Just a couple weeks after a piece of farm equipment nearly cut off his leg, an 18 year old from Barron is back on his feet.

With the help of crutches, Sean Klatt stepped into his high school Monday night. At the same time, an entire community stepped up to help him at a benefit for his family.

Now-a-days, Michael Klatt can only watch as others run his farm.

"He just looks out the window and watches what goes on other there,” says Michael’s 16-year-old Daughter Rachel. “It’s kind of sad.”

Three Fridays ago, Michael watched his oldest son almost lose his leg.

"It was only a couple seconds and it was on and off. But, it doesn't take long," he says.

18-year-old Sean and his dad were working on a piece of equipment. Sean was standing with his legs in the auger when his dad accidentally hit the wrong switch. The auger started moving, taking Sean's leg with it.

"My gut reaction was just to get him out,” Michael says. “It probably wasn't the right decision to grab a hold of it, but when he’s asking for help to get out… what do you do?”

Michael sliced his fingers to the bone on the auger's sharp blades. Sean's 14-year-old sister used a broken farm belt to stop his leg from bleeding.

"I somehow remembered to do it above the knee to cut of circulation," Bridget tells us.

That night, Sean was flown to St. Mary's hospital in Rochester; his dad, not too far behind him in an ambulance.

That same night, help started pulling up the driveway.

"You put yourself in their shoes right then and there. You realize how awful it is and that's why we all come," says Karyn Schauf who has a family farm not far from the Klatt’s.

About 30 volunteers kept the Klatt farm running, while Michael stayed with Sean through six surgeries and his own recovery.

"Seeing your own son like that is one of the toughest things you ever have to go through,” Michael says. “He loves farming. That's his dream to be a dairy farmer."

It’s a dream that comes closer with each step on a very broken leg and an entire community to lean on.

Michael says it will be a couple months before he could even possibly run his farm. He says with in the next couple weeks he'll have to make a decision about selling his 50 or so cows. Michael says doctors expect Sean to make a full recovery.