From farm toys to the fields, Roegge takes the reins

From farm toys to the fields, Roegge takes the reins

By TAMMIE SLOUP
FarmWeek

Charlie Roegge at 9 years old on his family’s Cass County farm. (Photo by Jill Roegge of FarmWeek)

Nine-year-old Charlie Roegge captured the attention of YouTube viewers during COVID with his daily farming updates.

“He’d set up like a hay operation with his toy tractors, and he’d go through and talk about all of the steps involved in hay production or harvesting. And it started garnering some attention,” said his mother, Jill Roegge. “So, he just kept adding more and more to his farm videos, and he started going out to real equipment and showing things on real equipment, and also interview people, like he interviewed his dad a couple of times.

“He enjoyed being in front of the camera and talking about farming.”

Today, the high school freshman traded in his farm toys for real machinery, and recently completed his first harvest of soybeans and corn.

“It felt really good to climb in the combine. It made me feel very accomplished of what I had done, and just excited to keep going,” Charlie Roegge said.

The 14-year-old sold his cattle herd to pay for used farm equipment that he utilized during this year’s harvest of his 80 acres surrounding his Arenzville home in Cass County, as well as a field near his grandmother’s home in Virginia.

Charlie Roegge climbs down from his tractor after tilling a soybean field near his home in Cass County. (Photo by Tammie Sloup of FarmWeek)

Much of his knowledge was gleaned from following his late father, Matt, around the farm starting when he could first walk. Matt Roegge would take his son with him everywhere, from the grain elevator to riding beside him in the combine. Matt Roegge also farmed with his two brothers and father, and like a sponge, Charlie Roegge absorbed much of their conversations about farming.

“People are always surprised about his knowledge at such a young age of all the farm processes,” Jill Roegge said. “But I think it was just because of all the time that he had spent on the farm following his dad around from the time he was about 18 months old until he was 11 years old. He was with his dad most days of the week.”

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In 2021, Matt Roegge passed away from COVID complications. With Charlie’s older brother and sister not involved in the farm, the operation was taken over by Jill and Charlie.

This was the first year the mother and son became active in the operation, as someone else tended to the fields as the family sorted out some issues.

“We relied a lot on each other and worked through it together, and we have a strong family support system, so we were able to get through things with that,” Jill Roegge said. “It’s definitely changed Charlie and I’s relationship, because he was always a lot closer with his dad than he was with me, but this has kind of forced him to rely on me a little bit more. But I think we have a pretty good time together and a pretty open relationship that we can talk about most anything.”

When it came time to purchase equipment for the farm, Charlie Roegge turned to the classifieds and fellow farmers.

“He sold his cattle so that he could buy equipment; he really wanted to harvest, and so he did a lot of looking on classified ads and looking for equipment and talking to local farmers who might be upgrading that would have some used equipment he could purchase,” Jill Roegge said. “All of the equipment that he has gotten is from selling his cattle, which he really loved his cattle, but he knew that he could get more cattle later on in life.

“I think it means a lot to him that it’s his own equipment, and I think that’s giving him a little bit more respect for the equipment; he wants to take good care of it, and he’s protective of it.”

“It took a lot of work getting everything ready and all set up and all managed and mechanically sounding good, but, yeah, it was really special, and it was awesome to be able to do it on my own,” Charlie Roegge said.

As the former YouTuber and FarmWeek CropWatcher 2.0 wrapped up his first harvest, Charlie Roegge reflected on losing his father and role model.

“My dad was very helpful to everybody and anyone who needed it. He was very hard working and kind,” he said, adding if he could talk to his father now, he’d ask him what he needed to do to have a successful farm.

Jill Roegge said her husband likely would keep encouraging their son to continue in the direction he’s heading.

“My hope is that he enjoys what he does, and that he finds meaning and purpose in it, which I feel like he’s already doing,” Jill Roegge said. “I want him to be proud of his work, and I think he is, and I think that as he grows and matures, he’ll become even more proud of the job that he’s doing and carrying on the traditions that his dad started with him.”

His dad might have even overlooked that his son purchased a green combine instead of a red one, she joked.

This story was distributed through a cooperative project between Illinois Farm Bureau and the Illinois Press Association. For more food and farming news, visit FarmWeekNow.com.