This Is Iowa: Farmer fighting cancer inspires John Deere combine step therapy at rehabilitation center
Every spring and fall, Iowa farmers pull long hours planting and harvesting, solving problems along the way. So when a Story County farmer suddenly faced the toughest season of his life, he didn't stop solving problems.
In a state full of farmers, hard work is not a stranger — it's a lesson passed down through generations that often live on the same gravel road and drive tractors coated with the same shade of green Grandpa used to drive.
Glenn Pope's crew knows that loyalty. That's because most days, they build John Deere combines.
But one combine took a full year to build — a one-of-a-kind model for a farmer none of them ever met.
"Knowing the whole story behind it, it really hits home," Pope said.
Brad Plunkett's mom will tell you — her boy was born to farm.
"It's just in their blood," Karen Plunkett said. "They love it."
He passed this love down to his boys, who grew up riding in the cab, just like their kids did when they hopped in with Grandpa Brad for a ride in his buddy seat during harvest season in Story County.
"He always would give them rides at the combine as soon as they came out," Karen Plunkett said.
Which is why it hurt so much that that's where he was when they all found out.
"Yeah, I mean, I'll never forget the day that he was diagnosed," Ryan Plunkett said. "I mean, he was in a tractor, and he was running the planter, and he hit a fence post, and he called me, and he said, 'You got to come out to the field. I hit a post. I don't feel right.'"
A brain tumor at 55. Radiation and chemo suddenly made farming dangerous as Brad Plunkett began struggling with his balance. Therapists at On With Life in Ankeny tried to help by fueling his passion. When they found out he was a farmer, they decided to take his therapy session outside to the tractor the facility has with its outdoor tools.
"The tractor is about a 1950s tractor ... it's not like the tractors of today, so he was relatively disappointed," said Gail McGaughy, a physical therapist with One With Life.
The small tractor didn't allow Brad Plunkett to practice the climbing he'd need to return to the cab of his combine, so he told his physical therapist they needed to get some combine steps on the property. He even scratched out his idea on scrap paper.
That was a few months before he died, and a year before a team at John Deere got wind of the idea. Assembly lines are not designed for one-of-a-kind models, so for a year, John Deere's Quad Cities team brainstormed, drew up plans and welded and tested and painted.
They worked until they came up with exactly what Brad Plunkett had in mind — a life-size model of a tractor and combine cab perched seven feet off the ground for physical therapy patients to practice climbing up into.
"He's making a difference even when he's not here," said Ryan Plunkett.
"I just want to burst," said Karen Plunkett. "I just feel real proud because I know how happy it would make him."
Watch the video above to see how Brad Plunkett's family reacted to seeing his dream a reality.
More from the April 25, 2024, This Is Iowa episode:
- This Is Iowa: West Des Moines EMT's passion to help children inspired by boy killed in 2016 crash
- This Is Iowa: Broken crayons find new purpose, helping victims of violent crimes
- This Is Iowa: Principal with multiple sclerosis teaches students life lesson on perseverance
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