Family honors father with tribute hidden in plain sight

POCAHONTAS COUNTY, Iowa (KCCI) – A family in Iowa is honoring their late father with a special message in the middle of their soybean field. They were devastated when Tim Ricklefs died suddenly this spring from heart failure.

Looking at their soybean field, the average person probably just sees beans, but to Ricklefs, it was his life.

“He had a passion for farming, and he loved the land,” his wife Jann Ricklefs said. “Our children helped on the farm, and it was expected of them as it is in many farm families.”

His son, Brian Ricklefs, caught the farming bug early and wanted to grow up to be just like his dad.

“As a little kid, you know, we played with tractors. And we always played all the scenarios out of the spring planting,” Brian Ricklefs said.

After his father died, Brian Ricklefs wanted to personalize the farm to honor his dad and send him a clear message best viewed from the heavens.

“Somewhere up above, Tim is looking down, and it’s just using his passion and his interest to tell him how much we love him,” Jann Ricklefs said.

Centered on about 100 acres is a simple, yet profound message: Miss you, Dad.

They used technology to create the design. The letters are 100 feet wide and 200 feet tall.

They weren’t sure it was going to work, but as months passed, the message became clear.

Whether it’s the pop of white color from the flower on the bean plant or the birds chirping as they fly overhead, Brian Ricklefs said he feels his dad’s presence every time he steps onto their field.