Ellie Mae Farm Sanctuary was founded by Mackenzie Sullivan (that’s me!) and Billy Graydus in 2018, but the story of EMFS started almost two years prior when I first met Ellie Mae as a student at the University of Connecticut.
For my Introduction to Animal Science course I had to choose a farm animal to train for an event at the end of the semester. I ended up picking a Hereford (Ellie’s breed) heifer (female cow that has never had a baby) with an ear tag that read H864D; who I named Ellie Mae. Over the next few months I grew an incredibly strong bond with her.
At the end of the class assignment the university auctions off some of the farmed animals and Ellie Mae happened to be one of them. I knew I had to do something to try and save her. Unfortunately when the time came, I was outbid by a local farmer and completely devastated. I felt that I let Ellie down. Luckily the farmer said that we could come visit her whenever we wanted to, so for the next two years we did visit her, every weekend.
When Ellie was almost two years old she was artificially inseminated and on September 16, 2018 she gave birth to a baby girl who we named, Zee.
Once Zee was born I could not rest until I knew those two girls were safe. I was finally able to convince the farmer to give me both Ellie Mae and Zee. So we bought a trailer and moved the two girls to our first property in May of 2019.
During this time I visited as many sanctuaries as possible and interned at a sanctuary in New York. I continued to learn more about the injustices that farmed animals endured every day and grew even more passionate about saving as many of these beautiful animals as possible. With my incredible partner, Billy, we started the sanctuary and decided to name it Ellie Mae Farm Sanctuary, after the girl who changed our lives forever. Together, we will advocate for farmed animals everywhere and promote a vegan lifestyle.
We are so excited that you are all a part of this crazy journey with us. Thank you so much for your support and love.
Sincerely,
Mackenzie
OUR MISSION
Ellie Mae Farm Sanctuary is a farmed animal sanctuary that is dedicated to rescuing, caring, and providing a home for neglected, abused, and abandoned farmed animals. The animals will be cared for and allowed to live out their natural lives in sanctuary.
EMFS will create a space where the public can come visit and connect with the animal residents that are most commonly killed, exploited, and abused in animal agriculture. By stories, we will advocate for veganism in hopes to reduce the suffering of all beings and to educate the public on making better choices for their health, the environment, and most importantly THE ANIMALS.