RENTOWN COUNTRY STORE

By Kevin Williams

Okay, a little bit of everything in this week's Amish in the News, so let's jump right in!

RENTOWN COUNTRY STORE: I have to confess that I've never been to this Amish-owned store in northern Indiana but I'd absolutely like to go someday! Just the 1000 pound "wheel of cheese" would be enough reason for me:) Rentown Country Store follows in the footsteps of other Amish-owned businesses (I'm thinking E&S in Shipshewana, Fountain Acres in Fountain City, Indiana, The Home Place in Georgetown, Ohio; Miller's in Wheat Ridge, Ohio) that become so popular that they just grow and grow. Many of these businesses start out serving the local populace of Amish and Plain people but eventually become more tourist destinations than anything. Rentown appears to be a mixture of both. Looks like a neat place and there's now much more to enjoy since it has expanded! Read more here.

BREAKING AMISH: Only 60 percent of the show is real (and to my editor's eye, I'd probably put it to about 20 percent) claims one of the show's "stars", Jeremiah Raber. Read his take on this silly show here.

ANABAPTIST HYMN SINGING: Some of the most beautiful harmonies I've heard have come from the voices of Anabaptists. Singing is generally a cappella and injected with a deep sense of history and purity. I can only imagine how beautiful the music must have been at this recipe gathering of Anabaptists: Mennonites, Amish, and other Plain people coming together as one to partake in a love of music. This article was much shorter than I think it should have been, but still interesting and a neat photo with it. Click here to read

MILLIE OTTO'S WESTERN CORN AND BEEF PIE: Millie Otto is an Amish writer for the Champaign, Illinois newspaper. Otto lives in Arthur, Illinois's sprawling Amish community. Check in with Millie this week and get her recipe for "western corn and beef pie!" Click here.

NORTH COUNTRY AMISH LOOK AT BUGGY SAFETY: While the conservative Amish in New York's "North Country" aren't ready to affix orange safety triangles to their buggies any time soon, they are willing to consider other ways to make their buggies stand out on area roadways including some newfangled reflective tape which is now on the market. Black is one of the colors of the tape. I'm not sure how black tape would help a buggy be seen better, but apparently it has great reflective qualities. Click here to read more.

It's summer and it seems that accidents always increase among the Amish as more time is spent outdoors, etc, here are two tragedies over the past few days:

9-year-old Amish boy dies on family farm after being ejected from a rolling cart.

Deadly crash in Webster County, Missouri kills senior citizen Amish couple.