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Shepherd Brian Cash reshapes land management in the South By Clay Neely
Clay@newnan.com
I’m riding to a pasture on the outskirts of Luthersville with Brian Cash. The Ford-350 Cash drives tows an animal trailer filled with 30 sheep and two dogs. We hop out of the truck making our way to the back of the trailer where Cash opens the doors. The sheep slowly pour out, bells clanging, while Cash whistles to Kyle, the Border collie, to lie down. “They’re the best employees you’ll ever meet,” he says referenc i n g Kyle . “ T hei r e nt hu si a s m c a n b e a bit overwhelming.” Kyle eagerly herds the flock into the field and soon the sheep are safely in the pasture, Cash closing the door behind us. The heat is in full force this afternoon, a blunt reminder that summer is still in session. We make our way to the side of the pasture, into the shade. “So what would you like to know?” asks Cash. It turns out that this modern day shepherd is actually a native of the Atlanta suburb of Dunwoody. He’s the son
PhotoS by Clay Neely
Cash uses 25 to 30 sheep to clean an eighth of an acre — usually a twoday job. Large-scale jobs call for around 60 to 100 in a group.
of two very patient parents whose child dreamed of one day being a farmer. As the years passed, Cash’s enthusiasm never waned, only increasing with each new duck, chicken, goat, pig, sheep, and quail that found a way into their house. “In those days, you couldn’t
have a chicken in Atlanta. Nowadays, we have the great ‘farm-to-table’ movement and people are bringing chickens back to city. Almost everyone I meet on the job has a chicken coup in their backyard. I love it.” His enthusiasm continued all the way into high school,
“
All a sheep wants to do is eat. Every other obstacle supersedes it.”
when his dreams met head-on with a bemused high school guidance counselor. “You want to be a farmer?” “Yes.” “You really need to take things a little more seriously,
Family creates foundation in honor of daughter By Bradley Hartsell bradley@newnan.com
“She was bigger than life. She loved everything. Always wanted to be on the go. She was very expressive. We don’t want that to end, we want to continue that. ” Natalie Bacho explains the spirit behind Abby’s Angels, her family’s foundation in honor of her late daughter, Abby, that began in earnest last month. On Dec. 22, 2012, a truck driven by a teenager sped through a red light, smashing into the side of the Bacho van, driven by Natalie and carrying the Bacho family plus Abby’s grandfather. Stephen and Natalie were air-flighted to Atlanta hospitals. The others were taken to the local Piedmont Newnan Hospita l . Stephen wa s i n an induced coma for several weeks and has since recovered well, but daughter Abby was taken off life support on Christmas Day. The family donated her organs. She was 9 years old. Nat a l ie B acho says t he seeds for the foundation were planted while in the hospital with Abby during those last few days. “We had an unbelievable amount of support from the community,” says Bacho. “We wanted to be able to give back and show our appreciation for everything that was done for us.” Over time, the family continued to develop ideas for the foundation but didn’t know what how to proceed. “I knew we had to do something, as a family, to help other people, so that Abby’s life didn’t simply end — people would know who she was, helping other children and families in the process.” Abby loved to play school. She would be the teacher wh i le her you nger sister, Cha rlotte, a nd her neig hbor formed her class. In that spirit, the Bachos arrived at an idea. Young children love getting new school supplies every year. The Bachos know that
Brian,” the counselor said. “You need to figure out a real career.” “It was like ‘well, thanks for telling me it’s an impossibility,” laughs Cash. I m m e d i a t e l y fol l ow i n g
his graduation in 1998, Cash headed straight to the interior of Alaska in search of adventure. “I just thought it would be fun to go race sled dogs,” he says. “I only planned to stay there six months but wound up staying four years.” C a s h e ve n t u a l l y fo u n d himself in northern California,
SHEPHERD, page 6
Lewis Grizzard & Catfish Memorial Bike Ride Fundraiser benefiting childhood literacy scheduled for October 6
there are families unable to afford those things, especially the more expensive items like zebra-striped notebooks, for instance, that may make a difference in how excited a child is about learning. “Abby’s Closet” is a space in local schools designated and stocked throughout the year with school supplies. The program doesn’t want to bring attention to children who can’t have these things, hence the idea of a closet. A contact from each school will oversee the closet and teachers will be the eyes and ears for the students they think would benefit from the closet. In addition to Abby’s Closet, Natalie Bacho’s niece began making bracelets for the family while they stayed at Natalie’s sister’s home. The bracelets spearheaded a fundraiser that would hopefully lead to oppor t u n ities li ke Abby ’s Closet. Her sister put a picture of the bracelets on the Abby’s
Angels Facebook page and the project went wild. People from California ordered. One even found its way to a child in Africa. Abby’s Angels has sold more than 500 bracelets. “It’s a sign of our faith and a representation of Abby so that she stays present,” explains Bacho, calling it a labor of love. Because of their experience with Abby, one that was deeply saddening but one Bacho says t hey wou ld absolutely do again, the family also stresses organ donation. “We hope to be a bridge of support to donor families of pediatric patients. After being in that situation personally, we want to reach out to these families and let them know they aren't alone in their decision to give life and also in their grief of their child. The foundation would also like to raise awareness of organ donation if the unthinkable should ever happen to another family,” Bacho explains.
Two week s ago m a rked the official launch of Abby’s Closet in Newnan Crossing Elementary, where Abby was a fourth-grader. School counselor and Abby’s Closet supervisor at Newnan Crossing, Jennifer Kennemur, says she took her first child to the closet the next morning. Kennemur was Abby’s science teacher last year and is excited and honored to be a part of the program, both for how important it is to the Bachos and how it will impact the students. The foundation is looking into middle schools for its next school because as students get older they become more independent both in their own attitudes and through the handling of teachers, and may feel more alienated without a resource for new school supplies. Abby’s Angels continues to look forward, as do the Bachos, with help from Abby’s memory and the foundation’s promise to help others. “ It ’s somet h i ng we feel strongly about and that we have to do. And it brings us closer to Abby in the process.” Anyone wishing to make contributions to the foundation can do so by writing a check to the NCF with a memo in care of Abby’s Angels Foundation. The NCF address is 11625 Rainwater Dr., Alpharetta, GA 30009. All proceeds go directly to Abby’s Angels. Anyone interested in sponsoring or volunteering to the 5k family fun day, email 3sisters@abbysangelsfoundation.org for more information.
Cyclists from last year’s annual ride benefiting The Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy.
The Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy will host a fundraising bicycle ride in Moreland Oct. 6 at 8 a.m. The ride begins at the Moreland Mill with ride lengths optional (12, 25, 62 and 100 mile rides). On-site registration the day of the event will be $35. Lunch is included at the end of the race to every rider. Rest stops, refreshments and bike repair vehicles are available at certain intervals. For more information, email Nelda at nboren59@att.net or Linda at lbrass@ wspackaging.com. The Ferst Foundation addresses one of the most basic issues of childhood literacy — ensuring the availability of quality books for children in the home so that parents can read to their child. Books are delivered every month, up to 60 times in the child’s critical years of development. There is no cost to registered children in participating areas. The program is free to participating families and it is made possible through the partnership with local Community Action Teams (CATs). Funding for the program is organized through private donations, corporate sponsorships and grants. Interested parties with children under 5 are encouraged to contact the Ferst Foundation Program. More information can be found at http://www.ferstfoundation.org.