John Scott Goertzen got a taste of what it’s like to be involved in a film production when the Flying Classroom filmed the Goertzen family farm in full harvest mode in October.
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Henderson area farmer John Scott Goertzen and his family had a unique experience in the middle of harvest this past October they’ll never forget. During one of their busiest times of year harvesting their crops, they were visited by an organization called Flying Classroom.
Flying Classroom is a Florida-based company that provides supplemental PK-12 digital Stem+ (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) curriculum for schools. So you might ask how they sought out the Goertzens’ farm operation in Nebraska for what they call one of their “expeditions.”
“Ryan Goertzen, who works in the aviation industry and lives outside Henderson, is a friend of the founder and CEO Barrington Irving, and he put them in touch with us. We were so honored to be able to showcase what harvesting and running a farm operation is all about,” said John.
“We met the first evening with the production team for supper and discussed what they wanted to accomplish the next day during our typical full day of harvesting,” said Goertzen. They took preliminary videos of their farm equipment and interviewed three generations of Goertzens—John Senior, John Scott, and his son Blake gaining a multi-generational perspective.
The next day was a whirlwind when the production team began filming various aspects of their harvest operation. “They had go pro cameras set up all over filming from within the cab of the combine, pointing outside at the combine and on the augur cart,” said John Scott.
Flying Classrooms Chief Academic Officer Megan Bertrand was on site at the shoot and explained what will happen with the expedition at the Goertzen farm.
“We will take the footage and information about what we learned about agriculture and develop a curriculum for students. Farm safety, advances in agricultural technology, the complexity of the expensive machinery involved, and career potential will be highlighted,” she said. The lessons they produce from their visit to the Goertzen farm will help teach kids where their food comes from and bring agriculture to life for them, she said.
Flying Classrooms curriculum will typically be used by a school for a few weeks, and they provide virtual online teachers and supply them with the materials. Their lessons always have a hands-on component where students will be challenged to solve a problem connecting science, math, and literacy with each lesson.
One highlight of the day for John Scott was the arrival of the founder and CEO of Flying Classroom, Barrington Irving, otherwise known as “Captain Irving.” “He’s such an inspirational guy who is a strong Christian and just loves kids,” said John Scott.
Captain Irving first became famous when he was the youngest person, at age 23 in 2007, and the first black pilot to fly solo around the world. After reading his book “Touch the Sky,” about his 97-day trailblazing adventure, you’ll understand his passion for flying. In October, he flew his plane into Lincoln and spent half a day at the Goertzen farm.
“He rode around in the combine, and I let him drive it! I figured he’s a pilot, so he could surely handle a combine. This was a first for him, and he said he never dreamed he’d be driving a combine,” said John Scott.
Captain Irving is no stranger to attempting first-time adventures. Besides his solo flight around the world, he has flown with the Blue Angels and enjoys halo-diving. John Scott explained that halo-diving is sky diving from 35,000 ft. “so that tells you what kind of an adventurer he is!”
After his combine driving experience, Captain Irving was most impressed with the high level of technology used at the Goertzen farm. “He realized our reliance on GPS is similar to flying and was amazed at the large amount of digital data we use to farm and the high equipment costs today,” said John Scott.
The production crew also visited the CVA plant in Bradshaw as part of their expedition. There, they interviewed experts in the agriculture industry about best safety practices and observed grain handling and storage at the plant.
Farm safety was a topic they wanted to cover, so the Goertzens told them about how “Hannah” became a three-legged dog a few years back.
“We farm a field for Wally Friesen and his dog Hannah, who loves to chase rabbits and is always running beside me as I run the combine. She usually keeps her distance, but this one day, she ran underneath the corn head, and her paw got nipped off.”
After a trip to the vet, Hannah had most of her leg cut back, but she recovered and is still up and walking fine, said John Scott. The production team went over to see Hannah and take some photos, so she’ll probably be featured in their lesson about safety.
Another fun experience they filmed was climbing up on the top of their grain leg and dropping pumpkins down to the ground. Captain Barrington spent some time visiting with John’s son, Blake, and Ryan Goertzen’s son, Jake. Jake is currently enrolled at Southeast Community College in their diesel tech program. Blake is a senior at Heartland and plans on enrolling in the automotive tech program at Southeast next year.
“Before Captain Irving left, he offered Blake and Jake scholarships to purchase their startup tools in the Southeast Community College program. His offer was humbling to us and just showed how genuinely invested he is in seeing kids succeed,” said John Scott.
John Scott hopes this isn’t the last time they will see Captain Irving! They plan on taking him up on his invitation for their family to come out to Florida to visit their organization. Who knows, the Flying Classroom may return for planting season for another great lesson about agriculture, said John Scott.
The Goertzen family gathered for a photo shoot from L to R: Clyde & Lenora, Jake (son of Ryan Goertzen), Blake, John Scott & Ashley, Charlene & John Sr., and Phil & Parker.
All photos courtesy Flying Classroom
