“I always believed I was bringing my husband home. I also believed he could not come home to an empty barn. I was going to do everything to make sure there were cows here. He needed something to fight for.”

In this episode of Cow-Side Conversations, Kerri Weber of Rustik Dairy LLC in Franklin County, Pennsylvania opens up about her journey navigating her husband Rob’s unexpected brain aneurysm 15 months ago. After more than 100 days in hospitals and rehab centers, Rob returned home to the farm just in time for Thanksgiving last year. This season is a reminder of what they walked through and how blessed they are to still have Rob with them. During the podcast, Kerri describes how their journey in dairy farming started and where they are now.

Eight years ago, she and Rob started dairy farming from scratch, renting different facilities and growing their herd until they entered into a partnership with two brothers. About four weeks after her husband’s brain injury, Kerri was faced with finishing the transition process on her own and making the decision to sell the cows or buy out the rest of the partnership. Knowing Rob needed to come home to a full barn, Kerri made a decision to move forward with the transition. She reflects on her decision-making process, the trusted team they’ve built, the community that stepped up, and the simple joys she gathers from her animals and children. Ultimately, Kerri has learned how to be grateful for each day and for what they have even when the circumstances are not what she expected them to be.

Lessons learned about starting a dairy from scratch: “Those first few years starting out, I learned that you have to go through the four seasons. Go through an entire year before you make a lot of judgement calls. You have to know your numbers. Whether you’re sitting down with a banker or starting the LLC, you have to crunch your numbers on $16 milk and $20 milk and know what your breakeven points are. Also, the people around you, and the team you create, is what pulls you through the hard times.”

Lessons learned from the accident: “We still take it one day at a time some days. It’s nice to see [my husband] become more alive and excited, but life is very different. Before the accident, Rob and I were planning all the stages of the farm transition and how that might look for us as a team. Now, Rob speaks but it’s very minimal. Mentally, it’s a challenge at times. I don’t have strong support system beside me like I thought I would. It looks different than I would have ever imagined. When I get caught up in those moments, that’s when I remember how grateful I am to have him and he can still be on the farm. We’re still living our dream of raising our children on the farm. That’s why I continue to push through and see the joy in the simple things.”

Listen to the podcast episode.