Submitted story

WEST LIBERTY — The village of West Liberty has announced that a brief reveal of the completed bronze sculpture by Mike Major of Andy Detwiler, the Harmless Farmer in advance of the June 15, 2024, dedication of his memorial. On April 6, 2024, at noon the public is invited to witness the reveal of Andy’s bronze statue and view the most popular highlights of Andy Detwiler’s YouTube Channel the Harmless Farmer, who has garnered more than 33,225,923 views.

Immense impact of his story and his legacy

Viewers of the Harmless Farmer let Andy know he revealed his purpose and they responded with their life events and thoughts. The exchange is from Andy and his family talking about, “The Day It Happened,” video from May 25, 2019, a comment/thread after the video was released.

From @jayt6524, 3 years ago:

“I lost a brother in 1979 (car-accident) and my twin sister in 1988 (car-accident) and struggle with seeing things that hurt people. I close my eyes and think of happy things to get my mind off of those things. YouTube is what I do for entertainment. I enjoy how you overcame challenges. When I saw this video I just couldn’t watch it – then after a few days I just thought, well maybe I should try to watch it. It took a lot to watch it but I am glad I did. You’re family is amazing. Would love to meet you someday.”

Andy responded @HarmlessFarmer:

“Jay, I’m glad you were able to watch it. Ever since my first video, people have been wanting to know what happened to my arms. I knew one day that I would (have to) tell my story but was dragging my feet. It wasn’t easy, you see, that’ the first time we all sat and actually talked about the accident as a family. I really think it helped us. Sounds like you crossed a huge (hurdle) by watching this video. I’m a believer in the fact that things happen for a reason. We just (have to) figure out what happened for a reason. It took me 45 years to figure out why it happened to me, and I think his is why, to help other people by doing these videos. Take care my friend. One these days, maybe we will meet.”

Event details

The reveal is in conjunction with the Moonshade Festival April 5-8. The reveal will take place at the West Liberty Town Hall at noon sharp on April 6, 2024.

The memorial is to keep Andy’s inspirational purpose alive so that his message can inspire more people, organizers are building the memorial overlooking his family farm fields at the roadside on U.S. Route 68 south of West Liberty. Andy’s sculpture is nearly complete and will stand 12 feet tall. It will be dedicated on June 15, 2024 and large crowds are anticipated to attend this dedication.

Info submitted by David Greenlee on behalf of event organizers