It was one man’s dream that pushed the Southern Illinois John Deere collectors to form a club to celebrate their hobby.

It didn’t matter to Reginald “Regi” Detmer that he was battling cancer. This was his dream, and he succeeded into making it a reality. After his death on July 30 this year, the club members – many who are close friends and family – are still reeling.

While immersed in grief over the loss, the club is moving forward, continuing with the legacy that Regi and other founders began. On Aug. 14, just a few short weeks after his death, the club gathered for its meeting at the Gerald and Jane Thole home in Highland, Ill., where the Tholes took their beautiful collection of JD tractors out of the shed and into the sunshine for members to enjoy.

Dave Meadows attended the meeting. He is in charge of the Trenton, Ill., Tractor Fest, and shared that he wished to do something in Regi’s honor. He tentatively plans in 2012 to have a tractor pull in his memory.

This idea is particularly insightful because Regi and his family started a Plow for the Cure day at his farm to assist cancer victims. Regi’s cancer began with his prostate. “He had kicked it,” his daughter, Barbara Johnson, explained, “then, he was diagnosed with melanoma.

“The club was his legacy. In October 2009, the doctor told him he had six months to two years.”  This just seemed to make Regi want the club more.

This grain farmer once had dairy cows, then drove a truck after selling off his herd, said his wife, Julie. “It was 2009 when they formed a board for the club,” Barbara said. “Then the Southern Illinois Green Iron Club was formed in 2010.”

With a bevy of Deere tractors that he named, like the dairy cattle he once had, Regi was also a collector of JD farm toys and created a mobile display he called “Tractors Now & Then.” Members of the club recently reminisced about hauling the display in parades.

“He has a very large collection of toys,” his brother, Stanley Detmer, said. “They take up three rooms.”

Kyle Detmer, Regi’s grandson, has fond recollections of Deere equipment and his grandpa. “The plow pulls with his John Deere A are special memories to me. Grandpa started letting us grandkids use the 1961 John Deere A when we were kids,” he added.

Regi also purchased a special parade seat that Kyle and his girlfriend rode on the A, which fit behind Regi and Julie. They rode together while parading.

Regi is also remembered as a tractor puller. At several recent local pulls, there have been moments of silence in his honor.

John Hampel of St. Rose, a friend of Kyle’s, recalls seeing tractors when he was six belonging to Regi. These made an impact, and a friendship was formed. “When I wanted to paint my truck, Regi let me use his paint booth. We went to tractor-pulling events.”

“This is what Regi wanted,” Allen Albers of Germantown said, about the formation and success of the club. “He was the reason a lot of people joined.”

“This club was his main goal,” Duck Netemeyer added.

Club member Mark Berkel shared, “I’ve really enjoyed myself. I’m glad I knew Regi. He was special, a very honorable man. This club was his dream, his legacy.”

Although they share the same last name, third cousin Jeffrey Detmer just really became connected with Regi through the club: “I have a lot of respect for him.”

Ivan Timmerman from Breeze, Ill., added, “My life is better for knowing Regi. We liked the same things; tractors, rock-and-roll music and toys.”

Kelly Wesselmann said, “We girls called him ‘Grandpa.’” Her husband, Allen, added, “He taught me that the tractor shows are for the people. Regi was out to make other people’s day.”

(Note: In her Sept. 14 column, Cindy said a tractor had been preserved by the Lessmann family, but it should have read “the Iverson family.” “Lessmann” was the brand of tractor. All other references in the column were correct. – Ed.)

Readers with questions or comments for Cindy Ladage may write to her in care of this publication.