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It could've been me
It was a warm fall afternoon and the harvest was in full swing at our Dallas County, Iowa farm. Dad was out in the field and grandpa had just pulled in with another wagon full of soybeans. My brother, Jason--who is three years my elder--and I ran from our grandparents' house out to the grain bins to greet grandpa and assist with unloading the crop. Or so we thought. The year was 1982, I was 9 and my brother and I would sit at the top of the gravity flow wagon "assisting" by letting the adult below know when the wagon was nearly empty. We had done it so many times before, but on this Saturday tragedy was about to happen. We were sitting up there talking about what young children do and throwing a bean or two at each other when my foot was sucked down in the grain. I thought I could pull it back out, but the force was much too great. My brother tried to help me too, but was not successful. Luckily, my grandpa was closeby and my brother yelled loud enough that he could hear him over the sound of the tractors and auger. By the time my grandpa crawled up the ladder on the side of the wagon I had been sucked in to my waist and was sinking fast. My grandpa didn't have time to turn off the auger or shut the door on the wagon before he came up to my brother's calling so he knew acting quickly was imperative to saving my life. Grandpa locked his arms around my chest, the soybeans right below his arms. He pulled with all his might and luckily all that might was enough to pull me out of the grain--a miracle as I look back at it now. My grandpa died in 1984 and I never had the chance to thank him for saving my life. Come to think of it, I guess I need to thank my brother too, I don't think I have ever done that. I tell you this story as people across the nation recognize Farm Safety and Health Week, Sept. 16 to 22. The theme for Farm Safety and Health Week is "It's easier to bury a tradition than a child," with an emphasis on the importance of keeping our youngest farmers safe. The farm is a great place for children to live, work, and play, but everyone on the farm needs to prevent disastrous consequences of not paying attention to proper safety procedures. An organization that has promoted farm safety for the past 30 years is Farm Safety 4 Just Kids. I have always felt a personal connection to the group because of my experience and how the organization was formed. The group was started in 1987 by Marilyn Adams, after her 11-year old son, Keith, suffocated in a gravity flow wagon of shell corn on his family's Earlham, Iowa farm. Their farm was in the neighboring town, only 20 miles away from my home town. After Keith's death, she began a campaign to promote farm safety awareness. While promoting farm safety she learned of the many families who were suffering this same heartache of losing a child in preventable farming accidents and set out to educate the public about these dangers. Currently, Farm Safety 4 Just Kids has 136 chapters in 31 states and has reached 1,133,469 children through 22,310 volunteer hours of farm safety education. The group sets out to increase public awareness and understanding of the hazards to children on the farm. Today their programs include safety all across the farm including ATV riding and animal safety as well as safety around large farm equipment. Companies making the large equipment are more aware of promoting safety as well by providing safety instructional materials to farmers, placing warning stickers on the equipment and sponsoring safety demonstrations. By simply following proper procedures on the farm, whether it is with animals or equipment, so many accidents can be prevented. We all have learned through the years what some of the proper procedures are, but we can always do a better job of practicing those procedures. I for one, can account for safety first hand. For if it hadn't been for a couple family members on that day over 25 years ago, I wouldn't be here to promote farm safety. Take it into your own hands and prevent the next accident or tragedy on the farm. To become involved with Farm Safety 4 Just Kids, go to www.fs4jk.org or call 1-800-423-5437. Jennifer Bremer can be reached by phone at 515-833-2120 or by e-mail at jbremermaj@hotmail.com.
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