The Amish Life

I’d like to share a close-up view of living among the Amish and Mennonite communities in Holmes County, Ohio. Every county and state is different, and so are the Amish communities within them. I live in a speck of a place called Berlin, one of the most frequently visited areas in Ohio (and most all states) for tourists. Berlin, Ohio and Lancaster, Pennsylvania have the highest amount of tourists visiting them. My guess is because they are so beautiful and peaceful, and crime is at an extreme low. The first things you’ll notice are the flowers and clean, neat properties, and of course, the horse and buggies clip-clopping down the street. Who cleans up the streets? The Amish pay an amount to the County, like the tax we pay for a license plate, which pays to clean up the street and also street repair. What causes the streets to need repair? I thought it was the buggy wheels, but it’s the horse’s hooves!

When in a restaurant, all Amish and many Mennonites stop to pray before taking a bite of food. Amish always pray in silence. Mennonites usually have a leader say a soft prayer for everyone. Their children pray in school and say the pledge of allegiance; things that are lost outside of this area in most cases. Yes, even the public schools have many Amish children attend, but all pray. As you can see, this is a very conservative group of people. In fact, before the last presidential election, a group leader from members of the Ohio and Pennsylvania Amish contacted the White House and asked for an audience with President Trump and were granted that privilege! There was a group of about 10 that hired a driver with a large enough vehicle for everyone, to drive them to Washington, DC, and the White House. And for those who ask…yes, they vote, and they certainly pay their taxes - honestly pay taxes! They are born citizens of the USA. 

They have many different parades in this area; one filled with over 300 huge 18 wheelers every year with signs “Truckers for Christ”. Yes, I have pictures.   

I’ve also gone to a number of Amish church services. The Old Order Amish (the families I have become a part of) meet in a different member’s barn every second week. During the week they deliver the bench wagons filled with all the extra benches (with no backs) and dishes, tablecloths and large coffee pots to the next home that will host the members, with a row of chairs with backs for people that are old or unable to walk or use the benches easily. The services are conducted by ministers, with bishops also attending. They are all said in the Deutsch language, but one time one of the ministers nodded to me and switched to English for a paragraph here and there so I could understand what they were saying. Their services are at least three hours long, or more! Then they all move to another area where the hosts serve coffee and sandwiches, plus many ladies bring pastries, while members have time for conversations with other members. The kids usually play outside. Congregations are limited to about 125 people.  Once they go beyond that, they split into two congregations. And what do they do for entertainment? They have benefit auctions for the Firemen, like the Firemen’s Festival on July 17. It’s the annual East Holmes Volunteer Fire Department competing with other fire departments. They receive nothing from taxes, so they buy their equipment and everything from these auctions and festivities. They pit various local firefighting teams against one another in some “splashtastic” water game in good-natured competition. The meals include a one-quarter chicken piece, potato salad, chips, a roll, a fry pie, and a slice of cheese and a drink. There is no cost, only a donation for the dinner. They even offer to go dinners again for a donation. There will be “firemen games” and games for the kids, a bounce house, and an annual auction. While the games are going on, the big tent behind the elementary school will be packed with people eating and listening to the live music presented by a trio of country gospel groups. The grand finale will be a fireworks display that will light up the night sky with color and sound. I could tell you more and more about the Antique Steam Engine Days and a tractor pull, but every week there’s another and different celebration to keep people together and entertained.                                               

Weddings were always held on Thursdays, and Amish businesses closed on Thursdays so everyone could attend the wedding, but in the last few years there are so many young people staying in the Old Order Amish faith they’ve had to increase the wedding days to Wednesdays, and now they have them on Tuesday’s, Wednesdays, and Thursdays! I don’t know about the Dan Church members, nor the Swartzentruber Amish, who are the most primitive of the Amish. This last group I mentioned are people who do not even have running water in their homes, which boils down to no showers, no flushing toilets, etc. The Old Order Amish have all those things and very comfortable homes. They still dress like all Amish do, and the men cannot wear belts (they use suspenders), nor do they have zippers on their pants, but wear pants made like sailor’s pants, and use horse and buggies, but many older people hire drivers to take them places, which has become a very lucrative business (they call it “hauling Amish”). Their houses have lovely Amish-made wood furniture, which they have become well-known for, and pictures on the wall, etc. And speaking of wood furniture, that’s a HUGE business here in Ohio! They are beautiful craftsmen, and if you happen to go to the Florida Amish Community below Sarasota called Pinecraft, there’s a wood furniture shop there that you can see for yourself, and the furniture comes right from here - Holmes County. In fact, one of our Senators called me while I was up in Ohio and asked if they make specially made items like hope chests. They do, so I was able to talk with the senator and then with back to them. The Amish craftsman made it exactly the way it was wanted and delivered it at the time specified. Perfect! My home also has their furniture.   

If you think you’d like to take a little trip to Pinecraft, they have a couple restaurants there, a quilt shop, a wood furniture store, a bulk food store, and even a Dutchman Hotel. If you’d like to mingle with the Amish, there are very few that live in Pinecraft year-round, but they begin to arrive by the busloads daily (except Sunday’s) starting the middle of November and start returning back home in March. The Amish come from Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, and more. They cannot ride horse and buggies in Sarasota, so they use two wheel and four-wheel bikes. There is a hidden-away park where they play shuffleboard and have outdoor picnics. It’s kinda fun to go and enjoy. The hotel even offers plays for evening entertainment for guests and others.

If you’re interested, next week I’ll print an Amish Wedding-chicken recipe. Oh gosh it’s delicious!