This is the story of two families, the Hodges and the Schofields and the dairy farm they founded in 1990. The farm is affectionately referred to as a "4-H project gone haywire.", according to Bethany Hodge, who worked on that 4-H project.

It all began twelve years ago when the Hodges purchased Echo Farm in Hinsdale, NH with the intent of owning a horse and a few sheep. That all changed when they met the Schofield family, who had recently built a barn and were raising and showing Jersey calves. The two families became good friends who agreed on virtually everything, except the breed of cows to own. The Schofields loved the Jersey breed, while the Hodges preferred the Milking Shorthorn breed. In 1990, the Hodges purchased five Milking Shorthorn heifers: Lolly, Ticket, Candle, Royal, and Megan. That same year, Maple (a Jersey) was born into the Schofield family, from their cow Misty. Misty was bought in 1988 as a show calf and lived at a farm in Walpole after Maple was born (almost every Jersey on the farm with a name beginning with "M" is related to her). Both families had no idea that the purchase of those first few animals would give rise to the modern dairy farm that exists today.

Bethany remembers, “Eight years ago, our first Milking Shorthorn, Ticket, gave birth to her first calf and instantly we were in the dairy business. We all vividly remember camping out by her pen for days, anxiously awaiting the arrival of that calf. After the calf arrived, we milked Ticket in the Hodges garage. As more cows calved, plans began to surface for a full scale dairy operation.”

Today, Echo Farms milks 80 cows and has more than 160 animals. In the spirit of a true partnership, the herd has remained half Jerseys and half Milking Shorthorns. The Hodge’s and Schofields philosophy remains true to the lessons learned in that 4-H project. Bethany says, “Although our herd has grown since those original six cows, we have not changed the way we treat our animals. We have even been known to bring newborn calves in the house on cold winter days.

The two families started the farm with the intent of being unlike any other farm. Bethany explains, “Our cows have names, not numbers; in fact, they are treated like members of the family. We pride ourselves on providing our cows with a pleasant and loving environment. They show their appreciation by producing award winning, great tasting, high quality milk, to which we add all natural ingredients to bring you our premium line of puddings”.