The Amish of the Midwestern USA

New Template

2010-01-16T16:23:00.000-06:00

I changed the template today because I dislike the typical narrow format of most blog templates. I may make some changes to the template later on, but for now I like it much better. Thanks for checking out my blog!

Amish Funeral Update

2010-01-15T19:38:00.000-06:00

Well it was a cold and dreary day for a funeral. It was foggy all day long.

In case you missed the link to the article, or in case the link is removed by the time you read this, I will attempt to tell a short story of the accident. On January 12, 2010, Eli Borntrager, 29, drove to Moberly in his 2 wheeled buggy, commonly simply called a "cart" by the Amish. One account I heard today says he was in the passing lane on Hwy 63 (which is a 4 lane highway with a speed limit of 70 MPH). He was struck from behind and died instantly. The horse was badly injured and had to be euthanized by a veterinary.

I feel sorry for the young widow that was left behind. She has 4 young daughters and 1 son. She will now be left to raise the children all by herself. Of course, her family as well as members of the community will do a lot to help out whether it is with financial support or with running the farming operation, etc. She will be free to remarry in the future if she chooses to (provided she can find someone to marry of course).

I was encouraged by one story I heard about the deceased. It was said tht Eli would begin eveery day by getting up extra early and spending about an hour reading his Bible before he began his day's work. While we don't know where he is spending Eternity, that is a challenge to me and you. How are we doing in the area of reading the Bible? Are we ready to meet our Lord Jesus Christ?

Here are some highlights of the day for me. I made several new ex-Amish friends, which I always enjoy. I met some old childhood acquaintances and got to see my sister and her husband whom I had not seen for several years, etc. I got a glimpse of my past. I can appreciate my "plain" upbringing while enjoying the conveniences of the modern world.

Amish Funeral

2010-01-14T22:30:00.002-06:00

We will be going to the funeral of Eli Bontrager who was killed in an automobile accident. Hope the weather is decent. I imagine it will be muddy. I will try to give an update tomorrow night.

Amish man killed in horse-drawn buggy

2010-01-12T23:44:00.000-06:00

A 29 year old Amish man was killed when his buggy was struck from behind. Apparently the driver of the car was not injured.

Read more about it at: http://www.connectmidmissouri.com/news/story.aspx?id=400807

Amish Life in the Winter Time

2010-01-02T15:19:00.000-06:00

What do the Amish do in the winter? While this would obviously vary from one family to another, I will write about some of the experiences of my wife and I.
A typical day might start at 4:30 -5:00 AM. We would get up and the the men would head to the barn to start feeding the horses and cows, while the women might start breakfast. Sometimes some of the girls would head to the barn with the men. After the horses and cows are fed, the cows are milked and the milking utensils are washed. By this time the women should have a hearty home cooked breakfast ready for those that had to brave the cold weather outside. After breakfast there may be some chores to finish up. During the coldest parts of winter, frozen waterlines can be a real headache. Sometimes one might work most of the morning to get the livestock watered.
At noon the men find there way back to the house for another hearty home-cooked meal. It might consist of canned corn or peas, mashed potatoes and gravy, & fried (farm raised) chicken, followed by desert which might be canned peaches served with cake and milk.
Of course, the stables need to be cleaned every day or two. Sometimes that can be done in the morning, but sometimes it has to wait until after lunch time. Depending on the amount of livestock an Amish farmer has he might be cleaning the barn for about an hour to half a day. There may be a new baby calf or colt to take care of. Some Amish farmers will have hogs, sheep or some other livestock to care for as well.
The evening chores start again at about 5:00 PM. It is pretty much a repeat of the morning chores. Feed the horses and cows, milk the cows, clean the milking equipment, and then make sure all the livestock has fresh, clean bedding for the night.
After all the evening chores are done, the men (and girls) head back to the house for a hearty supper. After supper the women will wash the dishes and the men and boys may relax a little while by reading the a book or the local newspaper. Everybody is usually in bed by 8:30-9:00 PM. Remember there is no TV to watch. There is no internet. No radio.

An Amish Airport

2010-01-02T14:34:00.000-06:00

Nothing like a little humor to start out the new year.

Amish Man Charged with Child Molesting Girls

2009-11-03T20:28:00.006-06:00

Unfortunately cases of immorality and child molestation are far more common within many Amish communities than most people realize. Even as a former Amish I am surprised at the frequency of reports of similar cases. While the Amish have a reputation to be honest, godly, hard working people, they are not immune to the sin nature that lies within every human being.

I have a special interest in this particular case because Johnny Schwartz is my first cousin. I was shocked when I heard about the charges against him. I am including some links below that I have been watching.

Amish Man from Webster County, MO charged with molesting little girls

Four Amish church leaders charged in connection with recent sex scandal

Four Amish bishops charged with failing to report sexual abuse

The Midwestern Amish Defined

2007-11-26T22:38:00.000-06:00

While many of the Amish communities in the Midwest are somewhat more conservative and have somewhat different practices, one cannot totally put every midwestern community in the same basket based solely on their geograghic location. For example, the community near Arthur or Arcola, Ill is very similar to many of the larger Eastern communities. The community near Cashton, Wi. was started primarily by a group of people from a large community in Ohio. Therefore it is fairly similar to the Ohio communities.

It is therefore necessary to speak in generalities. Generally the midwestern communities are much smaller than the large Eastern communities, such as Lancaster County, Pa., Holmes County, Oh., Dover, Del., and Shipshewanna/La Grange, In. There are also many small communities in many of the eastern states; New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennesee, Michigan, Etc.

The Amish I will focus on are communities that my wife and I, or our relatives grew up in, such as; Snyder County, Pa., Orange County, IN., Bowling Green, MO., Clark, MO., La Plata, MO., Augusta, Wi., Granger, Mn., etc.

Who's that guy?

2007-10-19T19:18:00.000-05:00

For those that care...The gray haired guy on the left side of the above photo is my uncle Paul Eicher. This picture was taken at a funeral in the Kahoka, Mo area earlier this fall. I took it (the picture) as we were driving down the road towards them from the back seat of Dad's van.

The Purpose of this Blog.

2007-10-18T22:43:00.000-05:00

My wife and I were raised in Old Order Amish communities in the Midwest. We have noticed that most books about the Amish do not accurately portray the Amish we grew up with. It seems that the main reason/s might be because the authors were never a part of the Amish culture and/or were writing about the Amish of the larger communities in Pa. and Ohio. I have decided to write a book about the Amish in the smaller communities of the Midwest. So...I am starting this blogspot as a means to start putting some topics and ideas for the book in print. Perhaps someone will actually find this blog and ask questions or submit comments that will give me ideas for chapters/topics in the book. Please help me to keep this a clean, God honoring blogspot. Thank You.