Manchester farmers collecting donations for flooded Nebraska farmers

Some eastern Iowa farmers are preparing to take a trip to the west. It will not serve as a vacation, but rather a chance to deliver aid to flood victims in Nebraska.

After seeing the videos and pictures of the devastating flooding in Nebraska, Jordan LeClere and his lifelong friend Joshua Wendling are taking matters into their own hands. LeClere said as a passionate farmer, it would be devastating if his fields were flooded like those in Nebraska.

So he is looking to fill a truck, take advantage of his commercial driver's license, and drive to Nebraska.

"No one expects to wake up someday and their entire world is washed away by a flood," LeClere said.

Just down the road from the Dairy Queen in Manchester, drivers can see a makeshift sign, written on a hay bale: "Donations for Nebraska."

"Just seeing the destruction and devastation out in Nebraska, and seeing the call for supplies, I really wanted to do something," LeClere said.

LeClere and his neighbors are collecting what they can, ranging from cleaning supplies, fencing, bales of hay, and monetary donations; their goal is to help those farmers in Nebraska clean up and get back to their passions for farming.

"Whatever [we] get... we're going to put them all on a truck and then on the sixth we're going to head out," LeClere said.

Soon, LeClere expects the garage to fill up, when he will hit the road for five hours to the west in an effort to fulfill what he says is a necessary purpose.

"If this is something I can devote my energy to that will be helping somebody that- what I'm doing I know is going to help them, heck yeah, that's what I want to do," LeClere said.

LeClere will leave for Nebraska on Saturday, April 6, and people can donate until they leave.

For those interested in donating items or money, LeClere encourages people to contact him or Wendling directly through their Facebook pages.

LeClere can be reached at his page

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Wendling can be reached at his page

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