Lynden, Washington
Ernst & Teuntje Zweegman came from the Netherlands in the late 1800′s. They homesteaded their dairy north of Lynden in 1901. Their daughter Helena married Arnoldus Blankers in 1905, and in 1911 gave birth to Bertus, Shawn Langley’s grandpa. Grandpa Blankers started farming on his own across the fields, and soon married Angeline. Their daughter Joyce married Ken Douma, who later passed away, and had Rachelle, Shawn, and Heidi.
Shawn began spending every summer on his grandparent’s farm after the sixth grade. “I loved working the land and farming with my grandpa,” he says. Moving here full time after graduation, they worked side by side until Grandpa Blankers passed away in 2003, at the age of 91.
Shawn and his wife, Clarissa, took over the management of the dairy 15 years ago. Located near Lynden, Fresh Breeze Organic Dairy still harvests grass and corn off some of the same land as Shawn’s great grandparents did in the early 20th century. As most of their farming practices were already organic, they decided to make the switch to operating a certified organic farm. Fresh Breeze is unique among organic dairies in that they raise and pasture their 180 dairy cows from birth, grow all of their own organic feed on their 400-plus acres, and bottle their milk products right on site.
