Father/Son Producers Overcome Injuries to
Continue to Farm
(Fombell,
PA) Tim and Blane Sturgeon, successful father-son
dairy producers from Lawrence County, PA, understand the challenges of farming
with serious health conditions. Tim’s son Blane was
only18 on December 18, 2000, when a skid steer incident nearly killed him.
Technically, he did die – twice that day – but today his mischievous eyes and
warm smile attest to a full and rewarding life.
“It was a cold and miserable
December day,” relates Tim. “Blane was feeding cows
when he realized the foot pedals on the 18-day-old skid loader were frozen with
silage and ice from an overnight rain and ice storm. Blane
raised the bucket and engaged the safety switch, then climbed out of the
machine and tried to free the pedals.
The bucket suddenly released, crushing him across the chest and
shoulders. Blane sounded the horn and I came running;
I also yelled to his brothers Thad and Wade to quit milking and to come help.
As I sat holding Blane’s head, I saw the life seeping
from him as he gasped for air.”
Talking with Tim, it’s obvious
that those horrible moments remain indelibly imprinted in his mind. When they
were finally able to get the bucket to move by pouring hot water on the pedals
to melt the debris, Blane had already been without
air for several minutes. Blane’s older brother Thad
administered CPR thru instructions provided over the phone with the 911 center.
When EMT professionals arrived, they took over until a second group of
emergency personnel came who were specially trained to care for entrapment and
trauma injuries. This was fortunate, as Blane’s heart
stopped while they waited in the ambulance for a helicopter to arrive. He
stopped breathing again while in the air, where it was necessary to bring him
back to life for the second time.
“I was in a coma for 3 ½ days,”
explains Blane, “and I remember little of the
accident or the first days in the hospital. One lung was fully collapsed, the
other partially collapsed, and my heart was bruised. My chest cavity was
completely crushed, and I sustained injuries to my shoulder. Today, I still
can’t put my hands above my head for any length of time, and it’s affected my
fine motor dexterity. There’s a bulging disk in my back that bothers me quite a
bit; and I also don’t have the lung capacity I once had. I was in the best
shape of my life that fall, since I had played football for our high school
team. I weighed 220 pounds, and was pretty fast and lean. When I left the
hospital, my weight had dropped to 165 pounds. I’ve come a long way in my
healing, but there is still a ways to go.”
Tim has faced his own physical
challenges, though not quite as dramatically as his son. In November of 2003,
Tim was hit hard on his left leg by a cow. His knee was swollen and painful,
and an MRI one month later revealed a growth the size of a grain of rice. When
the pain wasn’t resolved, he underwent surgery in March.
“By then, the growth had grown
considerably,” explains Tim. “Unfortunately, removing it wasn’t the end of the problem.
I was allergic to the stitches used, and the incision became infected. It’s
still difficult for me to walk, especially over uneven ground. And getting on
and off the tractors can be a real trial.”
The Sturgeon’s first became aware
of AgrAbility for Pennsylvanians, a program that assists farmers and farm
family members who are coping with an injury or long term health condition,
when County Extension Educator Bill Chess suggested that they learn
how the project might help. Staff members from project partners Penn State
Cooperative Extension and Easter Seals Central Pennsylvania visited the men at
their farm to learn what tasks had become most difficult, and/or posed the most
risk for secondary injury.
“We were confident that there were
a number of modifications that could make a big difference for Tim and Blane,” explains Linda Fetzer, PA’s
Project Assistant. “After completing a prioritized list of proposed
modifications, and identifying the most appropriate adaptations and suppliers
for those changes, the information was provided to PA Office of Vocational
Rehabilitation. Sturgeons were already
working with OVR and this state agency has been invaluable when working with
individuals involved in production agriculture.
OVR is part of the state’s Department of Labor and Industry and receives
both state and federal funds.”
Today, improved steps have been
added to three of the farm’s tractors, allowing Tim to access the cabs with
greater ease and less stress on the knee as he works the nearly 500 acres
farmed by the father and sons. Additionally, automatic hitching systems made
all the difference this fall. Responsible for 95% of the corn chopping on the
farm, Tim figures he is on and off the tractor at least 80 times in one day.
With the hitches, that number was reduced to single digits.
Comfort mats have been added to
the milking parlor, where the Sturgeons milk 100
“I really feel the difference at
night,” notes Tim. “While I’m often still tired, I’m no longer exhausted from
the pain and stress on my leg. And I know the modifications have made a big
difference for Blane, as well. I love farming with my
boys, and we work well together and enjoy what we do because we’ve each found
our niche within the farm. I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else, and I’m
grateful to AgrAbility for Pennsylvanians and OVR for making it possible for me
to remain working for many years to come.”
AgrAbility for Pennsylvanians
helps individuals who are coping with many different kinds of physical
challenges, including arthritis, stroke, knee and back problems, amputations,
vision and hearing disabilities, and many others. For more information about the project, or to
find out how AgrAbility can help you or someone you know, telephone toll free
in PA to 1-866-238-4434. The project is
also found on the web at http://AgExtEd.cas.psu.edu/agrab/.