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The tractor club was also celebrating its 25th year
so it ended up being a bittersweet day as there was celebration and
a bit of sorrow all wrapped up in the event.
The late Ken Harnacke is credited for keeping the tractor club going
a few years back when it was about to die out. Now the group is
looking at moving forward without their friend.
In the meantime, since Ken’s passing, wife Carla, son-in-law and
daughter Dave and Amanda Grey have decided that they are not
prepared to move on with the building business. The business is
being taken over by Ken’s nephew Cameron who worked with his uncle
at the shop for the last several years.
The contents of the Harnacke building along with many of the items
that Ken has collected and made over the years will be sold at
auction this coming weekend. Cameron has relocated the business and
is working out of his home and plans to utilize some storage space
at the family farm for the building supplies used in the business.
On Saturday about 20 tractors lined both sides of the street for the
show portion of the day. The owners of those machines enjoyed a time
of visiting with each other and a number of visitors stopped by to
take a look-see.
The equipment varied from the very old to pretty new, very large, to
really small. Each one held its own interesting aspects and offered
a glimpse into life on the farm.
At noon time the Harnacke’s provided the traditional
ham and bean lunch with cornbread for everyone there.
Immediately after lunch the drawing was held for the International
856 pedal tractor that has been a fundraiser raffle for Relay for
Life and the American Cancer Society since May of this year.
The Harnacke family gathered around the tractor for one last photo
before the drawing was done by Ken’s wife Carla with oversight
offered by grandson Ryne.
Before the drawing Karen Hargis talked about the donation and how
the fundraiser had gone.
She noted that Ken came up with the idea of having a
raffle for a pedal tractor to raise money for Relay for Life and
Breast Cancer Awareness. He had wanted to donate the tractor in
honor of Carla, who is a cancer survivor. When the conversations
began, Ken was not aware that he had cancer, but soon after, he
found out that he too would fight to be a survivor of the disease.
Ken went through surgery and treatment and seemed to be doing well,
but then in early June, while recovering from treatment, he had a
heart attack and passed away.
Ken’s funeral was held on the same day as the Logan County Relay for
Life.
The tractor was donated to the Friends and Family
Team for Relay for Life. Hargis is the team leader for that group
that consists of members from CCAonline, Collision Concepts, Lincoln
Daily News and Lincoln Printers.
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Hargis recalled that when Harnacke brought the
suggestion to her, he said that he would hope that the tractor would
raise $300 for Relay for Life. Hargis had countered that she
intended to work toward a $1,000 total for the special edition pedal
toy.
With the last minute ticket sales at the tractor show on Saturday,
Hargis announced that the tractor raffle had brought in more than
$1,700. In fact, the actual account that was determined later that
day came out at $1,705; a great response that far exceeded the
expectations of both Harnacke and Hargis.
On Saturday Hargis noted that while the tractor had
been donated in honor of Carla, it became not just an honorary item
but also a tribute to Ken.
After she spoke, Hargis shook up the box of tickets
and invited Carla to draw out the name of the lucky winner. That
winner was Diana Crowell of Lincoln. Crowell was not present for the
drawing but was contacted afterward. On Monday she arrived at the
Lincoln Daily News offices to claim her prize.
Crowell said that she purchased her ticket at the ALMH Market on one
of the numerous Saturday’s that Hargis had it on display there. She
said that she has two grandchildren, a girl who is four-years-old
and a boy who is one. She said that the kids are very much looking
forward to riding on their new toy. Crowell said that when she
purchased her ticket she was thinking it would be a good thing for
her grandchildren. But in addition to that, she said that she
purchased the ticket with remembrance of the many friends and family
members she knows who have battled cancer.
After the drawing on Saturday, it was time for the tractor parade
around town. The tractor owners all gathered and soon the parade
around town was underway. The tractors took a pretty large sweep
around town, coming back into the main business district from the
west, past the grain elevator.
With the parade completed, the day was pretty much
done. There was a lovely decorated cake inside the New Holland Fire
house where lunch was served. Everyone was invited to come back
inside the firehouse for dessert. Some of the tractors stayed for a
while afterward and others loaded up and headed home.
The day was good, the weather was perfect, and the folks in
attendance enjoyed a time of sharing their knowledge about farm
implements with others.
There was also time to remember Ken and speak with the family. Ken
will be missed by many, but he created a legacy in what he did for
the club and for Relay for Life, and his memory will live on through
his family as well as all of the friends he made over the years.
Thank you Ken for your good heart!
[Nila Smith]
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