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Monday, October 26, 2009
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'If Dad's in heaven, I hope he can see what's going on' FOR PETE'S SAKE | PETER ACHERMANN BENEFIT Senior Reporter LEADER - Peter Achermann of rural Leader is still missing, but hundreds of people gathered Saturday to confirm he hasn't been forgotten.
The Achermann family hosted a benefit, "For Pete's Sake", at the Bear's Den in Leader Saturday. People packed the fundraiser, with parked vehicles stretching single file along nearby roads and in every conceivable spot nearby. Inside the Bear's Den, there were so many people gathered that moving between activities often meant walking in single file and watching for a traffic break.
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Gavin (left), Kylee and Brady Smith celebrated while Amy Winkles (right) ran the color ball game Saturday during the Peter Achermann benefit.
Brainerd Dispatch/Kelly Humphrey
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At the start of the live auction, Daryl Larson, auctioneer, presented a song he wrote. The lyrics said while the community doesn't know what happened to the missing man, the people won't stop until they do. The song had family and friends wiping away tears. A prayer during the benefit asked for hope for the family and encouragement to lift their hearts along with an ability to bring Achermann home or find some clue to find him.
Desiree Greenwaldt, Achermann's daughter, said the family was reluctant to have the benefit because so many people had already given so much in searching for her dad. But they relented when people approached them wanting a way to show their support. Donations for the benefit's auctions continued to pour in on the day of the event.
For Pete's Sake
Peter Achermann, 82, of rural Leader has been missing since July 24.
He was last seen in Staples.
His car, a 1995 Chevrolet station wagon, is the only piece of evidence recovered in the search. It was found stuck in a mud hole on a minimum maintenance road about 10 miles from his home the day after he was reported missing.
With the hunting season putting more people out in the area, people are asked to report anything of note to the Cass County Sheriff's Department at (800) 450-2677 or (218) 547-1424.
Another search effort is planned this week. Volunteers will gather at 10 a.m. Tuesday on the minimum maintenance road on 85th Avenue where Achermann's car was discovered. Additional searches are planned Wednesday and Thursday.
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A man from South Dakota donated 150 pounds of beef. A trucker working in the area bought items for the auction. A little boy's saved pennies. Complete strangers and friends the family hadn't seen for ages all played a role.
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Samuel Sauber, 6, enjoyed the spaghetti dinner Saturday at the Peter Achermann benefit in Leader.
Brainerd Dispatch/Kelly Humphrey
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"It's so nice," Greenwaldt said seated on a bench outside the Bear's Den. Well-wishers often found her there, sharing both tears and words of encouragement. "It helps, but it's so humbling. If Dad's in heaven, I hope he can see what's going on.
"Dad always said he always met good people and so many of them. This is just testament to that."
Achermann was born and raised in Switzerland. He came to the U.S. when he was 21 with $30 in his pocket. He didn't speak English. On Christmas Eve he arrived at a cousin's house and began his life in America. Her father always said he was lucky, Greenwaldt said. She wondered where that luck was when he disappeared. But looking at the crowd Saturday, she said: "We are one lucky family to have all this support."
Without finding her father, Greenwaldt said it leaves the family to wonder what happened. It's hard to imagine he walked in the rough marsh country without leaving a trace, she said. "Is someone holding him somewhere?" she said. "Is he wandering?"
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People packed the Bear's Den in Leader on Saturday for a benefit dinner for Peter Achermann.
Brainerd Dispatch/Kelly Humphrey
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The one certainty for Greenwaldt was if her father had passed away, he was in heaven.
The abruptness of losing her father has been hard on the family and her mother as the two were nearly always together, Greenwaldt said. It's also affected friends, including the people Achermann visited each week in his role as a senior companion.
"We can't have a funeral," Greenwaldt said. "We can't do anything. We can't keep from looking down the road to see if he's coming."
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Donated items were auctioned in a live and silent auction during the benefit for Peter Achermann on Saturday in Leader.
Brainerd Dispatch/Kelly Humphrey
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In limbo, Greenwaldt said the family isn't even able to look at photos and talk about happy times. She said if someone took her father, the family is just asking for a tip, even an anonymous one, that will let them bring him home.
"Just call and leave a tip where to find him," she said. "Let us move on."
Darrell Schultz drove from Osakis with his son for the benefit. They knew the Achermanns there and from when the family hosted them during hunting trips.
"Pete was so good to us," Schultz said. "His house was our house. They were just so good to us."
Elaine Jenniges, Brainerd, used to live in the Leader area and worship at the same church with the Achermann family. "Everybody helps everybody," she said of the community. "You do whatever you can."
Donated items at the benefit were put up on a live and silent action. There was a spaghetti dinner and heaping plates of dessert. There were raffles and free-will offerings and games of chance. The money raised will be used to help defray the costs of the search for Achermann. If money is left over, plans are to set up a foundation to help other families of missing persons.
Cass County Sheriff Randy Fisher and a number of Cass County Sheriff's Department staff members attended the benefit. Fisher said there wasn't anything new to report in the search effort other than it is continuing.
"It's a tribute to the family and everything this community does," Fisher said of the turnout. "It's really just amazing. It's already a success just from the moral support of the family."
Janine Wells, Leader, said the turnout wasn't a surprise as the small community takes pride in supporting each other.
Sisters Alexia Cripps and Violet Meyer didn't know Achermann but they wanted to help. They sold raffles for a quilt donated by the St. Francis Mission Quilters. Their mother passed away recently. Cripps said they thought how lucky they were to have family with their mother at her death and to be able to have a funeral to honor her life.
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Auctioneer Daryl Larson (center), with the help of Gary Doud (left) and Bob Cheney, got the bidding going for a painting during the live auction Saturday at the Peter Achermann benefit in Leader.
Brainerd Dispatch/Kelly Humphrey
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"We know how important it is to be able to bury your parent and it just breaks our heart to know someone who is not able to," Cripps said. The Fort Ripley resident said she hoped having everyone present praying together for Achermann Saturday would make a difference.
"I can't even imaging what it's like to have a parent missing," Cripps said. "I just pray that they find him."
RENEE RICHARDSON may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.
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