Kudos to Matthew for the link to a story about a Geauga County, Ohio man who joined the Amish in 2000. David Rapinz adopted the lifestyle around a decade ago. He met an Amish woman, Martha, who ‘took a chance on him before his baptism’, and later married her. Rapinz found beards, horses, and the Pennsylvania Dutch language all a bit unwieldy at first, but…
‘In 1847, nine families, all Bylers, moved to Lawrence, PA, they were: Solomon, Christian, Yost, Daniel, Noah, John, Reuben, Rudy, and Eli, and were among the first Amish in that section. In year 1880 bishop Crist (Christian) Byler walked from Lawrence County to the Valley. He traveled a distance of 250 miles in 4 days at the age of 68. He also made the trip…
Today marks a year since the Nickel Mines School shooting. Ten girls were shot. Five perished. Five lived on. A community was rocked by an unthinkable loss. The world watched and learned a rare lesson in forgiveness and grace. ‘The happening’ is the name local Amish attached to the event, and The Happening is author Harvey Yoder’s attempt to reconstruct, order, and make sense of…
The nine-year-old daughter of my friends ‘Aden’ and ‘Elizabeth’ invited me to visit her school last Monday. I couldn’t pass that up. Elizabeth and I walked up a few minutes beforehand; ‘Naomi’ was already there, so not to miss out on the half-hour of playtime before the first bell. A vigorous game of six-square was in session when we arrived. The kids let me join. …
Many people have seen photos of the fairly well-known ‘white-top buggy’ Amish. This group is based mainly in Pennsylvania’s diverse Big Valley region. They are most commonly known as the Nebraska Amish, named after a Nebraska-based bishop who helped the group get started in the late 1800s. Traditionally considered one of the most conservative Amish groups, they have also been called the “Old School Amish”….
I dropped in on Safety Days today, held at the Mount Hope Auction yards. Most of the hundreds in attendance were Amish. People slowly filed by educational booths promoting early learning, fire safety, and eye care. One fireman admonished listeners to ‘label their liquids’ since children could not tell the difference between potables and more lethal liquids such as kero or diesel. Besides the useful…
I happened upon this pair of buggies as they headed to church service yesterday morning. There’s a good chance their occupants were going to Communion. Many Holmes County Amish churches held their bi-annual communion services this past weekend. Some will do so this upcoming weekend. Two weeks before Communion, a church will hold a service called Counsel. Preaching on this special day consists of a…
Chili (pronounced ‘CH-EYE-LIE’) is at the southern tip of the Holmes County settlement. The hamlet itself is actually located well inside Coshocton County. It’s not much more than a few ramshackle homes at the juncture of a couple of country byways. Leaving town, a partially-covered sign alerts drivers to the presence of horse-drawn traffic just ahead, marking the start of the world’s largest Amish community….
Male teachers are a rarity in the Amish school. Primarily an occupation for young unmarried women, one father, ‘Robert’, estimated that there were only about a half-dozen male teachers in the Holmes County vicinity, out of approximately 170 one-room schools. A quick count in the 2005 church directory actually turned up closer to 20, but with many schools having more than one teacher, males still…
Last night there was a frolic at ‘Ivan’s’. Ivan is a jolly father of six and one of my favorite people to spend time with here in Holmes County, Ohio. If he were southern, we might call Ivan a ‘good ole boy’. Always a blast to hang out with. When he flashes his trademark grin at you, you know he’s up to something. So I…