Verona resident swaps marketing career for farm animals

When Verona’s Carolyn Robertson Narepecha arrives at a children’s party or a school, she doesn’t come alone.

Narepecha, a resident of the township for about10 years, helps run the Friendly Farmyard, a traveling petting zoo that provides entertainment and educational experiences. 

A New York native, the work with Friendly Farmyard presented a drastic shift for Narepecha. She used to work in sales and marketing but upon moving to Verona, she went back to school at Caldwell University and earned her teaching certificate. She then combined it with her love of animals to launch the traveling petting zoo, along with her classmate at Caldwell, Sue Kutcher of Parsippany. 

“It’s always been a part of me,” Narepecha said of working with animals. “I kind of extended it then to doing some farm animal rescuing. This grew out of that. When I do an event it means something to me. It’s personal because not only am I a mom so I know how important a party or an event is, but aside from that I truly care about the animals that we work with and the people we work with.”

The Verona resident has volunteered with the Montclair and Bloomfield shelters in the past and also rescued some more exotic farm animals. She now spends much of her time at a farm in West Milford where the animals for Friendly Farmyard stay.

Some of the guests she brings to the events include twin baby goats, a pony, a rabbit, chickens and a lamb.

“People just fall in love with them,” she said.

Narepecha and Kutcher started Friendly Farmyard about two years ago. In addition to children’s birthday parties or school events, Narepecha said they also visit special-needs centers and senior facilities.

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“We found that it really made a difference in their lives, working and understanding with animals and that having compassion for others is an important skill,” she said of their work with the special-needs community. “I truly believe that kids’ interaction with animals at a young age really makes them better human beings as they get older.”

Kutcher, who also has a background volunteering with animals, said it’s been phenomenal working with Narepecha.

“She’s the perfect person to work with because she’s got so much background with rescue and helping shelters and donating a lot of her volunteer hours to these foundations,” Kutcher said. “Together, we’re like a dynamic duo. She’s wonderful.”

For more information, visit thefriendlyfarmyard.com.  

Email: jongsma@northjersey.com