LITCHFIELD, Ohio — A community is rallying around a Medina County family after a fire devastated their small sheep farm.
On Sunday morning, Jimmy Hubbard said everything appeared normal when he fed the 40-50 head flock. The third-generation farmer then left to deliver a tractor to Pennsylvania.
He said he was less than 30 minutes from his destination when he received word the 150-year-old barn, which predated his family farm, was on fire.
On Friday, he showed News 5 the footprint where the barn stood days earlier, pointing out a section where the back door formerly was.
“My dad went and tried it - this was the last door he tried to open. It was just so hot, he couldn’t even get near it,” Hubbard explained.
He said word eventually reached him that none of the animals inside the barn were able to escape. The losses included 40-50 pregnant ewes expecting 60-80 lambs, several ducks, rabbits and cats, along with the entire 3,200 square foot building.
“That’s not just my legacy, that’s my dad’s legacy, that’s my grandfather’s legacy, that’s my grandmother’s legacy. Then you just come home and it’s gone. It was horrible,” Hubbard said.
More difficult, he said, was telling his 7-year-old daughter about the devastation.
“I had to look at my daughter and I had to tell her. I said, ‘Look, your mom, your brother and your grandpa are fine. Nothing happened to them. But the barn and everything is gone in there,’” he said. “You don’t realize how much life was in that barn until it’s gone.”
In the wake of the devastation, Hubbard said he’s been overwhelmed by an outpouring of support.
Neighbors, friends and fellow farmers quickly volunteered to help clear the debris and level the former barn site.
“We were out here on Tuesday. At 8:30 in the morning we got started and by 5:30, the whole thing was all cleaned up,” said Kelton Keller.
Keller, who went to high school with Hubbard and also grew up on a multi-generational farm nearby, has been leading efforts to help the family rebuild.
“It’s been really wonderful to see so many people come together to support somebody they don’t even know,” he said.
His family business, Keller Meats, is hosting raffles and a fundraiser. In the first days, donations have topped thousands of dollars. Keller said a barn and livestock can easily cost hundreds of thousands to replace and he wasn’t surprised to see the support for a local farm.
“Especially in rural communities, people know how important farming is. Without food, you don’t eat. So we need people like Jimmy,” he said.
Hubbard said the generosity has been overwhelming.
“To see so much good after such horrible things, it’s truly amazing. It’s really a beautiful thing,” he said.
In another positive turn of events, Hubbard said he was heartened to find a young chicken while cleaning up. The bird and one barn cat appear to be the only animals to survive.
“It was just a really uplifting moment to see something made it out. We also had a cat that did return. So we’re starting to see some of the life return that lived in that barn,” he said.
He told News 5 he believes the donations will allow the family to rebuild faster than anticipated, and he looks forward to preserving his family’s legacy.
“We’re just doing it for the love of what we’re doing,” he said. “[We hope to] build that back up and keep on going to carry it on for another four generations.”
You can support fundraising efforts by clicking on the following links:
- $100 Hind Quarter Raffle ($1200 value)
- $50 Hog Raffle ($800 value)
- Hubbard Family Relief Fund Donations
