Pictured in front of the combine are but a very few of the countless friends, family and neighbors who have helped the Oettchen Family since the tragic death of Brandon Oettchen on June 17. Those present for the picture were some of the crew who helped harvest the 70 plus acres of corn at the Oettchen Farmstead north of Gladbrook. In the photo are Deanna and David McGowan, Jim Osborn, Jim Gienger, Ben Kuehl, Justin Miller, Shari and Dave Denbow, Randy and Tamara Oettchen, Jared Denbow, Caroline Oettchen and Karen and Buck Jones.

Friends and neighbors assembled on Saturday, Nov. 6 north of Gladbrook at the farm of the late Brandon Oettchen to harvest his corn. The soybeans had been combined earlier.

The 70 some acres of corn was taken out in about four hours. Jared Denbow and Jim Osborn ran their combines without stopping as auger wagons were pulled alongside to fill. A line of semi trucks and drivers hauled the corn directly to Heartland Coop in Lincoln.

Brandon died on June 17 as a result of a traffic accident in Waterloo. He began farming the Oettchen Farmstead in 2013. His mother Tamara Oettchen stated, “Brandon had all the crops in and the spraying done before the accident.”

And in commenting about the gesture she and dad Randy Oettchen wanted, “… to be certain that people understand that this today does not even begin to cover all the people who have helped from mowing lawn to harvesting the beans. There have been so many I cannot even begin to list all the names. We do not want to ever leave out anyone who helped. We just cannot thank everyone enough.”

It was a very emotional time for those present to watch the community come together. The day was put together by Brandon’s good friend, Jared Denbow. “Jared and Justin (Miller) had been friends since they were 3 or 4 years old old,” Tamara Oettchen said. “They were all roommates at college. They had been like brothers.”

David McGowan and Randy Oettchen dump grain from their carts. The combines just kept moving as the auger wagons hauled the corn to the waiting semis.

David McGowan summed up the feelings of many as he said, “We are very glad to be able to help out some very good friends. Brandon was the recipient of the very first Deb McGowan Scholarship. He was such a good person and had so much going for him. This is the least we can do for Brandon and his family.”