It was wonderful to have a few hours away from the office. A drive through the countryside making calls on clients was just what Walt Just, a former farm boy enjoyed now and then.
In an alfalfa field to the right, he noticed a 970 Case tractor and mower cutting down hay. Wait a minute - that tractor and rig are crossing the road ahead at a pretty fast clip. What’s the hurry? Holy Cow! It’s heading into a corn field! Something’s wrong!
Nothing in his 44 years could have prepared Walt Just for what he was about to do.
At that time, Just served as Assistant Branch Manager of the Fargo, ND office of Farm Credit Services (today Ag Country). He pulled his car onto the shoulder of the highway and took off on foot in hot pursuit of the runaway tractor. It was August 16, 1989 and the corn was about as tall as five foot eight, 165 pound Just!
Moving along at an estimated speed of six or seven miles per hour, the tractor weaved its way in and around the corn field for one-third mile, crossing the rows until it finally swerved its way into the east/west direction of the rows allowing Just to follow a clearer path instead of smashing through a solid curtain of stiff corn stalks.
Like this one, many tractors of the era are entered from the front, making it impossible for him to enter the cab of this runaway tractor without the risk of being driven over. However, noticing the rear window was slightly open he began to formulate a plan.
Another quarter of a mile, and Just saw his chance. In seconds he managed to grab the spare sickle from the back of the window, hop onto the tractor, pry open the back window and hoist himself into the cab of the runaway tractor.
Inside the cab of the tractor, cradled around the gear shift in a pool of grease was a 79-year-old man. Employed by a rural Walcott, ND farmer, the hired hand had lost control of the vehicle during a seizure.
Just halted the tractor, drove it back to the location of his car and got the man out of the tractor safely. By then the hired hand regained consciousness and when Just explained that he was taking him to the nearest hospital, he responded that he was fine now and could continue his days work. When Just insisted on taking him to the hospital, the hired hand took a swing at him and collapsed to the ground. Just ultimately dragged the hired hand up the embankment, got him into his car and sped the forty miles to the nearest hospital in Fargo, ND.
The entire experience lasted less than two hours but felt like a lifetime. The hired hand retired. His employer thanked Just for his bravery and for saving his equipment and Just went home to a hot shower and back to work.
Somehow I think there had to be a phone booth and a change of clothes in this true story of a Germans from Russia superhero!
Author’s note: Walt Just is my older brother. He gave me this story all those years ago in a casual phone visit shortly after the event. What was his response to my awe over the entire experience? “It is all in a day’s work, Carol!” That led me to think about our people - “Unser Leute” – as we call our selves. Walt has a point. I have collected family stories for years. From the mundane to the unbelievable – our people simply do what is needed to keep the rhythm of life steady and on course. We don’t expect accolades or rewards. Sometimes we are downright uncomfortable with such frivolity.
Our family proudly descends from the villages of Neudorf and Kassel in the Glückstal District and Klöstitz in Bessarabia.
Carol Just, Prairie Lights, September 2012
This entry was featured in the Fall 2012 Glueckstal Colonies Research Assn (GCRA) Newsletter
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