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Dave Schleusner is shown with the memorial to Dale Richardson at Lincoln Landing.

Dave Schleusner is shown with the memorial to Dale Richardson at Lincoln Landing.

In 2012, the first mechanical harvester touched the Apple River, intent on returning the water to its glory days as a recreational landmark. 

Before harvesting, the quality and clarity of the water were reported as “very poor” and in steady decline from the years previous, with invasive plant species clogging the water in dense clumps and threatening to expand with each passing season. 

A group of operators, including the late Operations Manager Dale Richardson and volunteer member Dave Schleusner, assembled two committees to help acquire and maintain a mechanical weed harvester. Ten years later, Schleusner is now the river’s chief harvesting machine operator. On a sunny afternoon at the mirrorlike shore of Lincoln Landing, Schleusner reflected on a season of progress.

Schleusner, his wife, Billie Jo, moved to the Apple River area in 2001 with three sons: Reggie, Michael, and Joey. He began working with the weed harvesting crew as Dale Richardson’s “right-hand man” and has been operating the mechanical harvester ever since it arrived in 2012. “It was wide open green to me. Dale asked me to help him, and it went from there.” In 2019, the, Apple River Flowage and Rehabilitation District (A.R.P.R.D.) bought a second mechanical harvester to increase the export of invasive plants. “We needed a second machine to keep up with the river. And if you go out on it now, I’d say the river is pretty nice. This was a pretty good summer.”

Dale Richardson’s memorial stands at the landing, a plaque commemorating his countless hours and funds devoted to the river. The memorial was pitched to committee and partially funded by Schleusner, wanting to commemorate Dale’s unparalleled contributions to the harvesting program. “He was the man,” Schleusner said. “He got the first boat and was the main reason we got a second boat in 2019. If we didn’t have harvesters, this would still be weedy.” After ten years of volunteer work for the A.R.P.R.D., the decorated Vietnam veteran passed away in June of 2021 at the age of 73. Staring up at the memorial, Schleusner remembered Dale’s work ethic and attitude towards life with reverent admiration. “The things he taught me about harvesting, and about life in general… I’m not ever, ever going to replace that man. He is one of a kind.”

This year alone, Schleusner and his harvesting crew removed over 1,400 tons of weeds from the river. “If we didn’t harvest, all that weight would be at the bottom of the river, turned to sludge. Taking those out is what helps keep the water clean.” The amount of progress made in any given year is largely dependent on the spring season. “If it’s a cold spring, and the weeds don’t start growing, then we can keep up with it.” While the work done on the water this year was particularly extensive, Schleusner explained that one of the most crucial precautions of weed harvesting is knowing when to bring the season to a close. “People say ‘it’s still got weeds in it!’ Well, you can’t harvest them all. The biggest thing is that [the DNR] don’t want to over-harvest the weeds. They don’t want the fish to die that way.” After the harvested weeds are unloaded and dried at the shore, they are redistributed into the community in many ways. “They mix them with black dirt and use them alongside the roads. They used it along our Lincoln township road. It also makes good garden feed.”

The harvesting season started in May and officially wrapped up on the 15th of September. “I’m on the water five days a week. I usually start around 5:00, 5:30 in the spring, and I’m out there till 4:00 or 4:30.” Beyond the work on the harvester, Schleusner spends time every week on upkeep and repairs, finding ways to keep the yearly budget as low as possible. “I volunteer quite a bit on repairs and stuff like that… I’m a maintenance man.”

Schleusner’s off-the-clock maintenance is deeply appreciated by his peers. According to the A.R.P.R.D. Summer 2022 newsletter, the association has been “very fortunate to have Dave Schleusner leading this crew. He is THE man who can repair almost everything. Other lake districts continually call on him for help…We owe Schleusner much thanks for all he does for the district.”

With over two decades of memories on the river, Schleusner has noticed progress in not just the water but the surrounding area. “The river’s being used a lot more. Since we started harvesting, more people are moving to—and investing in—property on the Apple River, which probably would have never been built. We got talking to people that live on the river, and they were saying it’s the best it’s been in ten years.”

The harvesting crew holds around six harvester drivers every year, with dozens of people behind the scenes working to improve and maintain the quality of the river. “There’s a lot of people working on it. Grant writers, permit writers, the DNR… it’s a lot of keeping records.” Every season, the association welcomes new volunteers to operate the harvesters. “You have to have a little knowledge about equipment. And if they want to get into it, you gotta enjoy the work. The pay’s nothing too special, but we don’t do it for the money. You gotta have a reason to do it. My reason is to see the water like this, and to see the people on it.”

Schleusner is looking to cut back on harvesting, eventually handing the torch off to the next chief operator. “I want to start taking some more days off. Dale was the lead guy, and now I’m a ‘Dale’ and need to find a ‘me!’” With the extraordinary extent of work, time and dedication Schleusner and his team contribute to the river, Amery would be extremely fortunate to find another “Dave” any time soon.

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