Support Forrest Foster's Return to Dairy Farming

Forrest Foster, a dairy farmer for almost 50 years, wants to get back to milking cows. Last fall he was forced to sell his cows because his dilapidated barn was no longer insurable, and repairing the barn would be prohibitively expensive.

But Forrest has a plan. He intends to take down the old structure and rebuild a new 40'x60' barn on the old foundation. In the old barn, Forrest had to squat or kneel to reach the cow's teats, then haul heavy pails of milk to a dumping station. The new barn will be set up with a modified milk parlor, which will enable Forrest to milk from a standing position, and he won’t have to lug the milk. This will enable him to continue milking for many years to come.

Taking down the old barn, rebuilding it, and installing a milk parlor will cost about $30,000. If this sounds like a relatively small amount for such a big project, that's because a group of Amish farmers will be helping in exchange for some of the barn materials they can salvage, and Forrest will do the rest of the work himself, with the help of family, friends and neighbors. The metal roofing from the old barn will be re-used on the new barn, and much of the lumber will come from Forrest's woods and milled at a local sawmill. He will need to purchase the roof trusses, which will be fabricated at a nearby lumber yard, and rent a lift and an excavator. The final expense will be for the milk parlor equipment. If there are funds left over after the project is completed, it will go towards the purchase of cows to replenish Forrest's herd.

Forrest has already applied for and received a $5,000 grant from the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA). We are hoping to raise the remainder through this fundraiser.

We recognize there’s a lot of fear about what’s to come for the country, and we’re all trying to figure out what to do that can be useful. We also realize that it's a hard time to ask for money with so much uncertainty about the economy. But one thing we know for certain is that the world is a better place when Forrest Foster is milking cows in it.

Your contributions are hugely appreciated.

To hear more about the barn project, listen to Erica Heilman's latest Rumble Strip episode, A New Old Barn for Forrest Foster.

To learn more about Forrest, have a listen to these earlier podcasts:

Forrest Foster Independent Dairyman

Forrest and I Sit in the Truck and Talk about Pain

Forrest Lays Karen to Rest

Forrest is Getting Done For Now

Thank you so much,

Steve Gorelick and Erica Heilman