BUTLER TWP — While 2020 is the Year of COVID, it has become much more for Butler Township resident Nate Rhodaberger.

Last spring, he jumped into a chilly Allegheny River to save a man from drowning.

Last week, he harvested an 8-point buck with a wide spread — the first buck he's taken in 25 years of hunting.

“The karma was definitely with me,” Rhodaberger, 36, said. “It's been an eventful year ... an emotional year.”

When it came to jumping into the Allegheny, Rhodaberger's sister, Liz Schnur, described him as “my idiot brother with a heart big enough to float the United States.”

His father, Rodney Rhodaberger, said: “When I first heard, I wanted to kill him. But he knows what he's capable of doing.”

Nate Rhodaberger expressed no surprise at such comments.

“I see you've been talking to my family,” he said, laughing.

But all were appreciative of his bagging a buck after all these years.

After all, hunting has been a tradition in the Rhodaberger family.

“I started hunting when I was 12,” Nate said. “We all did.”

And all is a whole lot of people.

Rhodaberger is one of eight children. His father is one of 13 children.

“I've got 20 grandchildren with a 21st on the way,” Rodney said. “My father taught me the proper way to hunt. I taught my kids. They're teaching their kids — and on it goes.”

Learning the proper way to hunt is one of the reasons it took Nate Rhodaberger 25 years to harvest a buck.

“I've gotten a number of doe over the years,” he said. “There were times I had a clean shot at a buck, but they were young ones. You could see by the rack, maybe a year, year and a half old.

“My father taught us sportsmanship, to let those bucks go, give them time to grow. Hopefully, other hunters see them and let them go, too.”

The buck Rhodaberger did harvest was approximately four and a half years old.

John Rhodaberger, one of his brothers on the hunting trip with him, said “we didn't score it, but that will make a nice trophy. It had to be 120, 130 inches wide.

“He (Nate) deserves it, with the year he's had. We were all so happy for him. It meant a lot to him ... he was almost in tears. It was awesome.”

Per family tradition, Nate was out there with his sons, Simeon, 8, and Silas, 4. And it was Silas who first saw the buck his father eventually shot.

“Silas told me, 'Daddy, there goes one,' and I looked and saw nothing. I thought he was mistaken,” Nate said. “Then he said he saw it again and I still didn't see anything.

“The third time, I saw him. He was about 125 yards away.”

While Silas is a few years away from hunting, Simeon may hunt next year through the mentoring program.

“Kids can start earlier now because of the mentoring and I know he's ready,” Nate said. “Hunting with him when he gets his first one will be a bigger thrill for me than this year.

“But, no doubt, this year will be one to remember.”

Saving a man's life, then bagging his first buck in 25 years?

“I can't help but think the Good Lord had a hand in that one,” Rodney said.