Agriland Media Group is delighted to collaborate with Agri Aware to bring you the ‘Sowing Wellbeing in Every Field Series’.
Part two of the campaign sees Kerrie Leonard from Co. Meath speak about her farm safety journey that saw her involved in an accident involving a tractor when she was six-years-of-age.
From a young age, Kerrie, like many growing up, had a keen interest in farming and giving a helping hand in the daily jobs that are involved.
Coming from an organic beef and sheep farm and a strong interest in breeding thoroughbred horses, there was always a job to get done on the farm.
Speaking about life on the farm at a young age to Agri Aware, Kerrie said: “I was very interested in being involved in every aspect of the farm.
“Whether that was standing in gaps when moving stock, or just following up behind everyone that was working on the farm to give them a hand – the typical tasks you would be allowed do at that age.”
Speaking about her farm accident Kerrie said: “I wanted to be a part of the action and be up in the tractor and get a chance to steer the wheel like so many of us did when we were younger.
“While on the way back to the yard sitting on the tractor, I lost grip of the handle above the frame of the door, I was holding onto, and I fell out from the cab of the tractor on the ground.
“Thinking I was in front of the tractor, when actually I at the back of it, the tractor reversed over me, and although initially, I was able to walk, after 24 hours I was told I was paralysed from the waist down and have been ever since.”
A new normal for Kerrie in the aftermath of the accident, saw the Meath native continue to be involved on the farm and continue her love and passion for horses.
Kerrie said there are still times when you think about it but those days are more rare after some dark days during her teen years and into early adulthood when the trauma of the accident had the greatest affect on her.
Kerrie said: “I have learned to cope with the setbacks that the accident has thrown at me.
“Any barrier that is put in front me I see as a challenge and it becomes a game that you have to compete in to get better, and by the time you get through it all, you have gained these new skills that help to cope and adjust – no different to anyone who faces difficulties in their day to day lives.”
Kerrie is as busy as ever currently, having only recently arrived back from the Paralympics in Paris having competed in the para-archery games, the three-time National Champion said that farmers know the risks farm pose to one’s life and is becoming “white noise for a lot of people”.
Kerrie added: “Telling a farmer that they are being complacent is a bit of an insult to be honest because they are trying their best.
“However, the more you do something, the greater the chance you go on autopilot and the risks you might be facing don’t become as obvious.
“All I would say is, take a beat. If you’re feeling tired, you’re more likely to make mistake. Taking that extra beat could be a life changing for you.”