Country Winds Farm houses happy goats, milk that heals

When Mary Windemuller first started raising goats, they threw the unused milk on the ground. Years later, Country Winds Farm, Goat Shares and Creamery LLC now produces healing milk, as well as cheese and butter. 

“We had goats, and they were just for 4-H. We milked them, but we didn’t view them as a sole provider of milk at that time,” says owner Mary Windemuller. “Then we started reading about the health benefits of milk, and we said, ‘well, we’re just dumping this milk on the ground, and going to the store to buy milk.’ That made no sense, and we thought [drinking the milk] was worth a try, because of my health. So we started drinking it.”

After a breast cancer diagnosis and severe car accident caused by a drunk driver in the early 90's, Windemuller began seeking treatment for her various health issues in the mainstream medical world. She ended up at Johns Hopkins Hospital with an unexpected diagnosis—Mary Windemuller Disease.

“I said, ‘that’s my name,’ and [the doctor] said, ‘yup, we’re naming a disease after you. We don’t know how we’re going to treat it, but we want you to live here for a year.’”

After spending time with little result at the hospital, Windemuller prepared for the worst.

“If the good Lord’s gonna take me home, well then I’m not gonna stop it,” Windemuller remembers thinking. 

It was about this time that Mary Windemuller’s husband John Windemuller insisted on trying the goat milk. After drinking the milk that had been previously discarded, her cancer is now gone, and Mary Windemuller maintains that she and her husband could “outwork most 20-year-olds.”

“If I looked at all of the medical bills that went into trying to make me better, it’d probably be close to over a million dollars,” says Windemuller. “You can buy a lot of good food for that kind of money! It doesn’t hurt me, it doesn’t cut me, it doesn’t burn me, it doesn’t cause other side effects. Food, all it does is heal. It makes me better. No side effects.”

The Windemullers are committed to producing “food that heals,” and encourage community members to join in their efforts. By purchasing a goat share, shareholders get a weekly or bi-weekly supply of milk, as well as the ability to inspect the farmstead and goats during reasonable business hours. Windemuller has a catalog of testimonies on her website, all in praise of the milk.

“We’re a farmstead, but we’re not just a farmstead. My goats are out on pasture. I don’t do any drugs, chemicals or vaccinations,” Windemuller explains. “I also make sure my goats are well fed. I compost the manure. Everything is eco-friendly. We milk them right here in our parlor. Come to my farm and see.”

The farmstead includes a full dairy parlor and creamery, as well extensive pastures for the goats to roam. The Windemullers built everything from the ground up when they bought the property in 2002, and have been working hard to produce milk, cheese, yogurt and butter, as well as maintain the herd ever since. It is this dedication to a healthful product that Windemuller hopes is evident.

“A lot of times you look at it and think ‘was it worth it? Am I making the money back? Will I make the money back?’” Windemuller says. “But it’s a lot of rewards that you can’t put a dollar sign on. You can’t take to the bank and get a loan with. These are things that when you have those bad days, you can turn around and say ‘but I help people.’”