This annual award is presented by UVM Extension and the Vermont Dairy Industry Association, in cooperation with the New England Green Pastures Program. The winning farm is selected based on excellence in agronomic practices, herd management, quality milk production, land stewardship and innovation.
At Rail View Dairy, excellence has come from four decades of the Livingston family's careful investment and hard work.
In 1985, Phil and Diane Livingston and their two young sons settled at the farm, which they named for its overview of the railroad tracks. They started the operation in a tie stall barn with 40 cows. Phil said he built up that herd at the pace he could afford.
"If I had $1,000 spare money, I'd buy a cow," he said.
Rail View Farm has continued to steadily grow its herd, though not its debt, and now milks 740 cows in the free stall barns they've built. More additions and efficiencies have been made through retrofitting. A new parlor got installed in the old tie barn, which meant that the calves who moved inside that same barn could be piped fresh, whole milk instead of milk replacer mixed in buckets.
The family of four has also since become a family of ten: Phil and Diane, their sons Philip and Mark, their daughters-in-law Dawn and Dana, and their grandkids Karissa, Mason, Brailey and Maverick.
This immediate family, plus the wider community, have maintained the dairy through challenges. When Phil suffered an aneurysm in 1986 and then a farming accident in 1989, for example, Diane, their sons, their neighbors and Addison County farmers kept the cows milked and fed.
"That's something, you can't thank them enough," Phil said.
The Livingstons have done their best to return the favor by serving in and supporting the New Haven Fire Department, where Mark Livingston is currently chief.
"We've all just taken to the fire service as something that helps out our community," Mark said.
The family's newest generation has contributed firefighting and fundraising to the department, too, as well as mentorship and leadership in 4-H, FFA and Farm Bureau.
While Maverick will attend UVM this fall as a first-year student, Karissa and Mason are on the farm full-time after finishing their studies. Brailey is planning to do the same after graduating from SUNY Cobleskill in 2027.
"I will graduate with my certificate in breeding and be able to start doing a lot of the [artificial insemination] work here on the farm," she said.
Brailey's as well as Karissa's and Mason's interest in genetics and handling dairy cows stretches back to childhood summers at Addison County Field Days, where they started showing cattle. They've since spent their own money and time on buying, breeding and caring for show heifers, and they've won regional and national titles, including premier championship banners at The Big E and the Northeast All-Breeds Spring Show.
" I think it's just a lifestyle," Karissa said.
Karissa, Brailey and Mason will continue this lifestyle by helping manage Rail View Farm's calves and the overall herd, operating equipment, and overseeing nearly 2,500 acres of field crops. They're all committed to continuing what their grandparents started.
"[Phil Sr.] was always a extremely hard worker and still is, I mean, he still works a lot of hours," said Philip Livingston of his father and the kids' grandfather. "And there's nothing like just sitting back and watching him watch the grandkids work. You can just see the pride in his eyes."
Those grandkids have already encouraged updates to the operation, like health monitoring through ear tags for the cows. And they have a vision for what comes next.
"Our goal is to have another barn finished by the end of the year to not only relieve some pressure on our cows currently – they're a little densely populated – but also be prepared for the future," Karissa said. "We want to sustain the growth of our family and everyone who wants to come back, and we also want to do better, be better farmers."
This level of management and excitement stood out to the Vermont Dairy Farm of Year judges, according to UVM Extension Dairy Specialist Whitney Hull.
"You can see their positive attitude reflected in the farm and how they operate," Hull said. "They're just really fantastic ambassadors for the dairy industry in Vermont."
To learn more about the Vermont Dairy Farm of the Year award and see previous winners, you can visit uvm.edu/extension/dairy-farm-year.
