Amish Culture

WKYC’s 88 Counties in 88 Days series stopped in Geauga County following an earlier visit to Holmes County. They spoke with Chester Kurtz, an Amishman associated with the Geauga Amish Historical Library, on how his community is handling the pandemic. I find Kurtz an exceptional spokesman for his people, which you can judge in the video […]

Continue Reading “What’s Amish Zoom?” Amishman Chester Kurtz On COVID (Video)

How have Amish women’s lives changed in the last 50 years? Fran Handrick recently completed a PhD  entitled “Amish women: work and change – an investigation into the lives of Amish women in Pennsylvania and Ohio” at the University of Birmingham. You can access and read Fran’s full thesis here. Fran is here to share […]

Continue Reading 9 Ways Amish Women’s Lives Have Changed

Amish Cook Gloria Yoder‘s editor Kevin Williams has filled in on her column this week for an unfortunate reason: Gloria was involved in a serious accident on the road. But this wasn’t a buggy accident, as you might be thinking. Kevin describes what happened: I wanted to reach out to readers this week in place […]

Continue Reading Amish Cook Gloria Yoder In Car Accident

I like this video not so much for the song itself, but for the feel of sitting around in an Amish home in the evening. You’ve got the soft glow of the propane light, the water pitcher at the ready, the utilitarian folding chairs. Dinner’s been eaten, and everyone’s circled around in the kitchen. The […]

Continue Reading Lancaster Amish Family Evening Singing At Home (Video)

The word “Amish” is getting attached to the events in Lancaster city following an incident in which a man was shot and killed by police. Specifically, some media sources have been framing this as something like “trouble in Amish Country” – but that is a mis-framing. Lancaster city is in the middle of Lancaster County, […]

Continue Reading Lancaster City Is Not “Amish Country”

I keep returning to these videos by the 717 Drone Guys because I love the serene feeling of flight they convey. Say what you will about drones, but they are able to capture some beautiful visuals – in this case, of Amish farming scenes from perspectives we don’t usually see. These particular videos are also […]

Continue Reading Top 10 Amish Farm Scenes (Aerial Video)

I promised I would follow up if I got more information on the Go Fund Me for Millie, described as a 27-year-old woman who left her Amish community, in what looks to be Delaware. A number of you were skeptical that this was real, which I can understand. While I reached out via two different […]

Continue Reading Is “Millie” Real? Ex-Amish Fundraiser Follow-Up (Updated)

My friend, country and folk musician John Schmid, is a favorite among the Amish. John’s story, at least in part, can be found here. John is the founder of Common Ground Ministries, and has been long active in prison ministry and other mission outreach via his music. If you’ve ever wondered if Amish like music […]

Continue Reading John Schmid Sings “Amish Nicknames”

Two updates in the Linda Stoltzfoos case. First, yesterday Justo Smoker pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and a related charge: Justo Smoker will waive his arraignment Friday and has pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and false imprisonment in the disappearance of Linda Stoltzfoos, according to court documents. The 18-year-old Amish woman has been missing since […]

Continue Reading Justo Smoker Pleads Not Guilty; 600 Search For Linda Stoltzfoos

A while back a reader asked if Amish obituaries are made public. I responded with a post on the topic. I see them appear in news feeds nearly daily. They are published in newspapers and find their way online. With that in mind this recent obituary caught my eye for two reasons. One is that […]

Continue Reading An Amish Obituary: Amos S. Zook, Age 93