PLAIN VALUES
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Our Story WHO WE ARE... From 2007 to 2012 we, the Millers, adopted our first three children, a preschooler on the autism spectrum and two babies with Down syndrome. We published our first issue of Plain Values in 2012 to highlight Biblical ministries, share the beauty of adoption, and to cultivate anchored community. In 2018 we welcomed our fourth child in a surprise adoption, this time a baby with Mosaic Down syndrome.
WHAT WE BELIEVE... Our values are plain values, steeped in the rich traditions of yesterday. We enjoy the simple things in life. Gathering eggs from the coop, getting our hands in the dirt to grow food, and cooking meals from scratch. Sometimes we sit around a fire and share life. We strive to walk humbly to strengthen authentic relationships with our families and neighbors. And, yes, we have taken a fresh pie to a front porch and surprised a friend… we didn’t even text them before! We just stopped by, walked up the steps, and knocked on the door! Just the way our grandparents used to do on a Sunday evening. They called it living in community. We seek to serve our neighbors. Plain Values began with a prayer, hoping to play a small role in connecting a child with Down syndrome to his or her forever family. We have checked that box nearly a dozen times in the last ten years, and we will not stop until the orphanages are empty! We will rest in Heaven!
HOW YOU CAN HELP... Subscribe today. Join us as we pursue a more authentic life. By subscribing to Plain Values, a portion of each subscription goes directly to Room to Bloom, our non-profit that supports children with special needs.
Our Team PUBLISHER Marlin Miller
ADVERTISING Matt Yoder, Ohio sales advisor Aaron Stutzman, Indiana + Michigan sales advisor
OFFICE + PRODUCTION
EDITORIAL
Bethany Troyer, bookkeeping
Nic Stoltzfus, editorial manager
Jan Schlabach, customer service
Sabrina Schlabach, quality assurance
Isaac Hershberger, production manager
Reuben Shetler, contributing writer
Seth Yoder, graphic artist
Rory Feek, Roots + Wings
Landon Troyer, photographer
Merissa A. Alink, Homestead + Roots Joel Salatin, Confessions of a Steward Ferree Hardy, The Widow's Path Elam Stoltzfus, Our Heritage Jim Zumbo, All Things Outdoors
FEBRUARY AD CLOSE
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January 6, 2022
Plain Values is published monthly by Plain Target Marketing, LLC. Please contact us with any questions.
a: PO Box 201/2106 Main Street, Winesburg, Ohio 44690
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p: (330) 601 - 6106
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f: (330) 601 - 4099
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e: reachout@plainvalues.com
W W W. P L AI N VALU E S . CO M This publication and its contents are © 2022, Plain Target Marketing, LLC. Individual copyrighted items, trademarks, etc. contained within are the property of their respective copyright holders. No part of this publication may be reproduced or redistributed by any means without authorization from the publisher. Publisher is not responsible for advertisers’ offers, products, or services, and publication neither expresses or implies an endorsement.
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contents
January 2022 // Issue 103
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A REFUGE FROM THE STORM New Leaf Center words by: Reuben Shetler "New Leaf Center is a clinic for children with special needs formed by Dr. Olivia Wenger and others in January 2013 with a mission of striving to “improve the quality of life for people with special needs caused by inherited disorders through cost-effective medical care, education, research, and advocacy."
simple living 37
HOMESTEAD + ROOTS Homemade Saltine Crackers column by: Merissa A. Alink "Making crackers from scratch is so much fun and the homemade versions taste SO much better and fresher than the boxed ones at the store."
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CONFESSIONS OF A STEWARD Animals Move column by: Joel Salatin "Some of the worst animal situations I’ve seen around the world are not in industrial confinement facilities, although those are the most notorious and receive the highest negative publicity. No, some of the worst I’ve seen have been the backyards of homesteaders who have their animals confined in filthy conditions and debilitated forage. If this sounds like a sermon, it is."
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ONE MINUTE WITH MARLIN
ON THE COVER
FUNDS AND BENEFITS
Thoughts and ramblings from Marlin Miller, publisher of Plain Values.
Rory Feek with his daughter, Indiana, on their home farm in Tennessee.
Every month we provide a listing of opportunities to help out those in need.
photo by Michael Hayes
community 27
ROOTS + WINGS Planting Roots column by: Rory Feek "The first few stories I’ll be sharing monthly in this column are about some of the profound changes for the better that have occurred in my life that brought me here to this moment."
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THE WIDOW'S PATH Changing the Calendar column by: Ferree Hardy "I don’t know everything you’ve gone through, but I do know that the past year was difficult. I’m glad, though, that we get to change the calendar."
history 55
OUR HERITAGE Printing the Ausbund
(part one)
column by: Elam Stoltzfus “The 1583 printing contains 130 songs; today’s American printings of the Ausbund have 140 songs."
outdoors 61
ALL THINGS OUTDOORS Ice Fishing column by: Jim Zumbo "Ice fishing is enjoyed by millions of anglers across America. Give it a try if you haven’t already, be safe, and don’t be surprised if you catch more fish than you ever have before in open water."
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one minute with Marlin
I DOUBT MANY WOULD ARGUE that 2020 and 2021 lean in the direction of tougher seasons on the see-saw of good and bad years. We can most likely all think of friends, family, or both walking through dark valleys these days. I have talked and prayed with friends in the middle of strained family relationships, a few watching family members slide down seemingly endless wormholes. I have a friend whose wife is fighting cancer, one taking care of her husband of decades with Alzheimer’s, another who buried his father. Tucked away in the second chapter of Exodus, beginning with verse 23, are these words: "During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel — and God knew." God hears, remembers, sees, and knows. Voddie Baucham’s recent comments on this passage are too powerful not to quote, “When that cancer diagnosis came, God was watching. When that child went astray, God was watching. When you were maligned and mistreated, God saw and when that loved one died, God saw that too. When your family was shattered into a million pieces, God saw that too.” He goes on to say that this doesn’t sound too hopeful… until you consider the alternative. What if we served a God who missed things? Who cast his eyes away from us, seeing us as unimportant and insignificant? Mercifully, we serve
MARLIN MILLER
publisher, always looking for more friends
a God who works all things to our good and for His Glory. We all have days where we wonder or ask the question, “where was God?” In the midst of cancer, Alzheimer’s, death, and pain — God is present, watching over us with love and care. May we never loosen our grip on the truth… God hears, He remembers, He sees, and He knows that our Deliverer — His son Jesus — is coming. As always, may you find joy in the simple joys of life. //
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Wishing two very special little ladies (both having GM3 Synthase deficiency) a very Happy Birthday! On the 4th of November Anita turned 9 and Lena will be celebrating her 6th birthday on January 27. Thank you Jacob and Norma (dad and mom) for taking such wonderful care of them!
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feature NEW LEAF CENTER
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A Refuge Storm from the
—
NEW LEAF CENTER
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words by:
REUBEN SHETLER
THE WAVES ROCKED the boat. Water sprayed into the air. The wind was whistling, shrieking, roaring around them. The men hunkered down on the deck, shielding their faces from the foamy spray. “Help! Mercy!” They desperately steered the boat through the waves. Then one of them thought of the man in the rear. He scrambled over the jumbled fishing nets and grabbed the sleeping man by the shoulder. The anxious man cried, “Master, we perish!” Jesus stood up. He looked out over the seething waters and turbulent sky and held out his hand. “Peace! Be still,” Jesus said. Immediately the waters were calm. The sky was silent, and the boat was on the other side. The storm was over—there was no more reason to fear.
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The scenic farmland of Mt. Eaton, Ohio
Amish Country Holmes County is one of the most beautiful places
they doing here? What is “New Leaf Center?”
in the world. Farms dot the rolling hills, cows and
New Leaf Center is a clinic for children with
horses graze in the fields and pastures, woodlands
special needs formed by Dr. Olivia Wenger and others
stretch across the peaceful horizon, and buggies and
in January 2013 with a mission of striving to “improve
bicycles move leisurely along winding roads.
the quality of life for people with special needs
This is Amish Country. Holmes County is home
caused by inherited disorders through cost-effective
to one of the largest Amish communities in the
medical care, education, research, and advocacy.”
world. More than 37,000 Amish people live here,
So why the name “New Leaf?” The moniker was
from old men with bald heads and white beards to
given to the clinic by a mother of a child with special
barefoot children splashing in the creeks.
needs. A new leaf represents hope. It represents
Mt. Eaton is in the heart of it all. With several
a fresh start. It even hints at cost savings. It just
stores, a gas station, a school, and offering pretty
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sounds so right.
much any commodity that makes living in a small
The month following the clinic’s founding, Dr.
village pleasurable, Mt. Eaton is the epitome of an
Wenger’s fourth child was born, but being a new
Amish town.
mom didn’t stop her from serving as the clinic’s
If you visit Mt. Eaton, you may come across a
pediatrician. Though operating with minimal time
stately new building on one of the back streets. A
and space, the Center was a success from the start.
