80 Illinois farmers come together to help one of their own

Oct 20, 2017

Andy Pecharich recently had a double lung transplant and didn’t know if he’d be able to harvest his crops

By Diego Flammini
News Reporter
Farms.com

Farmers in Illinois showed support for of their own by helping a fellow producer harvest his crops.

Andy Pecharich of Avon, IL, recently underwent a double lung transplant and wasn’t sure if he’d be able to get his 500 acres of corn and soybeans off during his recovery.

That’s when Dave Serven recruited 79 other farmers to donate their time and machinery to make sure Pecharich’s crop was harvested on time.

Farmers operated 15 combines to get the crop off, while others drove semis to haul the corn and soybeans to a local elevator.

“This is the end product you worked all year (for), to raise your crop and harvest it,” Serven told WQAD yesterday, a day after the harvest gathering. “(To) get it to the elevator is a great feeling.”

Pecharich was blown away by the friendship and sense of community among farmers in Illinois.

“It’s overwhelming and humbling to see all the generous people who showed up to help me with (the harvest),” he told the Galesburg Register-Mail yesterday. “You can really appreciate your friends and neighbors for what they do for you. I’m very thankful to have such a good group (of people) around here.”

But his friends were eager to lend a hand, because they knew he’d be there for them in a time of need.

“(Andy is a) great guy,” volunteer Andy Scmalshof told WQAD. “He’d do the same thing if somebody else had a problem. He’d be there to help too.”

Video: A Farm Song (Busy) | Parody of A Bar Song (Tipsy) by Shaboozey

Lyrics:

My days begin with workin’, Alarm’s at 5 o’clock,
I Fill 5 gallon buckets, The feeders and the troughs,
This five to nine ain’t workin’, why the heck do I work so hard?,
I can’t worry ‘bout health problems, I can sleep in when I’m gone,

One, here comes the two to the three to the four,
Tell em’ ‘buy another cow, we need plenty more’,
Blue jeans are gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
There’s another flock of sheep that still needs feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

I’ve been working pretty stressed but,
I ain’t changing for some cash,
Lord knows that I’m very blessed (More chores),
But I gotta say it’s hard,
Workin’ outside gettin’ charred,
Living out here on the farm, (more chores)

One, here comes the two to the three to the four,
Tell em’ ‘buy another cow, we need plenty more’,
Blue jeans are gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history
There’s another 20 chickens that still need feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Everybody on the farm getting’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,

Fun, here on ranch that’s what you can’t ignore,
Might be pretty hard but I love it to its core,
Flannel’s gettin’ dirty, what else could I ask for,
Oh my, more chores (Tell ‘em sing with me)

Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
There’s another flock of sheep that still needs feed,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Someone pour me up another shot of sweet tea,
They know me and working hard’s got a history,
Watching cattle in the dark, don’t miss me,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
(Yeeeeeehaw)
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
Everybody on the farm gettin’ busy,
It’s the best bro, go get yourself a farm