Kilby Cream
We All Scream for Kilby Cream!
“Keeps the kids in, flies out,” Bill Kilby says as a wry smile unfurls at the corner
of his mouth from beneath a thick salt and pepper beard. He’s referencing the wind
curtain above the doorway to the Kilby Cream scoop shop in Cecil County. Phyllis Kilby
sits to his left and periodically arises to hug a familiar patron, check in with her
employees behind the counter, or smile at a young face with ice cream dribbling down
his/her chin. Community is big here, and mom and pop are never far from their mom and
pop shop.
The Kilbys have also played a large role in land conservation. They’ve farmed
everywhere from North Carolina to Pennsylvania before settling in Cecil County in 1961.
Since then, the world grew up around them while they continued working the land.
Realizing the importance of open space, Bill and Phyllis became involved in land trusts
and put their first conservation easement on their land in 2005, and have since added two
more easements, ensuring the land and the surrounding open space will be protected
forever.
With approximately 40 employees, most of them being family, the Kilbys have
their hands full between running the farm and the business. Bill manages the farm and
oversees the operations while Phyllis and one of their daughters, Megan, takes care of the
ice cream, milk, events and other business matters. While the Kilbys have been dairying
for over 100 years, the ice cream business just turned 10 in July and was commemorated
with the community and ice cream lovers of all ages. One thing they all agree on, the
Kilbys make darn good ice cream.
They farm the old fashioned way. The herd consists of just around 800 Jersey and
Holstein cows for a richer and creamier product. The cows are primarily grass fed (and
supplemented with corn and grain) and milked daily. The milk is bottled and delivered to
stores and doorsteps, bringing back a long forgotten tradition, the Kilby’s promise “from
moo to you in 24 to 36 hours” and delivery is via a traditional milk truck, the “Moo
Mobile,” a homage to the animal that began and sustains Kilby Cream.
Bill and Phyllis are celebrating 50 years together next year bringing truth to the
adage “the family that farms together stays together.” Their kids and grandkids all have a
part to play in their family owned and run farm. Wednesday nights at Kilby Cream are a
particularly fun sight. Crave Eatery food truck rolls in and serves up hot food to patrons.
Parents lounge on picnic tables while kids romp around the farm themed jungle gym or
gingerly approach the animal pen and gaze at the ponies just beyond the fence before
sprinting barefoot in the grass back to mom for another lick of a freshly scooped cone.
Community is big here. And summer evenings at Kilby Cream will always look just like
this. The little girl spinning in circles, eyes to the sky with blue cookie monster ice cream
smeared from her forehead down to her pink summer dress can, one day, bring her
children here and watch them enjoy the sweet treat that has brought families and
communities together for generations past and generations to come.
Protecting Land Forever
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