On July 20th, 2026, we said goodbye to Franklin Weber—my grandfather, a local Manteno native, and the voice behind the pilot episode of This One Time in Kankakee.

To honor his 93-year legacy, we returned to the original raw audio from our 2025 recording session to tell a fuller, deeper version of the story that launched this podcast. In July 1936, a three-year-old Franklin was run over by a 2,500-pound 1916 Fordson tractor on his family's farm in Manteno, Illinois.

In this special tribute edition, we uncover the unreleased details behind that miraculous summer morning: how packed Midwestern dirt cushioned the blow of iron wheels, why his easygoing father Phil moved faster than cast iron to lift a multi-ton machine, and the lifelong physical sacrifice Phil made to save his son. It’s a story of Midwestern grit, historical mechanics, and the quiet, enduring love of a father that gave our family seven more decades together.

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The Voices You Trust, Beyond The Dial.