County trying to help others understand Amish culture
Holmes County is used to scenes like this on the byways. Other communities throughout Ohio and even in other states where Amish populations are sprouting up are seeking the aid of Holmes County to better understand the Amish lifestyle and culture.
Around any corner, over any hill, those driving the roads and byways of Amish Country in Holmes County are fully aware they might encounter a buggy, tractor, bicycle or walkers. That is part of life. That is the norm.
However, in other areas throughout Ohio and even beyond with new and blossoming Amish populations, issues with road safety and dealing with other cultural challenges between English and Amish communities is quite foreign.
For the Holmes County Amish Health and Safety Steering Committee and Holmes County Emergency Management Association director Gary Mellor and assistant director Luke Hall, serving as a conduit to other communities and helping them walk through some of the changes they may be facing is something they are more than willing to do in order to help those communities better understand the Amish and how they can cohabitate to enrich everyone’s lives.
According to Mellor, 38 of Ohio’s 88 counties now have a significant Amish population, and many of those counties have turned to Holmes County for guidance.
Mellor said they are currently looking at connecting with Vinton County in Southern Ohio to get a health and safety day program started there.
“We’ve had inquiries there and from other parts of the state where Amish populations have cropped up,” Mellor said. “People need some guidance and don’t know where to turn, and they are calling here because we have been successful in integrating different cultures.”
Mellor said they aren’t experts, but growing up in a community that is fully integrated with the Amish culture, where English and Amish kids have gone to school together for decades and people are neighbors and friends, it becomes part of who they are, and this community is proof the Amish culture can successfully thrive alongside the English culture.
“It’s not rocket science; it is about building relationships,” Mellor said.
Working with other county’s people in farm bureaus, medical and healthcare personnel, fire departments, law-enforcement members, and other community leaders is paramount to bridging gaps. Providing others with valuable input is something they hope will continue to grow.
“I see that as a big goal,” Hall said of branching out to aid and assist other Ohio counties dealing with Amish populations for the first time. “As the Amish populations continue to spread out geographically, there is a lot to learn. We are seeing areas where the emergency management director, an engineer and safety people have never dealt with an Amish population before, and it is a lot of cultural nuances to navigate.”
Mellor said fire and EMS personnel and police departments also must navigate a steep learning curve in serving the Amish communities.
“With our group of knowledgeable and experienced people, we can bring these two groups together at a neutral setting and introduce them to many of the unique circumstances they might face with a new Amish population coming to their area,” Mellor said.
While working with counties and communities in Ohio is a priority, Mellor said they have had groups from Kentucky, New York, Montana and other out-of-state areas connect with them for advice and guidance.
“It’s pretty incredible when you think about it,” Mellor said. “It is one of those things that this community can be very proud of. And we aren’t telling other areas how they should do things. We are simply making connections and giving them advice from a community that has been working hand in hand with the Amish for a long time.”
Mellor said the responses they have received from communities they have worked with has been positive.
“Once we are able to build these bridges, it makes everything in the community better, and we see that here in Holmes County,” Mellor said. “The Amish people want to be part of their communities and be supportive and a source of value to communities. They just don’t know the best way to make that connection. What we want to do is to help bring people together to make these relational transitions smooth so they can benefit from one another.”
Hall said EMA is the perfect vessel to share this type of information because its main goal is to promote Amish community growth.
“What we tend to focus on in EMA is complex issues that involve multiple disciplines that normally wouldn’t connect with one another,” Hall said. “With all of the different facets involved, you wouldn’t expect to get all of these different people together to establish this bridge and improve understanding, but that is what we are built to do.”
Mellor said bringing all these different facets of a community together and helping them find common ground and better understanding toward one another has gone well in the different communities they have dealt with over the years.
He said with the success they have experienced in working with the Amish community, the groundwork has been laid to make progress into connecting other unique cultures to the English communities in which they live, such as growing Hispanic communities.
“Why can’t we take this same model that has been successful and make it work,” Mellor said.
While emergency management might sound like an entity that deals with dangerous situations, Mellor said there is a lot more layers to what they do, and the ultimate goal is to bring people together to build better relationships.
In doing so, they have developed a small steering committee with several key members of the Amish community joining Mellor, Ashland County EMA director Mark Rayfeld, Ohio State patrolwoman Lt. Steph Norman, Steve Waltman of the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office and Suzanne Snyder, former Holmes County Safe Communities director.
Mellor said each member was handpicked by the Amish community to be a part of the steering committee, saying that was an honor.