
The fiancé of a Manitowoc man who died last year is honoring his spirit by hosting a brat fry next month.
Nakita Mathes is the fiancé of Joshua Lueptow, who died in Collins Marsh last year while out duck hunting. She told Seehafer News that the proceeds from the event on July 2nd will go to Wings of Hope, which is the non-profit group that located Lueptow.
Mathes explained that “they have boats, they have sonar, they have these different types of things, and we just want to make sure they can still benefit and help other families in need.”
While Joshua’s death on October 29th, 2020, is an obvious tragedy that hit Mathes and the Lueptow family hard, Mathes said that she is touched by how much the Manitowoc community came to her side.
“The amount of people…that wanted to come out and help look for him…we were given so much food we didn’t know what to do with it,” she explained. “It’s nice to know that this community can come together the way that it did.”
Mathes spoke at length about her fiancé, namely his love for duck hunting, and his loving personality. She recalled a time where Joshua made friends with a complete stranger while stopped at a stop sign.
She explained that she and Joshua were in his truck, and his tail light wasn’t working right. He had attempted to put an LED bulb in it, but it would flash like it was going out. They had stopped at a stop sign, and another driver pulled up next to them to let them know about the light.
“He leaned all the way over me and said ‘Oh no, its ok. I put an LED light in there and thought it was going to work out well.’” Mathes said. “He had this whole conversation with this person!”
She estimated that they were at the sign for two to three minutes talking with this person they had never met because “He was so personable with everybody.”
Mathes had her child along, and he joked that Joshua was “stubborn”, which Mathes said was a part of his charm.
She also said she finds some solace in the fact that Joshua was doing something he loved when he passed away.
The brat fry will take place on July 2nd at Miesfeld’s in Sheboygan from 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM.