Stronger Than the Storm: Lin-Crest Dairy Farm
As always I believe that full disclosure and authenticity in what I share is necessary. One, for the readers, whoever they may be to be able to connect and trust me as food is a deeply personal choice and you should trust someone that is giving advice on this aspect of your life. And two, for myself, as I strive to create a platform that I can share what I believe to be true and what I am passionate about.
In that spirit, I want to share that the opportunity I had to meet Lisa Leach, who I will share more about below, and hear her story was truly a humbling experience. This story is unlike any I’ve done before. When I was first approached by Midwest Dairy about a project together my first thought was to connect with a mother/daughter dairy farm so I could interview coming from the angle of how food and farming shaped her and her daughter’s lives and relationship with food. With the Leaches I got so much more than just that.
Disclosure: This post was created in partnership with Midwest Dairy. I was compensated for my time. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for reading and your support of the partners that support The Tasty Balance!
On May 28th of this year, an EF4 tornado barreled through the Leach family dairy farm, Lin-Crest Farms. The subsequent damage to the farm has been life-changing.
When I arrived at the farm this December the environmental and structural destruction is still obvious. A line of sideways trees and broken limbs is the first sign of where the tornado made its path. Thankfully the family house is still standing although it was one of the only structures on the farm that avoided the tornado’s path.
Lisa and her husband, Rob, have lived on this farm since 1990 when they got married. Together they raised three daughters, operated a successful dairy operation, and bred championship-winning cattle. The farm had both Jersey and Holsteins. I admitted my ignorance about the different varieties of cows and Lisa explained to me that Jersey cows are smaller and brown and the Holsteins are the larger black and white cows that we typically picture when we think of a dairy farm. Jersey’s milk is also higher in butterfat. A Jersey cow’s milk is about 4.7% butterfat compared to 3.7% in milk from a Holstein.
The Leach’s award winning Jersey cow. This cow took home the 2019 National Jersey Jug Futurity award in Lexington, Kentucky earlier this year.
The Leaches also show their cattle. All three girls grew up participating in 4-H and competing in county and state fairs. And they did quite well as evidenced by the ribbons and various trophies displayed in the house. Lisa was not boastful in talking about their success in these competitions but visibly proud of her daughters and the cattle they helped raise.
I found it amazing to learn that the particular cow that won this competition was actually gifted to the Leaches in the aftermath of the tornado. The kindness and compassion from friends, neighbors, and even strangers does not stop there either but let’s backtrack to the day of the tornado.
On that afternoon Lisa was in the milking parlour milking the cows. Because of the design of the parlour, Lisa was slightly recessed below ground level and surrounded by concrete. This provided her more comfort when milking but also meant that her cell phone service was poor. At about 6:30 pm Rob came up to the parlor and warned Lisa that his storm tracker app was notifying him of a severe storm heading their way. Rob, Lisa, and Rob’s sister had about 25 minutes to prepare and get to the basement. All three of their daughters were out of town at the time.
The storm that had developed near Emporia, Kansas began tracking northeast and strengthened into an EF 4 tornado as it went right through Linwood, Kansas. Thirty minutes later the Leaches exited out of their house through the back door which turned out to be the only viable point of exit because of the damage. Before the structural damage could be surveyed the cows needed to be helped.
Finding the cow’s halters was the first challenge. The milking parlor that she was in just an hour before, was destroyed. “I had to walk some of the cows over the roof of that building that was now on the ground. We walked them over to a fence and tied them up because no one could get to us for two hours because the driveway was blocked.”
Another challenge was getting to the cows. Part of the preparation before the storm hit was to open fence gates to allow the cows to move from pasture to pasture to be able to avoid the path of the tornado if possible.
It was sometime during this process that Lisa had the chance to stop and look around at the damage. “It hit me when I looked over at my sister in law’s house. I can’t explain to you how different it was. There used to be a whole line of trees here. We couldn’t even see west.” The view now was of a completely leveled house.
At this point, the community rallied together to help. “Once the road was cleared around ten to twenty cows were lead out and there were already trucks and trailers waiting to take them. My daughter in Wisconsin made a call and we had more than enough trailers to help.”
Some of the cows were transferred to a veterinary clinic. “On the day of the tornado we had 124 cows, we lost 20 in the tornado due to injuries.”
Lisa and Rob’s daughters were able to make it back to the farm from Wisconsin a day later. “I think they were in shock when they got back. We still didn’t have electricity or running water. The next day they jumped right in to help.”
In the coming weeks and months, the community assistance continued and the generosity of others has not gone unnoticed by the Leaches. “We have not yet received a vet bill. We had people show up that we didn’t even know. The dairy community has been amazing. We have cows staying at nine different facilities while we rebuild.”
They had people come out to help with a variety of chores that needed to be done. One task stood out to me was the help of those that went up and down the driveway with magnets to pick up nails and other pieces of metal. “I had a few trips to the tire store this summer but nowhere near as much as I could have.”
What is apparent now is signs of rebuilding. The day I visited the farm the house was being painted, a new structure being built, and twenty-five calves have been born since the storm.
“We still need to build about four miles of fence. I live in terror that the calves are going to get out.”
One of the twenty five calves born since the tornado pokes her head through the fence to say hello.
When asked about how life is different now Lisa reflected, “I grew up on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania. Twice a day, every day it was milking time for my whole life so it is really different just having that time free and having to use it differently now.”
The Leaches will continue to rebuild. While they had hoped they would be further along almost six months after the storm they are thankful for this way of life and what it has given their family.
“The girls all have a great work ethic,” Lisa said. “They always helped me and were practically raised in the barn. The youngest I had one of them back with me milking after being born was about 10 days old. They have all said to me that a lot of their friends just don’t have an appreciation of where their food comes from or all the work that goes into getting food to the table.”
The Leaches will continue to rebuild and are a great example of the resiliency it requires to be farmers. To them dairy farming is more than just a way to make a living, it is the foundation that every other aspect of their lives are built on.
To find out more about the Leach’s and Lin-Crest Farms follow them on Facebook.
