Amish Mother Ruth Miller Back In Court as Legal Teams Debate Jury Guidance Ahead of March Murder Trial

Amish Mother Ruth Miller Back In Court as Legal Teams Debate Jury Guidance Ahead of March Murder Trial

Ruth Miller – the Amish mother facing aggravated murder, among other charges, in her four-year-old son’s August drowning death – was in court yesterday for a pre-trial hearing which lasted about a half-hour. Miller’s trial is scheduled to begin March 4th, so just about two months from now. There was not a ton of headline-grabbing news made, though one important issue was addressed (and except…

Amish Buggy Totaled in Pre-Dawn Crash; Somehow Amish Man & Children Walk Away

Amish Buggy Totaled in Pre-Dawn Crash; Somehow Amish Man & Children Walk Away

Somehow no one was injured in this early-AM crash yesterday in Vernon County, Wisconsin. Looking at the photos, you’d expect otherwise, seeing the heavily-damaged buggy on the roadside. From the Vernon Reporter: WESTBY, Wis. — Authorities say no one was injured when a pickup truck struck a horse-drawn buggy early Saturday in rural on U.S. Highway 14 yesterday. The crash happened around 5:15 a.m. on…

What’s the Deal With “Suddenly Amish”? 4 Key Questions Before the Premiere

What’s the Deal With “Suddenly Amish”? 4 Key Questions Before the Premiere

You may have heard there is another Amish-themed TV program releasing soon – “Suddenly Amish” – on TLC. Here’s the show summary: TLC’s all-new series SUDDENLY AMISH follows six non-Amish individuals on a rare journey as they leave behind their modern “English” lifestyle and step into a deeply traditional Amish community in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Seeking a profound change from their present way of modern life,…

Inside An Amish Home On The “Wild Side” (27 Photos)

Inside An Amish Home On The “Wild Side” (27 Photos)

This is how this Kansas Amish home’s description opens – and why I couldn’t pass up describing it likewise: “Escape to the wild side and live on your own terms with this rugged 50-acre off-grid farm in central Osage County”. Osage County, KS is a sparsely-populated place, and true to the pitch, the property enjoys abundant wildlife – as shown in a series of accompanying…

Ohio Thrift Shop Raises Thousands For Amish People With Special Needs

Ohio Thrift Shop Raises Thousands For Amish People With Special Needs

Save & Serve is a special kind of store – a nonprofit operation whose earnings are directed to benefit various outreach projects, supporting the Mennonite Central Committee’s mission. Based in Millersburg, Ohio, it’s a thrift shop selling a “curated selection of gently-used items”, according to its website. Founded in the mid-1970s, they’ve been at it for over half a century now. Periodically, Save & Serve…

Favorite Posts Of 2025

Favorite Posts Of 2025

I have a tradition of doing this favorite posts roundup post on the last day of the year. I’ve done this going back to at least 2014 (though it looks like I missed 2016 for some reason). These are “favorites” – what does that mean? Well, some are those that got the most views – or the biggest stories from a news perspective. Some were…

Inside A Charming Backroad Amish Bakery (28 Photos)

Inside A Charming Backroad Amish Bakery (28 Photos)

The sign you see here welcomes you to Peachey’s Country Store, a place definitely worth stopping if you find yourself in the Somerset County, Pennsylvania Amish community. I had this spot in mind for a re-visit ever since I was here in 2015, and was happy – though not surprised – to see it was still in business when I visited the community earlier this…

New From Ben & Rose: “City Of Gold”

New From Ben & Rose: “City Of Gold”

Ben takes the lead on this bouncy rendition of another gospel classic – “City of Gold”. Like the last song we looked at, this one appeared on the duo’s album, and now gets a video. There was something a bit odd here though – this one was released at the same time as “Lily of the Valley”. I wondered why, as Ben and Rose typically…

A Snowy Visit To Amish Country in Missouri (16 Photos)

A Snowy Visit To Amish Country in Missouri (16 Photos)

Many of you probably recognize the name Don Burke as someone who has provided many wonderful photos for the site here over the years – as well as a number of excellent guest posts about visits to Amish communities. In today’s post, Don shares with us how he first came to visit one of the Amish communities he grew to know well – that of…

New From Ben & Rose: “Lily Of The Valley”

New From Ben & Rose: “Lily Of The Valley”

Ben & Rose are back with their rendition of “Lily of the Valley”, an old gospel classic. This is another track from their album, which they are just releasing a video for now. And it’s another which dates back a good ways – written by Charles William Fry in England in  1881, for the Salvation Army. Here’s more on the interesting back story of the…