CALLICOON- After a devastating tornado ripped through western Sullivan County back in April, several farms were deeply affected. Apple Pond Farm in Callicoon was one of them, and they gave Mid-Hudson News a tour of the devastation and the rebuilding process.
“It’s very difficult,” said Dick Riseling, co-owner of Apple Pond Farm. “It’s a very profound sadness.”
“There is not a shed left, the barn roof is off and we’re working with local people to put on a new roof,” said Sonja Hedlund the farm’s co-owner. “Our business is stopped for the summer. We usually welcome visitors, we have people for farm stays, we teach classes on renewable energy, on making cheese, and spinning wool, and we can’t do any of that.”
Volunteers from the community, including Liz Huntington, have been offering their help to rebuild Apple Pond. They are committed to seeing the farm re-open after the tragic event, though there is no timeframe for when the rebuilding will be complete.
“Events like this deepen our commitment to be more emphatic, more welcoming, and more loving of other people,” said Riseling.
