MILLERTON — McEnroe Market and Eatery announced Thursday, Feb. 8, that it would be closing its doors at 5400 Route 22.
For 10 years, the little market has stood among the rolling green hills and the long, low, red-shingled building.
At first, it seemed only to be closed for a winter break. Then came the final word: “After a decade of serving the community with farm-fresh produce and delectable organic cuisine, McEnroe Farm Market and Eatery announces its closure.”
McEnroe Organic Farm, which has been around since 1952, will continue farming organic food but will now only be distributing it wholesale, for local restaurants and food markets.
McEnroe Organic Compost and Soils at 194 Coleman Station Road will remain open, and will continue to serve the public for bulk and bagged soil purchase.
McEnroe Market and Eatery was known to locals for baked goods, sandwiches, fresh salads, frozen yogurt, prepared foods, cherry and oatmeal cookies, fries and array of ciders.
The produce was always fresh, and given that there is no retail food market in Millerton, farm stands are important to the locals, and McEnroe’s was a favorite. It was also relied on as a place to get plants in the spring, sunflowers in August, and pumpkins in the fall.
When asked why the business was closing, Olivia Skeen, manager of development, said that COVID-19 had an impact, as did climate change and other factors that caused financial constraints.
Skeen said, “We are currently determining how we will use our market location going forward.”
She also wanted the community to know that the compost facility will remain open and that CSA options will be available. Despite the farm’s turn towards wholesale, she said, any excess produce will be offered to the public via social media.
The farm will still give public tours, and all of its educational programs, which started in 2007, including apprenticeships, will be in place. Its commitment to the community remains intact, said Skeen.
On behalf of the McEnroe and Durst families, Skeen said:
“We deeply appreciate the community support we have received throughout the years. The feedback we have received of our market and eatery closing is a testament of our integral part of the community over the years.”
Judith O'Hara Balfe
McEnroe Farm Market and Eatery
Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
Growing up in the Bronx, Hearn was captivated whenever she saw horses. Her grandfather, a Korean War veteran, had cared for military horses during the war. After returning home, he struggled with addiction, and the invisible wounds of military service. Through every difficult chapter of his life, however, one thing consistently brought him peace.
“Horses bring peace,” he told his granddaughter.
When Hearn was 11, after years apart, Hearn and her grandfather began spending weekends riding together. Less than a year later, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Before he died, he asked family members to help buy Hearn’s first horse — a stubborn paint horse that bit, kicked and frequently threw her off. She wanted to sell him. Her father refused.
“Every life has value,” he told her.
Looking back, Hearn says that lesson became the foundation of everything she would later build.
What began as a boarding stable in 2003 took a different direction after the Dutchess County SPCA asked Hearn to care for horses seized in cruelty cases. She soon realized that although Dutchess County had one of New York’s largest horse populations, there was no dedicated nonprofit equipped to care for neglected and abused horses. Lucky Orphans officially became a nonprofit in 2008.
Some of the more than 40 horses at Lucky OrphansProvided
Today, Hearn is quick to point out that Lucky Orphans is not simply a rescue.
“We’re a sanctuary,” she said.
Many of the more than 40 horses living there arrive with broken bones, chronic illnesses, heart conditions, missing eyes or other injuries that make them unsuitable for riding or adoption. Rather than rehabilitating and rehoming them, Lucky Orphans makes a lifetime commitment to every horse.
In 2013, Hearn became certified in equine-assisted psychotherapy, combining her lifelong relationship with horses and the lessons she learned from her grandfather to create programs for veterans, trauma survivors, children and families facing emotional challenges. The transformations she witnesses continue to surprise her. She recalls one woman who arrived convinced she would not fit in with a group of strangers. During the session, a horse quietly chose to follow her without a rope or commands. For the first time in years, the woman said she felt truly seen.
Another memory has stayed with Hearn ever since. A teenager in a juvenile probation program, wearing an ankle monitor and struggling with anger, entered a round pen with a horse. As his frustration grew, the horse moved farther away. When he finally calmed himself, the horse walked directly toward him and rested its head against his chest.
“I told him, ‘If you can control your energy, you can control the world around you,’” Hearn said.
Stories like these sustain her through the difficult realities of running a nonprofit. Operating the sanctuary costs roughly $52,000 each month, and Hearn lives on the property, where the work never truly ends. Veterinary bills, staffing, fundraising and the daily care of dozens of horses are constant concerns. Then someone returns years later and tells her that the horses changed their child’s life.
“That’s why I keep going,” she said.
Looking ahead, Hearn hopes more people discover what makes Lucky Orphans unique. The organization is expanding its community programming with educational visits, yoga sessions, horse encounters, volunteer opportunities and family events designed to reconnect people with horses and with one another.
Her vision is simple: to create a place where people slow down, reconnect and remember something modern life often makes us forget. If horses could speak, Hearn believes they would offer just one piece of advice.
“They’d tell us to slow down,” she said.
After spending an afternoon at Lucky Orphans, it’s hard to disagree.
For more information or to plan a visit, go to luckyorphans.org
Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
