Mullica Hill Dairy Farm Owner Credits Community For Support Following Tornado: 'Really Restored My Faith In People'
MULLICA HILL, N.J. (CBS) -- Six months after a devastating tornado ripped through Mullica Hill, New Jersey's largest dairy farm is still working to recover.
Wellacrest Farms says the community helped restore their hope and gave them the strength to rebuild.
"We could have turned around and said let's just forget it, dairying is hard," owner Marianne Eachus said.
But the Eachus family fought back with strength and resilience after tornadoes touched down in Mullica Hill last September and destroyed Wellacrest Farms.
"We are rebuilding slow but sure and there still is a lot of to. I can't believe it's been six months," Eachus said.
Six months and endless work. This is what the farm looked like days after the tornado ripped through and this is a look at it now.
"For us, it's an ongoing reminder every day of what happened and what could have happened and we are all OK, our homes are OK," Eachus said.
Especially as Eachus stands in one of the barns that was leveled.
"This barn was flattened by the tornado and pinned 260 cows in here. Everybody came out alive, which was amazing," Eachus said.
From local businesses to strangers, Eachus says the support has never stopped. Everything from donations, food, and handwritten letters to volunteers and builders.
"It's been heartwarming, amazing, emotional, you name it, it's been all of the above. It's really restored my faith in people, in humanity," she said.
Eachus says she hopes this farm is still standing for years to come and is forever grateful to the community that lifted her and her family up in the toughest of times.
"It hit homes, you know. And when I talk about it years from now it's still going to be emotional, not only the tornado, but the people," she said.
Even though the cows were saved and they are making progress, it is still going to be a long road, especially for the families who are still trying to rebuild their homes as well.