The Walworthians: Heald Family Emus

The Walworthians

A collection of telephone interviews published in the Wayne County STAR Newspaper and Wayne County MAIL Newspaper, 1994-209

by Kate Chamberlin

The Heald Family’s Emus

June 04, 1997

Tweetie and Sylvester are two emus in our neighborhood. They live with the Heald family on the Walworth-Marion Road.

Shortly after Kevin and Barb (the former Barbara Denniston) were married on July 20, 1985, they bought the old Bulterman homestead.

“It had been abandoned for many years when we bought it,” Barb said. “We knew we wanted to live in a country environment and, eventually, be like a Dr. Doolittle with lots of kids and animals around.”

Two years ago, they visited friends who raised Emus (say: ee-meuuz) on their large farm on Eddy Ridge Road. They bought Tweetie and Sylvester, who began laying eggs this winter.

“Tweetie’s eggs are really very beautiful,” Barb said.

They are dark emerald green with speckled etches on the outer surface. They are layered with different colors of green.

Each egg is three and a half inches wide and four to five inches long.

One egg feeds a family of four quite nicely,” Barb laughed. “We began to wonder what to do with all the eggs we were getting.” Some of them were eaten and some of them were incubated. Four chicks have joined the flock, but, they have to be kept separate from the adults.

In their natural Australia, the males sit and incubate the eggs, but our winters here are much too cold for them. The healds put a pen up in their living room to protect the chicks.

No, I don’t think Barb meant that Kevin slept with the eggs!

The meat of the emu is considered red meat. It is 97% fat free. Oils from the emu are penetrating oils and used in cosmetics. Their feathers are used in jewelry.

Barb is a pal-mac high school and cobleskil graduate and employed by the Wayne Central School District as a computer technology assistant in the Freewill Elementary building. In 1995, she was hired to work one-on-one with a student who used a computer. Barb had to learn it in order to help the student. It kindled a love of computers she didn’t know she had.

Eventually in every classroom,” Barb said enthusiastically, “there will be four computers for the students to use plus one for the teacher.

“I’ll go into the classrooms to train the students how to use the computers.”

Her husband, Kevin is the owner and operator of Reds Lanscaping. I know Barb’s brother John introduced them and, if I can ever catch Kevin near a phone, I’ll tell you his side of the story.

Her son, Timothy, 11, enjoys chorus, playing his trumpet in the band and all sorts of sports.

Jessica is a Girl Scout and reads: Gertrude Chandler Warner’s The Boxcar children.

“I love living where we live,” Barb said. “It is so park-like. It is a great place to raise kids, emus and in a few weeks, piglets.”

The next time you see Barb, ask her to show you her imitation of an emu’s awkward run (and hope she doesn’t trip herself up!)

Thanks, Barb, you are a Walworthian, with the accent on worth.

2018 Up-Date: The Heald’s now own and operate an RV park in Macedon, NY, along the Erie Canal.