Heavy snow causes barn roof collapse

Heavy snow caused the roof of David Jacquier’s barn early Wednesday morning, March 15. Photo by Riley Klein

NORTH CANAAN — The roof of Elm Knoll Farm’s maternity barn collapsed under the weight of the snow in the early hours of Wednesday, March 15.
None of the staff at the farm in the East Canaan section of town were injured by the collapse, but two pregnant heifers were lost in the incident. The intact portion of the barn still houses about 350 cows and the remaining pregnant cows have been relocated to another area.
“I should be upset and worried. I’m really not,” said David Jacquier, owner of Elm Knoll Farm. “I’ve only been farming for 53 years, and mother nature is no problem.”
Jacquier and his crew have spent the last two days cleaning up rubble and debris. Elm Knoll is among the few remaining dairy farms in the area and Jacquier has every intention of returning to full force in due time.
“Next year my crop will be better,” said Jacquier. “I’ll bounce back. I’m 72 so my bouncing is getting a little slower than it used to be.”
In addition to cleaning up, the work of running a dairy farm continued without interruption.
“We had three calves yesterday,” said Jacquier as he showed the temporary maternity area.
“We’ve got to put a roof on. That’s it. The underneath structure is all okay,” said Jacquier. “At the moment I don’t know how I’m going to pay for it. I think it will be about $100,000.”
Jacquier said he does not expect insurance to cover the damage but is thankful to the community for starting a GoFundMe to help rebuild the roof (gofundme.com/f/raise-the-roof-at-elm-knoll-farm).
When told about the online support, Jacquier said, “I can’t believe that. That’s fantastic.”
Jacquier’s dedication to the community has gone well beyond a life of dairy farming. He served on the Canaan Board of Tax Review for over 20 years, was a Housatonic Valley Agricultural Education Advisory Committee Member, is a Housatonic Valley FFA Alumni Member, and a longtime supporter of the local Busy Farmers 4H Club.
Elm Knoll Farm is one of just 67 remaining dairy farms across the State of Connecticut. Jacquier plans to rebuild the barn as soon as possible and continue providing locally produced dairy to the Northwest corner for years to come.
“We’ll just clean up the mess probably here in the next four or five days and I will put out some feelers today here for a contractor to come put a roof on,” said Jacquier.

Photo by Riley Klein

Photo by Riley Klein
The HVRHS boys rejoice around Jackson McAvoy after he scored the game-winning goal against Shepaug with just two minutes left to play.
WASHINGTON — Housatonic Valley Regional High School’s boys varsity soccer team advanced to the Berkshire League tournament final after a 1-0 win over Shepaug Valley High School in the semifinal game on Friday, Oct. 24.
Jackson McAvoy scored the game-winning goal with just two minutes remaining.
The victory marked HVRHS boys soccer’s first victory over Shepaug since 2020.
“Finally,” said HVRHS Coach Adolfo Portillo after the game.
HVRHS will play top-ranked Nonnewaug High School in the BL final. Nonnewaug advanced to the title game by beating Northwestern Regional High School in penalty kicks (4-3) after a 2-2 draw in regulation time.
The championship game will be played at Nonnewaug beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 28.

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Students dressed in neon lined the soccer field for senior night under the lights on Thursday, Oct. 16. The game against Lakeview was the last in a series of competitions Thursday night in celebration of Homecoming 2025.
As homecoming week reaches its end and fall sports finish out the season, an air of school spirit and student participation seems to be on the rise across Housatonic Valley Regional High School.
But what can be attributed to this sudden peak of student interest? That’s largely due to SGA. Also known as the Student Government Association, SGA has dedicated itself to creating events to bring the entire student body together. This year, they decided to change some traditions.
Spirit week from Oct. 14-17 was unlike those of the previous years. From wearing Housatonic merch to Boomer vs Baby day, this year’s spirit week held a little friendly competition to see which grade could participate the most.
“I think that students are bored of the same old activities and events, so it’s good to switch things up even slightly to incentivize interest within students,” said SGA president and senior Mollie Ford. “Plus the point system is super beneficial because it gives students a reason to participate.”
The school spirit sentiment can be seen outside of just the school. Senior Simon Markow is known for his photography throughout the community, and has dedicated time to help Housy sports teams’ social media posts.
“Since I’ve started photography, I think school attendance [at sports games] has gone up,” Markow said. “I feel this year, students will be more aware of games and are more likely to be at the games.”
Whether it’s a pink-out volleyball game or an under the lights soccer match, it’s likely you’ll see some familiar faces.
Social media has played a large role in this over the years. Almost every student organization at Housatonic has an Instagram account, and it’s helped reach students more efficiently than a poster or email would.
“The increase of social media use, with the help from me but as well as the teams themselves has definitely increased student interest,” Markow said. “With Housy teams posting more about their upcoming games, and my help showing the cool goals, spikes, or touchdowns, it’s enlightened students to watch the games themselves.”
In a small school, promoting pride has proven to be a challenge. But this year’s senior class has made some adjustments in the hopes to change that.
“The SGA community has spent the last few years really focusing on student participation, because we think it’s the students who contribute to a better climate,” Ford said. While Housatonic’s student body may be small in size, it seems they certainly aren’t small in spirit.