News today: the Supreme Court has “erased” a decision against New York Amish parents who objected to vaccination mandates for children in Amish schools. The Amish refusal to comply following a 2019 change in New York state law resulted in three Amish schools being fined a total of $118,000. To this point, the Amish side had faced multiple losses in the case, with a federal…
An interesting story appeared recently about a young woman who has made an unusual faith journey: from a non-Amish Christian family, to joining an Amish community, and most recently to Judaism. Nechama Leapley grew up as Briana Leapley in a non-Amish (aka “English”) Christian home – though in an “Amish-sized” family: she was the oldest of seven children, described as “homeschooled and mostly isolated”. Her…
Author and Amish taxi driver Haley Straw is back with part one of a four-part Christmas series. It follows the true story of a young boy from Chicago, whose longing for warmth and belonging sends him on an unlikely winter journey toward an Amish community he’d only read about in a library book. This retelling draws from the original “Please Let Me Stay” account shared in…
An Amish father of two has died following a hunting accident in the mountains of Juniata County, Pennsylvania. The man was accidentally shot by another hunter while participating in a “deer drive” – a technique using two groups of hunters, where one group flushes deer out for others to shoot. More from WJAC: JUNIATA COUNTY, Pa. (WHP) — A 26-year-old hunter is dead after another…
Anthony Miller was a 10-year-old boy living the life of an Amish child in his community in St. Joseph County, Michigan. But Anthony’s life was abruptly cut short, one year ago this week. On December 2, 2024, Logan Thomas, 30, driving a pickup truck at a claimed speed of 50-55 mph, plowed into a group of four Amish children on the roadside, one of whom…
Just an awful story out of LaGrange County, Indiana. A dump truck “drifted” off the road and onto the shoulder, hitting a buggy driven by an Amish couple in their 70s – killing both of them. Of note: what’s being called “the shoulder” here appears to be a full-fledged, wide “buggy lane” in the area where the incident happened (more on that below). From the…
Details are scarce at the moment in this story out of Centre County, Pennsylvania (see update below). But we do know that two Amish people have been taken to the hospital – and one non-Amish driver into police custody – following another buggy crash. Yesterday at around 8:30 PM, an Amish buggy carrying two passengers was struck by a motor vehicle. More from WJAC: CENTRE…
Here’s a fun little pre-Thanksgiving story that I just now came across, from Florida’s “Amish Country”, also known as the Sarasota-area Pinecraft community. If you’ve been to that community, you probably are aware of the Amish-style eateries in the area. One of the best-known is Yoder’s, who get a lot of praise for their delicious pies (here’s a slice of peanut butter chocolate pie from…
The father of an Amish woman, badly injured in a hit-and-run crash along with her two small children, has written a letter to a local news station providing more details on the condition of his daughter and grandchildren. Martha Wagler, age 27, was in a buggy in her community in Williams County, Ohio, on November 12, when the buggy was struck from behind by a…
Some lovely photos, taken on a crisp autumn day, of an Amish “farmstead” home in Lucas County, Iowa. These look to be fresh photos, as this place has only been listed for a couple of weeks. The county is home to two Amish communities; this one is in the area of Chariton. Some beautiful aerial shots show the property and surrounding landscape. This location is…