Hillside Darling
Hillside Darling was an award-winning cow from Heb-Ayr Farm managed by Paul & Iva Hebbe just outside of Fort Atkinson in Hebron, Wisconsin. She was classified 88 at 4 years old. Born in 1975 at the Tenney Hillside View Farm in Surry, New Hampshire and bought for a record $4,300 by the Heb-Ayr Farm in Portland, Oregon. This cross-country cow was Paul Hebbe’s favorite. Her image is shown at Fort Community Credit Union.
“My fault. It all started with me,” reminisced Sherry Lethcoe. “We had a horrible fire and had to start over. We built a showplace farm, but still a working farm. Farmers came to see our new products, particularly our barn cleaner and Quonset hut. It was amazing as we had running water in the barn, but not in the house and still had to use an outhouse. The business was what was most important to us as a family.
I didn’t want the typical Guernsey that was so normal then, but wanted something different. I liked the Ayrshire’s demeanor and their graceful horns, and rugged Scottish background. Nobody else had them, so I convinced my parents to get them.”
Sherry’s great-grandparents, grand-parents, and parents all lived and farmed in Hebron. They are still their resting peacefully in the hillside cemetery, where someday she’ll join them. Hebron was a vibrant growing community and they did everything there. She grew up there and was happy showing cows. Her favorite was Blossum, but her dad’s favorite was Hillside Darling. He carried a photo of her and would pull it out to show others his “girlfriend.” Her dad’s motto was “Not bigger, but better.” Hillside Darling was a good show cow and had a good pedigree. Her parents traveled to Kenya, Scotland, and Australia and all over the United States looked for cows with good pedigrees and seeing top notch farms.
Sherry said, “I had a lot of love for my cows. They were like my pets, but useful pets. I cried when we had to sell them. Though they looked rugged, I could stand between their horns in their stall. We had a good life.”