I finally arrived at Black River Education Center. Boy, was it stuffy in that envelope. I’m glad to get out.

Black River School is located about one hour south of Lake Erie, one of the Great Lakes.

The school was named for this lazy, little river than meanders through the district, the Black River.

A very interesting cultural group of people also lives in the district, the Amish.

The Amish live like people did 150 years ago. We saw a lot of these buggies.

Amish don’t believe in driving cars or using any modern conveniences. They travel from place to place in their horse-drawn buggies.

Amish don’t use electricity. They light their homes with kerosene lamps. The windmill provides power to pump water from their well.

The main job of the Amish is farming.

Amish farmers work hard in their fields using horse-drawn equipment.

After picking their corn crop, they cut the stalks and stack them into shocks to use as bedding for their animals.

Amish farmers milk their cows twice a day by hand.

The Amish set their milk cans filled with fresh milk along the roadside for the milk truck to pick up.

Much of their milk is shipped an hour and a half away, to Heini’s Cheese Factory.

The milk is taken inside and dumped into these large vats, where it is processed into many delicious kinds of cheese.

Heini’s is famous for their large variety of cheeses. Many tourists stop here to shop. We ate free samples and decided which cheese to buy. Yummmmmmmm!!

We stopped for lunch at a popular restaurant called Mrs. Yoder’s Kitchen. The Amish are famous for their home cooking, especially their dressing and homemade noodles. It was delicious!!!!

Here’s an Amish school. All of the students from grades 1-8 are taught in this one room, by one teacher. Notice the small buildings in back of the school? Can you guess what their use is?

Amish ladies are famous for their beautiful hand sewn quilts. Doesn’t this one look warm and cozy?

See the smaller house behind the larger one? That is called a Daudy house, which means a grandfather’s house. Often two generations of Amish live on the same farm. With the grandparents living in their own home out back, it’s easier to care for them when they need it.

Amish children are dressed like their parents. They are seen walking to school or church, often bare-footed, even in cooler temperatures.

The Amish community is a close knit one. Here they are having a barn raising. They gather from miles around to build a barn for their neighbor in only one day.

I learned a lot from our new friends, but it will be great to get back home. Love, Stanley