By ANN ALLEN
Indiana Correspondent

COLDWATER, Mich. — On Nov. 29, friends of Heath Penick will host a benefit on his behalf at the Coldwater Eagles Aerie 1907 located at 331 Butters Avenue in Coldwater.

The event begins at 2 p.m. and includes dinner, drinks, raffles and an auction. The cost is a donation at the door.

Penick, 33, has been in and out of a coma since falling from a silo at the family farm east of nearby Orland, Ind., early in October. He had been using a rope to steady himself, but the rope broke and he fell an estimated 60 feet, landing on concrete where his father, Terry, found him.

Penick, described as one of the bright young men of the dairy industry, had been in frequent demand by other dairy farmers to find the right cow for them. He has a knack for breeding, developing and showing fine dairy cattle, carrying on a century-old family tradition.

Unfortunately for the single father of two, he had no insurance.
He has been a patient at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne, Ind., since being airlifted there immediately after the accident. He has had surgery on his leg and arm as well as on his face. Most of his facial bones were broken.

“Heath was in very good shape,” said Mark Mohney of Purdy Tractor and Implement in Hillsdale, Mich., who is chairing the benefit. “He wouldn’t have survived otherwise.”

Mohney predicted Penick’s recovery would be a “long affair.
“Sometimes he responds and sometimes he doesn’t,” he said.
Anyone wanting more information about the Nov. 29 benefit may call Mohney at 517-523-2185, ext. 28, e-mail him at sales@purdytractor.com or call Terry Penick at 260-668-1965.