Amish in the News: More Measles, Donkey Shooters Arrested, Sarasota Shuffle, and Tragedy on Farm

Okay, lots of Amish in the news, so I'll just dive right into the stories and commentary.

First of all, an update on the measles outbreak in the Amish community in Knox County, Ohio.

UPDATE - MORE MEASLES:  More measles cases are being reported among the Amish in Knox and Holmes County, Ohio.  Worries are that weddings over the weekend and Easter family gatherings could have spread the illness.    The Amish man at the center of the outbreak - Tobias Yoder - returned from the Philippines with the measles. He was doing mission work with Christian Aid Ministries.  This is (not to minimize the measles) the part of the story that really interests me.  Tobias seems to be pretty open with the media so I am going to try to track him down and talk to him about his trip, this type of mission work is a little unusual among the most conservative Amish.  In the meantime, here are some updates on the epidemic:

Misdiagnosed:  Tobias says he was first diagnosed with dengue fever by a hospital in Holmes County.

Spreading?   Fears are the measles may spread among the Amish.

UPDATE - DONKEY DEATH:  Last week I first posted about this story. It is really disturbing to think of what possible reasoning some teenagers would have for shooting and killing a docile donkey.  But I am glad they were caught. Click here to read more.

KALONA GARDEN GOODIES:   The Amish in Kalona, Iowa have started a cooperative to auction o ff homegrown produce.  I'm surprised this hasn't been done sooner there, this is becoming increasingly common in other Amish settlements. Click here for more info.

TRAGEDY:  A 7-year-old Amish boy died when his brother accidentally shot and killed him while shooting at ground moles.  Many traditionally pacifist Amish are adamantly opposed to guns even for hunting, and, sadly, this is one of the reasons.  We'll keep the family in our prayers.

SARASOTA SHUFFLE:  Some property transfers in the Pinecraft settlement of Sarasota (some sloppy headline writing, though, none of the properties are Amish-owned...Yoder's is a WONDERFUL restaurant, but not Amish-owned)