“A Character that is Truly My Own” 

Many years ago, when I was a young girl attending an Amish school in northeastern Ohio, I had a friend named Ruth. I felt privileged to have her as a friend because my family’s reputation was so poor in the community. Ruth’s family was considered “mission-minded” because they talked openly about what it means to…

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From PhD to MD by Dr. Harley Yoder

After a pause (I will explain the pause at a later date), I return to publishing stories from attendees of the symposium “How Our Amish Heritage Influences Our Education and Career” at Elizabethtown College on June 8. All of the stories we heard that day were triumphant, and this one by Dr. Harley Yoder is…

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Amish Conference 2016, Part 2

Claudia Lillinger, myself, Sabrina Völz First I want to announce that Sabrina Völz has posted the second half of the interview with me on the American Studies Blog. Her introduction to the interview and the questions are quite evocative. I hope you’ll enjoy the interview. Now I want to return to the conference this past…

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Swinging into Spring

With weather predictions of temperatures in the 40s (at least while the sun shines) this week, it looks like we will finally get a break from the winter weather. And today is the beginning of an extra hour of light at the end of the day, so that will help with lengthening the daytime hours.…

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Blindsided by a Blizzard

Today I've been battening down the hatches for the epic winter storm that is predicted to hit us, starting tonight and lasting until Wednesday morning. Like everyone else, I bought groceries that will sustain us if our power goes out. I've boiled eggs, made tapioca pudding, and filled containers with drinking water. We will likely…

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