Carlwood Farm LLC

We trace our American farming roots to Doug’s grandfather, who immigrated from Sweden, and purchased a plot of land near Canaan in the early 20th century. Eventually Doug’s father of the same name would purchase his own plot, which would later become Carlwood Farm, and at the time only consisted of a single acre. In 1962, when Doug was just 16, his father passed away, and he took over the operation, helped by his mother Isabelle. Along with his wife Crystalle, he managed to grow and expand the farm. In recent years, he shared care of Carlwood with his daughter Sandy, who after working there all her life, had become a partner in the farm, making her dreams come true. Sandy now oversees every aspect of the business and lives the dairy farming dream with her 3 kids.

Though the farm started out with only one tillable acre and a herd of 20 cows, over the years Carlwood has grown. The farm now consists of 200 acres, and has more than 50 registered Holstein milkers, along with a handful of Jerseys.  Sheri, Rene and Ricky Boardman are Sandy's 3 children and they are now the 4th generation on Carlwood Farm.

We produce high-quality milk every single day, which we are all extremely proud of. Our facilities are not the most modern, but to us, that doesn’t matter. We’ve won quality awards from Agri-Mark nearly every year for the last 20 years. Consistently producing great milk for our consumers is what’s important. And family.

Sandy grew up in the barn, so it was easy for her to catch the eye of a young milk truck driver in the late 80's. In 1987, Sandy married the milk truck driver, Rick. Rick was also raised on a dairy farm in Sheffield, MA which later became a very successful small-scale fruit and vegetable farm after his parents sold their cows. Rick worked for his brother-in-law's forestry business and was a vital part of harvesting crops at the farm. Rick, unfortunately passed away in August 2018, and our family was crippled when Doug, known affectionately as Papa, passed away 10 days later.  Our family has come together stronger than ever in the last year, while Sandy and her kid's continue to live out the dairy farming dream. We're thankful for the small-town camaraderie that has helped us get back on our feet. 

 

- Sandy & Rick's oldest daughter Sheri, 30, has her Masters from Cornell and is an Agricultural Education teacher in New York. A common love for dairy farming led her to meet a nice farm boy from New York and she works part-time on his family's dairy farm, Maple-Downs Farm. Sheri currently owns numerous Holsteins on the farm. She enjoys traveling to shows all over the country assisting with the Lloyd's show cattle. Sheri also has an extensive list of shows at which she has judged, including the All-American Dairy Show in Harrisburg, PA. 

 

- Their younger daughter Rene, 28, is a graduate of SUNY Cobleskill and is working on her Master's Degree in Agricultural Education. She has recently become an Agricultural Educator in the community. She loves sharing her passion for everything agricultural with her students.  Rene introduced the very first "brown cow" to the barns of Carlwood in 2000 when she purchased her first Jersey calf named "Roxie" from neighbor-farmer and long time friend of the family, John Bottass.  Roxie was the cow that made Rene fall in love with the Jersey breed. And, a few months later, it was evident her love for these little brown cows had rubbed off on someone else- when Doug ventured over the hill one day with his own baby Jersey calf, also from John Bottass, on the front seat of his pickup truck! 

 

-Their son Ricky, 23, took over managing the fruit and vegetable farm stand operation from Rick's parents 5 years ago, and enjoys seeing the family farm remain prosperous. He has also started a small hay business. Ricky works part time on the dairy farm, and is a great asset to harvesting crops. He has acquired a handful of Jerseys over the years as well.  All 3 children have been showing dairy cattle since they could walk, and it's safe to say that they all share a love for Agriculture that has been passed down through many generations on both sides of their family tree. 

Doug shared with Sandy a passion for family, FFA and 4-H. Known for his golden voice, which he lent to a number of local fairs, Doug volunteered as a 4-H leader, was a life member of the Housatonic Valley FFA Alumni and was involved with the organizations ever since he was young. Sandy is also a 4-H leader of the Busy Farmers 4-H Club, a lifetime member of the Housatonic Valley FFA Alumni and has loved both organizations since they were introduced to her as a kid.  She loves working with children, because today's generation are the future of Agriculture. Seeing their passion for agriculture and love for the animals is inspiring.

 

Sandy has continued Doug's tradition of leasing dairy cattle to local youth in 4H. Together, they have participated in a lease program for decades now, where kids come and help take care of the animals, and in return, they choose a calf to train and show at our local fairs with 4-H.  She loves nothing more than giving children who didn't grow up on a farm the opportunity to become involved in Agriculture. 

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Sandy has recently diversified a bit, becoming a BioPRYN Affiliate Laboratory. Carlwood Diagnostics is an affordable and quick method for livestock producers to pregnancy test their animals.  Click here to learn more!