“In 2017, Fran and Taylor Montgomery happened upon a 100+ year old house and dairy farm in Leicester that needed a lot of love, sweat and tears to bring the property back to life.
And that’s just what they did.
“Taylor was looking for a house after he sold his Weaverville home. He was out driving around looking for places one day and passed the farm,” Fran recalled. “He stopped in and talked to the owner of the farm, who happened to be there, and he put an offer on it immediately and we bought it.”
“It was almost like it was meant to be.”
It took three years of rehabilitating the farmland and what was considered by locals to be “the condemned house” – and building a new, bigger barn after the original barn burned down – but they were able to realize their dream of owning a farm.
“I’ve always been a city girl, but I’ve always wanted a farm. I love farm life, and it’s always been a dream of mine to live in a rural area, so we discovered Leicester, fell and love and never looked back,” Fran said.
After the original barn burned down, Fran said although that was heartbreaking, she and Taylor took it as an opportunity. They decided to build a bigger barn and, ultimately, decided to have their wedding there in October 2019.
“We were not going to open to the public; it was just going to be our special place,” she said.
Then came the unforeseen decision to open Montgomery Sky Farm to the public in the fall of 2020.
Opening during a pandemic
Opening during a year of a pandemic? It wasn’t in the plan originally, but the pandemic was exactly why the Montgomerys decided to do it.
“We had not intended to open to the public, but my neighbor’s kids started coming over during the pandemic when they needed to get outside, and they fell in love with it,” Fran said. “The kids came to life, and then to watch the animals get socialized with children, to see the animals enjoy the children… it was a no-brainer. The first Sunday I opened up tours to the public, it sold out within 10 minutes.”
During a year when so many were shuttered in their homes, especially in the seasons of spring, summer and fall when WNC natives and tourists are accustomed to coming and going, Montgomery Sky Farm offered a safe outdoor activity that was not only refreshing for families but educational.
“We opened during COVID to allow families the opportunity to get them and their kids outdoors. They were private sessions, outdoors and social distanced, with us in masks,” Fran said. “It makes for a great socially distanced and outdoor activity.”…
View the whole story here: https://wlos.com/community/carolina-moment/unique-family-farm-shares-love-of-fluffy-cow-rehabilitated-farm-animals-with-public