SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — South Dakota is remembering local country singer Casey Wilson of Flandreau.
Wilson, who was one-half of the country duo “The Barn Flies,” died earlier this month in a car crash on I-90. He was 50.
Wilson was much more than just a country singer, especially to those who knew him best.
Wilson is being remembered in so many ways. He was a country music singer, he was a farrier and he was described by many as a true cowboy.
“The one thing about Casey, he was a dad first, that was the most important thing in his life were those kids,” his younger brother Cody Wilson said.
His younger brother Cody said that after Casey got divorced, he felt like the child custody system was broken.
“He fought like heck to try to change the shared parenting rules in South Dakota,” Cody said. “He lobbied for change in the divorce court system and how parents are, to try and get parents more equal time for people.”
Avery Zahn says Casey changed his life and referred to him as his mentor.
“When I heard about what happened, I reflected back on everything he did for me, the word that came to my mind was legend, like he’s a legend, a local legend, a Midwest legend like overall just a legend, because of the impact he made on other people’s lives not just mine,” Zahn said.
“His smile, his smile, that was more than a gift from God,” friend Ethan Hill said.
Hill says he’ll never forget the leg wrestling that they did at The Merc; Casey’s bar and restaurant in Flandreau.
“You know we’d pack that place out with, he called it the South Dakota Champion Leg wrestling tournament, a bunch of guys would get together and leg wrestle,” Hill said.
The impact Casey had on people’s lives was evident at his funeral, when horses carried his casket down Flandreau’s Main Street with a riderless horse as a way to honor Casey.
“In my life I’ve never seen a funeral procession that long or go that far,” Zahn said.
“You know we had a saying in our friends group, Kings ride with Kings and we definitely sent him off like a King,” Cody said.
There’s going to be a big fundraiser and celebration of life at the Merc in Flandreau June 21 with live music starting at 5 pm. The money raised will go to Wilson’s family of six.
After that there will be a silent auction where people can bid on everything from front row Vikings tickets to a quarter pound of beef.
For more details on that click here.
