*[Sollen wir uns zum Mittagessen treffen?]
Last fall, the nation was shocked by the action of a madman who invaded an Amish school and went on a killing spree. After killing and wounding several students, he killed himself. This was especially close to home for us who live in southeastern Pennsylvania. When I go out to the Hans Herr House, I miss the school by only a mile or so. By now, the school has been razed by community volunteers and a new school is being or has been constructed.
The Amish, as Anabaptists, believe in education. From the time of Martin Luther they have believed that everyone should be able to read High German, the language of their Bible. The Amish, though, believe that eight years of school is enough to accomplish this. It is not easy as in the eight years they will study English and High German. The Amish prefer to use one room schools for these eight grades. The schools are built near the homes of the students so that they can walk to school. The teachers are usually young girls. So a typical Amish school is very unprotected and vulnerable to people who might have evil intents.
After the Nickel Mines school incident, financial contributions started to pour in. None of these were solicited; they came into the community in a variety of ways and everyone understood how to pass them on. The Amish formed a Nickel Mines Accountability Committee, an oversight group, to handle the financial contributions which have exceeded $3.2 million. They are aware that are other pressing needs in the world but they are “humbled and deeply thankful” for this outpouring of funds.
The funds are being used for medical care, counseling services, rehabilitation, long-term disability care, and modifications to homes and schools to make them handicapped accessible. But their attention is not focused on the Amish alone, as the Amish have contributed monies to help the widow and family of the gunman. “We will not blame the widow, but love her.” “God is there for the poor widow and her family.” Half of the mourners at the funeral for the gunman were Amish.
Three of the five surviving girls have returned to school but may need assistance for the rest of their lives. Two of the surviving girls were severely wounded in the head and will need lifetime care.
The Amish were deeply touched by the sympathy and support they received. They prefer a quiet life. To see the U.S. flags flown at half mast on behalf of the Amish was touching to both the Amish and the “English”.
[Shall we meet for lunch?]
(22 Jan 07)
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.