Illinois farmers harvest hundreds of acres to help terminally ill friend

Updated
Farmers Gather to Help Cancer-Stricken Colleague in 'The Most Amazing Harvest'
Farmers Gather to Help Cancer-Stricken Colleague in 'The Most Amazing Harvest'


Dozens of people from the farming community in Illinois came together to help a terminally ill man harvest his farm in Galva, Illinois.

WXIN reports that photos of the act went viral when Jason Bates wrote a lengthy post on Facebook about his cousin, Carl, who is terminally sick with cancer.

When confronted with how they were going to harvest all 450 acres of Carl's land, Jason wrote that their other cousin, Dan, came up with a plan and "it all exploded from there."

When Friday, September 25th came around, dozens showed up to help reap the harvest.

Whereas an entire harvest would usually take about a week, the volunteers were able to successfully execute the plan in just 10 hours.




Here's a breakdown of the numbers:

  • 40 neighbors

  • 10 combines

  • 12 grain trucks

  • 16 semi-trucks

  • 450 acres

  • 10 hours

Jason Bates said Dan was almost in tears just recalling the neighbors' kindhearted acts. He said Dan and Carl are more like brothers to each other and "he was just astonished at what this tight-knit community was able to do."

Dan told Jason:

"(Carl Bates' family) has so much going on right now, with medical bills and the condition he's in...This is one less thing they have to worry about. If they need to sell (the corn) to pay bills, it's done. They can now worry about Carl and take care of him."


Carl is currently in hospice care, but he reportedly was able to gather the strength to witness his neighbors' selfless act.

"He was amazed and in awe," Jason wrote.

Although his health was taxing him, after a rest, Carl came back outside later in the day to personally thank every one of the volunteers.

"This is the stuff strong communities are made of," said Jason.

Couldn't agree more.

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