After two years of working on their first tractor, the Harrison Elementary School Tractor Club is ready to auction it off. “Two years ago I set out to kind of bring my hobby into a program with the kids and develop the Tractor Club with my father,” club sponsor and Harrison physical education teacher Scott Mehlberg said in an interview Wednesday afternoon. “Over the past two years we have had our ups and downs and challenges with this machine, and we are happy to say we are now complete and we are going to sell the tractor.” Proceeds from the sale will go toward future projects of the Tractor Club. The tractor is a 1976 Wheel Horse C-120 “that was completely torn down, sandblasted, powder coated and reassembled by the kids,” he said. Mehlberg said he never anticipated it taking this long, but the process “has been very rewarding, hopefully for the kids, but I can honestly say I have received more blessings from it than I could ever imagine. It’s been a fun experience working with the kids.” He estimated 20 students worked on the tractor in fourth through sixth grade. To sell the tractor, Mehlberg said they are going to do a sealed bid auction. The reserve price for the tractor is $500, and any bid needs to be above that. Bids can be sent to Harrison, attention Scott Mehlberg, at 1300 Husky Trail, Warsaw, IN 46582, before Oct. 2, or bids can be dropped off at the front office. On Oct. 3 at approximately 2 p.m. at Mehlberg’s tractor show in Clunette, the Tractor Club will gather to open the bids and the kids will reveal who had the highest bid. Bidders need not be present, but with their bid they should include their name, contact information and their bid of what they will pay above the $500 reserve price. For their next projects, Mehlberg said the Harrison Tractor Club is currently finishing another Wheel Horse C-121, and is in the process of sandblasting and powder coating a Wheel Horse B80 that the kids won in a national essay contest 1-1/2 years ago. Mehlberg had to pick up that B80 in Pennsylvania. Principal Lee Snider said, “From my perspective, it’s exciting to see Scott sharing his hobby, sharing his joy, his skills with the kids. I think it ties with our mission statement and the idea that everybody has value and Scott has these skills that he can share to enrich the lives of our students in a real unique way.” Mehlberg added, “This club would not function as well as it does without the expertise and knowledge of my father, Dave Mehlberg, and all his years of working with these machines and sharing it with the kids as well.”
