WEST FRIENDSHIP, Md. — Wayne and Cindee Savage’s dream of owning a dairy farm became a reality in December of 1987. During the prior year they ran back and forth between two farms, building equity. After a year of construction and renovations, they moved their herd to the current Knoxville location. They were two busy parents with four young children, Chip (14), Kelli (13), Jami (10), and Ryan (7). Together as a family, they developed Savage-Leigh Holsteins. They survived changes, challenges, and many surprises.
Savage-Leigh has bred or developed over 200 Excellent cows, with the highest being scored EX-96-2E GMD. Their herd produced numerous Gold Medal Dams, Dams of Merit, national milk and fat production winners and the Progressive Genetics Award.
Embryo transfers and IVF allowed them to escalate the development of their key families. The most notable marketing giant was the Linda family, which is now over 20 generations of Savage-Leigh breeding.
Savage-Leigh held many sales with the help of Remsburg Sale Service and MD-Hillbrook and have sold animals and embryos worldwide. Exhibiting their herd is something the family enjoyed and all four children were very active in the showring on the local, state, and national levels, winning prizes for champions, best bred & owned, futurities, supreme and premier breeder and exhibitor awards.
They have won many All-Maryland and Junior All-Maryland awards along with All-American and Junior All-American nominations and winners. They even had a National Brown Swiss Champion and Bell Ringer along with a Jersey 4-H supreme champion.
Red & White Holsteins became part of the herd when the grandkids came along, adding to their showring success. One of their fondest showring memories is standing alongside Brookview Tony Charity (EX-97) at three national shows with bred & owned Savage-Leigh E Star Grace (EX-95 GMD).
Wayne and Cindee have both been very involved in the dairy industry and have served on many local, state, and national committees. While in Montgomery County, Wayne was secretary/treasurer of the Montgomery County Holstein Club and also secretary of the Frederick/Montgomery DHIA. Wayne and Cindee are past Maryland Holstein directors. They served on the show, futurity, junior, breed improvement, sale and national convention committees.
Cindee served on national Holstein show and Pennsylvania All-American Dairy Show committees. While on the national Holstein show committee, she organized the non-profit “Friends of Holstein Youth,” which donated show shirts for all juniors at national shows. She also took Maryland juniors to the Grand National Junior Show in Louisville, Kentucky as a state group with uniform decorations and photo display. She served on the Dairy One DHIA Board representing Maryland.
Both Wayne and Cindee were Montgomery County 4-H leaders. Wayne is a lifetime member of the Montgomery County Fair. He is also a member of the second oldest Farmers Club in Maryland, dating back to the 1800’s. They have been honored as a 75-year member of Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Association and a Quality Producer, Maryland Holstein Outstanding Junior and Senior breeders, Frederick County Farm Family of the Year, and Dairy of Distinction. Further, the couple has helped promote the dairy industry through social media, hosting farm tours, taking cows to schools, malls, and even Washington D.C. They have hosted 4-H, FFA, collegiate dairy judging practices, workshops and picnics.
The current Savage-Leigh herd consists of 220 Registered Holsteins and a few Jerseys, along with 300 replacement heifers. They own 200+ acres, rent an additional 900 of crop land, and help local farmers with custom field work. Daughter Kelli and her husband, Matt, along with their four children, Kendall, Breckin, Andie and Gatlin, manage the dairy herd while son Ryan and his wife, Ashley, along with their three young sons, Easton, Rhett and Jace, are involved in the crop and custom work.
Nephew Eric Geary also works at the farm. There are many people other than their family who encouraged them during this journey, most notably is the King Family of Kingstead Farms, Marlin and Kathy Hoff of Coldsprings Farms, Norman Hill, a master showman; Holstein legend Peter Heffering of Hanover-Hill Holsteins and “Uncle” Ronnie Heffner (master story teller).
Wayne and Cindee say: “Dairy Farming has given us a life we love, working with our family and producing nature’s most nearly perfect food … milk!”
