Help this Valders family recover after their goats, destined for Manitowoc County Fair, perished in a barn fire April 3

VALDERS — A local mom is asking for help turning her kids’ heartache into hope after a barn fire.

Rachel Salm opened a GoFundMe campaign to earn funds to replace nine of her children’s goats who died in a barn fire April 3.

The small barn where the goats were kept is a total loss, she said.

“This was a heartbreaking tragedy on our little farm,” Salm wrote. “I, personally, will never forget what I had to see after the fire. The goats were our pets and we became attached to each and every one of them.”

Two mama and seven baby goats were lost in the fire. The family kept them in the barn to keep them safe from the winter weather, and they couldn’t get out during the fire.

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Salm's 13-year-old son and 17-year-old daughter were working with and training the goats to take them to the Manitowoc County Fair.

“They are both actively involved in 4-H and they both work at a local farm feeding calves,” Salm wrote. “My daughter is planning to go to school (to become) a large animal veterinarian, so she can help more animals.

“My children are very hardworking kids and are very kind to everyone they meet,” she added.

Salm is asking for funds to rebuild a new small barn for goats. As of Thursday morning, the GoFundMe campaign raised $1,425 toward her $6,000 goal. People can find the GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/for-my-young-children?cdn-cache=0.

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Contact reporter Patti Zarling at [email protected] or call 920-606-2575. Follow her on X @PGPattiZarling or on Instagram @PGPatti.

This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Valders family starts GoFundMe to build barn for goats after fire