Adventure farm co-owner accidentally run over and killed by employee, MI cops say

The co-owner of a fifth-generation adventure farm in Michigan died after she was struck by a vehicle in the parking lot of the business, authorities say.

Cindy Lewis had just entered the parking lot of Lewis Adventure Farm & Zoo around 7:45 a.m. July 4 when she was struck by a 61-year-old driver, according to the Oceana County Sheriff’s Office.

The driver, who works at the business, later told authorities she did not Lewis, the sheriff said.

Lewis was still trapped underneath the vehicle when 911 was called, authorities said. She was extricated from under the car and taken to a hospital in Detroit, where the sheriff said she was pronounced dead July 6.

Drugs or alcohol are not believed to have been a factor in the crash, which authorities said was accidental. The sheriff’s office will turn its findings over to the Oceana County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for further review.

“Mrs. Lewis was a positive energetic pillar of our community, integral in the continued growth and development of the family business,” the sheriff said of the 56-year-old business owner.

Lewis Adventure Farm & Zoo, in New Era, is described as having a “real fruit farm, epic corn maze, petting zoo” and more on its 700-acre property.

In a Facebook post, the business said it was “heartbroken” by the death of Lewis, who it described as a “devoted wife, mother and friend to so many.”

“She touched countless lives, and the love being shown in her honor is a reflection of the incredible person she was,” the business said. “We are grateful for the outpouring of support from our community. Please join us in continuing to honor Cindy’s life by treating one another with the same kindness, grace, and dignity that she so effortlessly shared with the world.”

New Era is about a 65-mile drive northwest from Grand Rapids.