sign out front proclaims, “New Leaf Center.” The
But as more and more Amish families became
door to the entrance may swing open, revealing
aware of what it had to offer, New Leaf developed
a young Amish family stepping outside. What are
a problem. It needed more help. The Center was in
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"they strive to improve the quality of life for people with special needs caused by inherited disorders through cost-effective medical care, education, research, and advocacy.
need of another doctor. So, in 2019, New Leaf Clinic hired Dr. Ethan Scott as the second full-time doctor at the clinic. Since the clinic opened, 1,200 people have been served by New Leaf. Currently, about 750 people with special needs are active patients. After an initial visit, patients return for illness, developmental checkups, medications, or other needs related to their disorder. The only care New Leaf doesn’t provide is well-childcare, meaning they don’t do your typical doctor visits for otherwise healthy children.
Facing the Storms Imagine you are a young Amish mother. You have a newborn baby, and that baby is sick. You take the baby to numerous doctors, but no one has any answers. “Test for this,” they say. “Check for that,” they recommend. You are tired, overwhelmed, frustrated. You are heartbroken from seeing your baby suffer. The storms of life are threatening to capsize your boat. You long to hear the words, “Peace! Be still.” Willis and Amanda Weaver were such a couple. In February of 2021, their daughter Deborah was born. Deborah had poor muscle tone, no gag reflex, and couldn’t suckle. At birth, she was transferred to Akron Children’s Hospital. The storm had begun for the Weavers. At one-month-old, Deborah was diagnosed with Prader-Willi. This is a very rare genetic condition. Prader-Willi is an eating disorder that affects a child’s ability to develop normally. As a result, Deborah, the Dr. Olivia Wenger 15
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youngest of the family’s seven children, needed a feeding tube and a ton of time and attention. The Weavers were discouraged. The toll of the stress and expenses was wearing down on them. Then one day, someone made a suggestion to Amanda. “You should try New Leaf Center.” This was news to them. A center for children with special needs in Mt. Eaton? It sounded too good to be true. But Amanda gave the Center a call and scheduled the first appointment. “We went in there and met with Dr. Ethan Scott,” Amanda says. “And we were so very well pleased with him. Dr. Scott took the time to listen to us. He was not in a hurry. He gave information about Prader-Willi and offered to help obtain medications and hormones Deborah needs for her brain development. I think we were in there for 2 1/2 hours! Not once did Dr. Scott push us along. He was so down to earth. And the best part was, he had a connection directly with Akron Children’s! We didn’t have to spend a lot of time on paperwork and medical records. Because New Leaf is affiliated with Akron Children’s, Dr. Scott had all our information with several clicks on his computer.” The Weavers walked away from that first appointment feeling like the waves were calming down. The peace of Jesus could be felt at the New Leaf Center. And although being there had been helpful, the benefits didn’t stop there. Over the next several weeks, Deborah was sick from time to time. Amanda would call New Leaf, and almost always, either Dr. Scott or Dr. Olivia Wenger were available. Instead of having to go to the ER, Amanda could figure out what to do by talking to the doctors on the phone. New Leaf would even offer to come out to their home, if necessary. “To me, having that assurance means all the world,” Amanda says. “I know I can call, and even if it is after hours, someone will be there. If I do need to go there, it’s local, and I don’t have far to go. And if needed, they will come to us. New Leaf has offered to help us monitor Deborah as she grows up and assist with her development however they can. “I would advise anyone with a genetic disorder to definitely go to New Leaf.”
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Dr. Ethan Scott
Meet Ethan On a quiet summer day in Holmes County, a car creeps slowly down a dirt road. It crests a wooded hill and descends into a valley dominated by the huge red barn of an Amish farm. Behind the barn, a black horse munches grass. “Look, Daddy! Another one!” The little girl in the backseat points out the window. The lady in the passenger seat smiles at her husband, driving. “How many is that, honey? Are you still keeping track?” Dr. Ethan Scott chuckles. “If I counted right, that’s the twenty-sixth horse we’ve seen. And we’ve only been driving for half an hour!” Ethan’s family loves to travel Amish Country. In fact, Ethan loves EVERYTHING about Amish Country. The newest doctor at New Leaf Center, Ethan has fallen head over heels for the community. Was his decision to work for New Leaf the right one? Ethan has no doubt. A graduate of Kent State University, Ethan received his medical doctorate from Northeast Ohio Medical University. Like founder Olivia Wenger, he completed his pediatric residency at Akron Children’s Hospital. Ethan was working at the hospital and occasionally seeing patients who went to New Leaf Center. Ethan’s curiosity was piqued. What is New Leaf? So he did the best thing he knew to do. He hopped in the car and drove to Mt. Eaton.
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