Got Ice?

This ice machine, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, is hooked up to electric at a pole by the road to help supply area Amish with ice.

By Kevin Williams

The Amish in Grabill, Indiana share a lot of close family and tradition ties with the Amish of Berne, Indiana but they part ways in other areas.  Use of technology is one, or at least how it is seen publicly.   Here is an "ice machine" that I saw out along rural Cuba Road in Grabill.  Inside this ice machine is what you'd find at any convenience store: bags of ice.  You can just leave your money in the cooler or walk over to the nearest farmhouse and pay.

"It's most just Amish that use it but occasionally we'll have someone who is having a party or gathering that needs ice and they'll use it also," said a teenage girl who was at the nearest house.  At first I drove by the machine a couple of times but then I thought to myself that I have to stop and ask the details.  The parents, unfortunately, were not home. But the girl says the family has been in the ice business for a long time.  Most Amish homes, even with plentiful solar power, probably don't have freezers at home, so being able to buy a bag of ice just a quick buggy jaunt away is probably quite convenient!