Amish in the News: Amish Angels, Mennonite Memories, Millie's Peanut Butter Cake, and Much More!

By Kevin Williams
LOW GERMAN COVID:  This is unfortunate.  In southwest Ontario there is a sizable population of Low German Mennonites.  These are Plain Mennonites of varying orders who speak German, lived in closed communities, and dress a traditional, Plain dress.  A portion of the article says:
When the surge of COVID-19 cases among the Low German speaking population in Windsor-Essex was made public last month, the community was subjected to public discrimination, according to Leamington Mayor Hilda MacDonald and Low German Mennonite and nurse practitioner Helen Bergen.
In addition to the negative comments made online, MacDonald said she was told of incidents within the community. She heard of people speaking aggressively to the older, more visible members of the population at grocery stores and of a case of a cancelled playdate with a Low German child. 
That's too bad that this group feels singled out.  Another of 40 million reasons I'll be glad when this pandemic is over.  Click here to read the whole article.
EDGE OF AMISH:  This is an interesting article (but really, really lacking in detail...I might have to go visit this group sometime to learn more) about a group of ex-Amish who are trying to create a sort of alternative Plain church in south-central Indiana.  I had trouble getting into the article because of a paywall, but I eventually found a way. Click here to try to read it.
BEST AMISH BAKERIES IN LANCASTER?  A travel website posted a list, what do you think?
OLD ORDER MENNONITE MEMOIRS:  This is another installment of an EXCELLENT newspaper column by an Old Order Mennonite grandmother in Pennsylvania. I love her writing, which veers between philosophical, funny, and forward, here is an excerpt:
"Pop, pop," went the kernels of corn under the lid I held over the cast iron pan. The flames of the campfire flickered cheerily in the growing darkness of our seventh annual camping time with our grandchildren. Besides my first-time attempt at campfire popcorn, a whole bag of big marshmallows was toasted over the encircled heat. (This time I remembered to provide long sticks for everyone.)
The installment is an account of a recent camping adventure with their 8 grandchildren. She refers to herself and her husband as "Momie and Dawdy", so they must be a German-speaking group of Old Order Mennonites.  I just love this column because it's not from an Amish perspective, but Old Order Mennonite and that makes it a fascinating, one-of-a-kind window in their world. Click here to read the whole column.
MENNONITE AND AMISH ANGELS:  They sure seemed like angels to a group of Iowa families whose homes were clobbered by an intense storm this week.  Imagine their delight when they saw Amish people showing up with rakes, chainsaws, and plenty of energy to help with clean-up. So selfless.  Click here to read this heart-warming piece.

MILLIE'S PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CAKE:  I do enjoy Millie's wry style.  She has a good sense of humor and sounds like her life in Arthur, Illinois is very enjoyable. I am glad that I had the good fortune to meet her in-person once.  Here is an excerpt from this week:
When we got back, we ate lunch, I stacked the dishes on the sink (my first mistake) then went to do laundry. After that I took a short nap (mistake no.2) then took a gallon bucket out to pick beans. Wow! I filled that just sitting in one spot! I ended up picking probably five gallons. My mom helped me clean them then I put them in the fridge for processing the next morning, I had to go get my bike, Cora took me to go get it, I wasn’t quite finished when she came. I finished up when I came home. I never did get to the yard.
Read the rest here.