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With how deeply ingrained farming is in Willy VanWassenhove’s life, the metaphor he used to describe his state of mind while recovering from the accident that resulted in the loss of his right leg was no surprise.
“There’s no point in crying over spilled milk,” the 46-year-old Cabery farmer and well known Kankakee County 4-H volunteer said. “It’s time to move on and do therapy and get better as fast as I can so I can get home and see all my friends and family.”
Before heading to the University of Chicago Medical Center this past week for his 14th and 15th surgeries following the life-altering Sept. 20 accident, VanWassenhove was busy regaining his strength through physical therapy at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab in Chicago.
VanWassenhove had pulled over to the side of the road to secure a couple of rocking hay bales this autumn when another vehicle rear-ended the hay rack he was hauling, pinning him between it and his truck and crushing his legs.
“Don’t take anything for granted, because you never know where you’ll be the next day,” he reflected. “Be nice to people, because it might be the last time you see them. You never know what is in store for you.”
On Wednesday, VanWassenhove had surgery to repair the severed sciatic nerve in his left leg. On Thursday, he received a skin graft to the stump where his right leg was amputated near the knee.
Once it is healed, doctors will make a mold of the stump so that a prosthetic limb can be crafted to fit his body.
“That could take some time,” he acknowledged. “But I’m moving around, doing therapy and getting stronger, in my left leg and both my arms.”
He may have to take some time to recover after his latest two surgeries, but he hopes to return to the rehabilitation facility soon to continue making progress.
“This place is awesome,” he said of the Shirley Ryan facility. “They’ve got like, everything imaginable to rehab a person. There’s lots of wonderful people that work here. I’m way stronger.”
When he first arrived, he could barely move his left leg.
He came a long way in just three weeks, with exercises including standing up using parallel bars, building strength in his left leg with a leg-press machine, and even participating in a boxing class.
Without his right leg, he is unable to walk for the time being.
But he is working toward that goal, taking things “one day at a time.”
BUSY MAN
VanWassenhove Farms has 18 sows and a total of about 200 pigs, from those just born to the animals ready to go to market.
In addition to the farm he operates with his mom, stepdad and wife, which involves breeding and raising Berkshire hogs and selling pork, VanWassenhove also runs a hay business on evenings and weekends.
It is not difficult to imagine his days and weeks are typically long.
He takes care of the pig chores before and after his day job as an inspector with the Illinois Department of Agriculture.
He is also a member of the Cabery Fire Department.
In 2023, he was inducted into the Illinois 4-H Hall of Fame for his dedication to volunteering with local 4-H clubs.
He is Co-Superintendent of Swine for the Kankakee County Fair and serves as committee chair for both the Livestock Auction Committee and the Kankakee County 4-H/ Youth Foundation.
He helps with various chapters of the Future Farmers of America as well.
He is a graduate of Herscher High School and the University of Illinois.
UNCLE WILLY
VanWassenhove married his wife, Lisa, in March.
Lisa, from Clifton, said the experience of her husband’s accident has been eye-opening.
“Life isn’t all about work,” she said. “You have to put that aside once in a while and enjoy your family.”
While Lisa has three grown children, the couple don’t have any kids together — aside from their two blue heelers, Chloe and Izzy.
“Those are our children,” Lisa said of the dogs.
“We just take everyone else’s kids, spoil them and send them back home,” Willy added.
He’s known to many as “Uncle Willy.”
“I have a lot of nieces and nephews, but then I have a lot of kids who call me ‘Uncle Willy’ even though I’m not related to them,” he noted. “Just because I’m friends with their parents and whatnot.”
VILLAGE OF SUPPORT
Since the accident, VanWassenhove has received a flood of cards, phone calls and visits from family, friends and others wishing him well in his recovery.
Youth from several 4-H clubs have sent cards, including the Herscher Hustlers, the Cabery Specials and the Manteno Best Pioneers.
He said it was “humbling” to not only receive cards from kids he knows from the Kankakee County Fair, but also from members of a 4-H club in Kendall County who read about his situation.
“Their whole 4-H club, like 15 of them all wrote me get well cards, and I never even met any of the kids,” he said. “That was really touching.”
VanWassenhove’s close friends have been getting his house ready for his eventual return, including leveling the floors and installing new doors and a shower that are all handicap accessible.
He also has people taking care of the pigs and delivering hay for him while he is in Chicago.
The dogs are staying with his neighbors.
“I have a lot of friends helping out immensely to make sure everything stays going correctly,” VanWassenhove said.
Lisa VanWassenhove added that they have appreciated the vast community support.
“We’re just taking it one day at a time,” Lisa said. “We’re very grateful that we have a huge village behind us to help us along the way.”
It was not long ago that VanWassenhove was on the other side of things, offering assistance to an injured farmer in need.
In 2016, he helped to organize a group of more than 100 area farmers to harvest 620 acres of crops for Buckingham farmer Mike Halpin, who was severely injured when he fell from his truck while unloading hay for his cattle.
THE FUTURE
Many unknowns remain in VanWassenhove’s healing journey.
He cannot say when or to what extent he’ll be able to resume his farming responsibilities or return to work.
He is not yet sure when he’ll be able to return home.
His family came to visit him in Chicago to celebrate Thanksgiving. If necessary, they’ll do the same for the Christmas holiday.
“He continues to get stronger and healthier,” Lisa said. “And that’s really all that matters.”
FARM SAFETY AWARENESS
Ironically, the accident occurred during National Farm Safety and Health Week, which was observed Sept. 15 to 21.
According to the Illinois Department of Agriculture, nearly half of all incidents between motorists and farm implements involve either a left-hand turn or a rear-end collision.
Korbin Collins, Kankakee County Farm Bureau manager, noted that farm tractors usually move at speeds of 15 to 30 miles per hour.
When approaching, a car traveling at a normal speed can overtake a slow-moving vehicle quickly.
The bright reflective triangles on farm equipment are designed to let drivers know that it is a slow-moving vehicle.
“The first thing to do is slow down,” she said.
Since farm vehicles are large, they can have a lot of blind spots.
“It’s important just to be patient with those [farm equipment] drivers, especially if they are coming to an intersection and may be turning left or right,” she said. “It will take them a while to get back up to speed.”
The main things to keep in mind are to slow down, pay attention and use turn signals before passing.
“At the end of the day, farmers want to get home to their families, and we want our consumers to get home to their families too,” Collins said. “It’s important just to slow down, pay attention and take that extra second.”
The first thing many people do when they get behind a tractor or a combine is get aggravated, she added.
“But [farming] is important to our economy, and people need to slow down and be aware,” Collins said. “That way everyone can get home safely.”
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