park, James (Jimmy) Mikolitis
Sarah Rose Webber
The Generous Legacy of a Friend to Oracle State Park
Last fall I met a family who filled my heart with gratitude. “Over here, Mikolitis family!” a man named Mark boomed to 20 people in a room. When they gathered around, it grew quiet and he read these words: “He laughed at absurdity. He fought cruelty. He sought beauty. He was the best of men. Who now will feed his wild quail?”
In that instant, I got a glimpse at the character of James Mikolitis—or Uncle Jimmy to Mark and most of the family there. We gathered to celebrate his legacy and a place he believed in: Oracle State Park, a 4,000-acre wildlife refuge and environmental education center in the northern foothills of the Catalina Mountains.
Jimmy, a former SaddleBrooke resident, generously included Oracle State Park in his trust. A bequest is a rare thing at Arizona’s state parks. Our work is typically made possible only by park entry fees and volunteers like the local group Friends of Oracle State Park. Jimmy’s donation is special.
I invited his family to visit and experience what Jimmy did. The Mikolitis family members were in town to visit Jimmy’s brother Dan and his wife Sharon at their home in SaddleBrooke and to celebrate Thanksgiving and Dan’s 90th birthday!
Dan and Jimmy visited Oracle State Park in the past, but it was Jimmy’s service in the Army that first led him to Arizona. After being stationed at Fort Huachuca, the brothers purchased property together in SaddleBrooke.
The Mikolitis family—two generations of Jimmy’s nieces and nephews, children of Jimmy’s eldest brother Pete—told me of his generosity: from supporting their college tuition, caring for his mother to age 103, and his business partner Larry Krucoff, the author of the poem read at the beginning of our visit.
The family joined our park manager Sinda Sutton for a tour. I was struck by the number of similarities between the Kannally family, who first established this ranch in the early 1900s, and the Mikolitis family: both families’ roots in Illinois, their close sibling bond, and their love of art. Maybe Jimmy knew of these similarities. Or perhaps he simply saw the value in preserving this piece of Southern Arizona history for generations to come, which is exactly how his gift will support Oracle State Park.
If you’ve not visited this park, I invite you to come for a hike or for a docent-guided tour through the historic ranch house. Notice the bountiful quail on the patio and throughout the park. When you see their topknot feathers bobbing on the adobe wall or hear the covey’s calls, think of Jimmy, his generosity, and his legacy. We will feed his wild quail.
Arizona State Parks and Trails manages more than 30 beautiful parks across the state, like Oracle State Park. The agency is self-sustaining and receives no general fund taxpayer dollars for the operations of its parks, including staffing, maintenance, and programming. To make a donation to Arizona State Parks and Trails, visit AZStateParks.com/Donate.