When Anne Young and her recently departed husband Jim Nielson were named Cody Region Landowner of the Year recipients, she was surprised. She may have been the only one, considering the couple’s work with conservation of both their own properties and huge public access projects in Park County and around the state.

Wyoming Game and Fish Department biologists Laura Burckhardt and Tony Mong recommended the couple, saying their “tireless efforts for the wildlife and wild habitats in this area and across the state have made lasting positive impacts that will be recognized for many years,” in their nomination letter.

Both biologists have worked closely with Young and Nielson in conservation efforts of Sage Creek and surrounding habitat. The important waterway runs through one of two ranches Young still owns and manages, Sage Creek Ranch. The project, as well as a moose study they helped finance on their other property, True North Ranch, are lesser known projects to most folks around here, but were an extension of how they have attacked every conservation project, no matter the size; with open hearts and finances.

“Their commitment to working land stewardship has gone beyond their own properties and has filtered out through most of the area by their involvement in nearly every aspect of conservation in the Cody area,” the nomination letter continued.

Together, Young and Nielson were advocates and major donors to projects you might recognize. They were the founding members of The Nature Conservancy’s Wyoming chapter — their efforts and financial donations resulted in the conservancy’s purchase and development of the Heart Mountain Ranch Preserve, which is open to the public and attracts scientists, ranchers, outdoor enthusiasts and youth groups from across the world. The couple also purchased the land for Cody’s Canal Park and Young raised an additional $2 million for its transformation into the beautiful park, complete with amphitheater and walkways. It’s an important connector for downtown and surrounding “uptown” business and residential communities, Young said.

“I was really frustrated when they were building the Rec Center, because there was this horrible looking land next to where it was being built. It was a gravel pit and basically in just in terrible condition,” she said. “Now there’s a lot of people walking and enjoying the property all the time,” she said, beaming with pride.

Despite Nielson’s passing, Young has continued to open her land for conservation. In an attempt to help protect native mule deer populations from competition and higher chronic wasting disease rates from white-tailed deer, Young has partnered with WGFD local wardens, access coordinators and biologists to allow access to white-tailed hunting for over 60 hunters to harvest the species on her property. Without that access, very few white-tailed deer along Sage Creek would ever be harvested.

Young and Nielson were also commitment to conserving fertile agricultural lands, viewscapes and critical habitat for wildlife in the Cody Region for more than 30 years. Young is still committed to working with Park County Open Lands, the Absaroka Fence Initiate, and the Wyoming Outdoor Council. Young and Nielson were the founding members of The Nature Conservancy’s (TNC) Wyoming Chapter, instrumental in conserving nearly 300,000 acres in Wyoming through conservation easements; 20,000 acres of which are located in Park County.

“Their tireless efforts to conserve the biodiversity in the area, provide access and education programs to youth, and engage the community with this important resource have been unmatched by any,” Mong and Burckhardt wrote.

Young continues to be known for her passion, positive and humble attitude and ability to pull diverse groups together to implement critical conservation and management actions, the department said when presenting the award in a ceremony in Gillette in late September.

“I’m proud of the way I've taken care of the ranch,” she said, adding it was “a big honor” and fun traveling to Gillette where she met with Gov. Mark Gordon. But the greatest honor, she said, was being introduced to other landowner honorees in the state and hearing their stories.