Four people were injured Monday evening when a car struck the back of a horse-drawn buggy on State Road 13 in Elkhart County, Indiana. This was another case of distracted driving, according to reports. Three of the four people injured were children. An 11-year-old girl was taken to the hospital with a “non-life-threatening” skull fracture. The crash happened around 5:50 p.m. on Monday, August 17,…
The Philadelphia Inquirer ran a long piece over the weekend on competitive Amish volleyball, reported from a tournament at Intercourse Community Park in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania back in June. I spoke to reporter Jason Nark on the Amish sports topic; his full report is here. A few things stood out to me – here are four. 1. Volleyball Holds A Special Function In Amish Culture…
Amish born-and-raised Lovina Hershberger Zook has been getting a lot of media attention beyond her own success online. And for good reason – she now has around six million followers across social media, where she posts recipes and stories about the culture she left. That culture is a conservative Amish community. To my eye and ear she seems likely from a Swartzentruber Amish background (confirmed…
We often hear and read about accidents in Amish settings – whether on the farm, in recreational settings like hunting, or on the road. The Lewistown Sentinel reports on how one community has tried to address a gap in emergency skills in rural Amish-heavy areas. Forty-two people turned out for a free Rural Response and Rescuer Training program at the Central Pennsylvania Clinic for Special…
Iowa is home to America’s ninth-largest Amish population, spread across nearly 30 settlements. The oldest dates to 1846; the newest on this list, to 2011. The following communities are the largest in Iowa, based on the most current Amish population estimates (2026). Population numbers via Young Center for Anabaptist & Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College (source link at bottom). 1. Bloomfield Bloomfield (Davis County) Community…
I hate to share this news, but it’s being reported that a farm accident claimed the life of another Amish child Friday. An eight-year-old boy was pronounced dead this morning at a home in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. More from the CBS Pittsburgh report: An 8-year-old died after an accident involving farm equipment in Mercer County on Friday morning, authorities said. In a public information release…
An Amish woman has been hospitalized after a wreck yesterday afternoon (Aug. 13) in Stark County, Ohio. This one resulted from a common and potentially dangerous situation that doesn’t get talked about enough. First, the key details from the Canton Repository: Trooper A. Burch said the Amish woman, who lives in the Navarre area, was riding her buggy south on Navarre Road SW. A man…
Two days after ordering Amish Acres closed, the Indiana Department of Homeland Security has released a new report stating that no violations were found at the Nappanee, Indiana property. The owner, Brad Juneau, says the shutdown came down to missing paperwork rather than anything unsafe at the site. The IDHS abruptly shut down the business on Tuesday, citing violations identified during a reinspection. The violations…
An Iowa health facility run by a former Amish man has been shut down by court order. A judge has ruled that those operating it are “a danger to the public.” We’ve looked at this case already on two occasions – once when the story of charges against clinic operator Eddie R. Gingerich broke back in May, and later when further details emerged on his…
Daryl Heller, the Lancaster County businessman whose ATM investment network drew money from Amish and Mennonites across the Lancaster County area, among others, pleaded guilty to securities fraud on Monday, August 10. However, no one has yet established how much his investors actually lost – with his attorney even claiming to the court that the figure could be zero. Charged In September 2025 This is…