Dirty Buggy? Amish Youth Will Wash It For You — While You Eat Ham Sandwiches

Just like your car, Amish buggies – not to mention their horses – need the occasional wash too. That’s the idea behind an upcoming event in the Shipshewana, Indiana area, passed along to us by Jim Halverson.

This is the ad for a benefit buggy wash to be held about two weeks from now, on Saturday August 15:

BENEFIT BUGGY WASH to be on Saturday, August 15, 2026 from 2-5pm at the new ACTS warehouse, 2225 S 1000 W, Shipshewana IN 46565. Bring your buggies, cruisers, pony wagons, etc. out to be washed off by our youth. Food will be available. Eat while they clean! Spoil your wife! 🙂

Serving ham sandwiches, nachos & cheese, chips, brownies, ice cream, and drinks. All proceeds to benefit ACTS (Acknowledging Christ Through Service) expenses. If you would like to make a donation (money, food, soap 🙂 ), contact [redacted]. Thanks in advance!

Sounds like a fun day. And like any good Amish-run event, they didn’t forget the eats. Nothing extravagant here, but lunch or something to munch on while you wait. Nachos and ice cream sound good to me, even if they won’t win you any prizes for healthy eating.

The photos here, by the way (all by Jim Halverson), are not of this actual event, but simply other buggy-washing occasions. Because as mentioned, buggies need a scrub too.

In many areas, buggies travel gravel and dirt roads, and they have a horse in front the whole time. Road grime, mud, dust, and everything else the horse contributes. Look at the front of an enclosed buggy after a wet week and you’ll get the picture.

So washing is routine; a logical day to do it is Saturday, because Saturday is the day you get ready for church the next morning, and for the youth, for their after-church activities, including young Amish guys taking girls on dates.

That’s the general idea, anyway. How strictly people keep their buggies clean probably varies by family as much as anything.

It’s not mentioned that horses get a wash too, but I’m assuming they can at least get hosed down if it’s needed. In some places in Amish communities you might find a “wash station”, basically a hose and maybe a brush, where a horse gets rinsed down after a hard pull, or to cool off on hot days on the road.

I’m not really familiar with the charity involved here – A.C.T.S. (Acknowledging Christ Through Service), though I’m sure some local readers would be, and no doubt it is a good cause.

So while I realize most of you don’t have a dirty buggy you’ll need washed two weeks from now in northern Indiana (okay, maybe a few of you will), I thought you might enjoy hearing about this event. Thanks as always to Jim for passing this along, and for the great photos.

Read More:

• The Amish Buggy (All About Plain Transportation)
• How Do Amish Women Wash Clothes?
• Scenes From A Big Amish Auction (15 Photos)
• Indiana Amish Guide (29 Communities)