Grimsby community helps 9 Acres Organic Farm start over after barn fire

If you’ve been to the Grimsby Farmer’s Market, you may know Carolyne and Rodney Siebert – Owners of 9 Acres Organic Farm. The Sieberts’ barn is the heart of their operation. Three weeks ago, it went up in flames. Today, the community showed up in full force for the clean up.

They lost more than just product and farm equipment. The barn doubled as a space to do yoga and storage for personal items like photos and bikes. It was all destroyed. Today was the beginning of starting over.

Earlier in March, the barn that has stood there for 100 years went up in flames.

“I did try to open the barn door but as soon as I opened it a ton of air rushed in and I knew it was something. There was a fire extinguisher right there but I knew right away it was something too big for me to take care of,” said Carolyne.

Siebert says it took hours for fire fighters to tame the blaze. No word on the extent of damages or the cause of the blaze just yet. Right now, they are just overwhelmed by the community support.

“They’ve made a cash donation and even the children drew some very uplifting pictures,” said Carolyne.

It might take them years to rebuild the barn but the reason why the work is being done today with all these volunteers is to clear a path for the construction to begin on a temporary structure so they can continue to do their work.

Their presence at the Grimsby Farmer’s Market will be different this year. There will be a seedling sale in May but even the farming notes from last year’s crop were barely saved from the fire.

“Rodney and Carolyne are people who are so generous and so giving. And so, to see such a major setback — they are always there for others so it’s important for us to be there for them when we can,” said family friend Carol Henley.

There was a steady stream of volunteers bringing everything from food to their bare hands to help. Matthew Glavac, a family friend, was one of them.

“Our daughter makes granola and Carolyne and Rodney supply the honey for that granola. They’ve been huge supporters of her. She’s 12 years old and we couldn’t think of anything else to do other than lend our hand and help them out,” said Glavac.

To help them recover and rebuild, a GoFundMe page has been set up. A local yoga studio is also holding a fundraiser.

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