Leininger Family Gets Harvest Help
Published: Friday, December 8, 2023
"We're just waiting to see if God takes him home or leaves him here with us."
Those were the words of one family member describing the life-or-death struggle last Wednesday of a well-known, well-loved St. Joseph County (Ind.) farmer, Jerry Leininger.
On Thanksgiving day, Leininger left early from a family gathering so he could go home and finish harvesting his corn crop. When his wife, Becky, arrived home that night, she found Jerry lying on the floor of his shop, alive but unresponsive.
Paramedics were called and Leininger was taken to Memorial Hospital in South Bend, where doctors performed surgery for a brain bleed. Despite the best efforts of the surgeons, the 74-year-old farmer remained unconscious and connected to life support.
Last Wednesday, nearly 30 farmers gathered on a crisp, cold morning to complete the harvesting work that Jerry had wanted to do on Thanksgiving day. Also on hand were members of his family, including his stepdaughter, Janette Walter, and his niece, Wendy Tapia.
Both expressed their appreciation for the harvest help. But they were also full of sadness, knowing that Jerry was nearing the end of his life.
Becky was with Jerry at the hospital.
"She's up there now, and they're going to take him off of the ventilator sometime today," Walter said. "We're just waiting to see if God takes him home or leaves him here with us."
Later that day, Jerry Leininger died.
The harvesting effort was organized by Phil Lehman, a local seed salesman from Madison Twp. He said farmers came "out of the woodwork" to volunteer.
They brought seven combines, eight grain carts and 17 semis to haul grain. They harvested 140 acres at four locations. All of the grain was transported to Smithfield Grain in LaPaz.
"It's just neat. It's just neat," Lehman said, adding that 28 farmers showed up to help. Volunteers came from St. Joseph, Marshall and LaPorte counties.
He said the large turnout was a tribute to Leininger, who raised cattle and was a fixture at the weekly hay auction in Wakarusa.
"I knew he had friends, I just didn't know he had that many," Lehman said.
He recalled the last time he spoke with Leininger was on Thanksgiving eve. The final words Leininger spoke to him were: "Count your blessings, pal. Have a good Thanksgiving."
Tom McCormick, a friend and fellow farmer, created a giant get-well card for Leininger. He collected signatures from all of the volunteers. On the cover of the card was the phrase "You ain't gonna believe this," something the Lakeville farmer was known to utter every time he entered a room. That would always be followed by an interesting story.
Jim Burkey, another friend and fellow farmer, said Leininger was an outgoing person and was well-liked. "He was an extremely pleasant guy," he said. "He was kind of the life of the party."
Leman added that Leininger didn't have any enemies.
"He was loved by everyone," he said.
Last Wednesday's communal corn harvest was the farming community's way of expressing that love.
"He's got tremendous friends," Lehman said. "People are here and they are enjoying what they are doing today. That's one thing about the farming community. When you have an issue like this, we all pull together. There's no competition everybody comes and they want to help. It's just an honor and a tribute to Jerry."
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