Goldy's farm is the home of Carlene White who is a notorious instigator of out-of-the-box ideas and philanthropic projects. She is the ringleader of a crazy circus that has evolved and thrived in different capacities over 50 years. In her wacky pursuits, she has inadvertently changed hundreds of lives and given mobility to the disabled, purpose to wavering souls and inspired people to think beyond the norm and live a life full of purpose.
Carlene has also driven many off us nuts with her laser focus on philanthropy, enthusiasm for quirky ideas, and unstoppable energy. At 86, she is unfiltered and still on a mission....
It all began in 1975 with a "Gentleman's" farm in Lynnfield, Massachusetts. Carlene was always willing to take in animals in-need, which soon led to a barnyard full of ponies, donkeys, llamas, goats, and a house full of oversized dogs. With animals on the farm needing a job, and kids in the neighborhood needing a summer project, Carlene decided to put on a circus for the town to raise money for "Project Hope" (a medical ship in Africa).
The yearly circus evolved to ANIMAL EPISODES a business that provided all kinds of animals for hundreds of movies, commercials and “special appearances”. If you watch any commercial or movie filmed in Boston that included animals between 1975-1995, the animals were trained and handled by Carlene and her team. Learn more at "Dogs, Donkeys and Circus Performers" on Amazon.
Years later, when Carlene became physically disabled, she trained her Great Dane to help her overcome her physical limitations. This then evolved to a nonprofit called the Service Dog Project (SDP) which donated over 200 Great Danes to people with mobility problems. Next, Carlene became focused on the quality of life for seniors in assisted living centers. Visiting senior centers with her service dog, and two pet Great Danes, she quickly learned the value of bringing her dogs visit seniors with little to do in nursing homes. She now visits senior centers, terminally ill patients in hospice and veteran centers 3 days a week.
The animals that live on Goldy's Farm are all rescued by the "Equine Rescue Network" (ERN). ERN was founded by Janine Jacques in 2011 to help at risk equines (Donkeys, Horses and Mules). ERN has rescued over 1000 equines since 2011. They currently focus on Amish Driving horses, plow horses and mules. You can see the animals on the farm by watching the livestream Donkey Cam.
Goldy's Farm is a culmination of all these philanthropic initiatives. Our mission is to help seniors and veterans achieve peace and joy through our animals. We currently have a mobile team visiting veteran & senior centers weekly and have scheduled visitors to our farm to enjoy donkey walks and coffee with the Donkeys at "Donkey Cafe". We plan to expand our offering for veteran services in December 2024.
