May 2005 .............

Nappanee: The center of one of the largest Amish settlements in the United States. Nearly 2,500 Old Order Amish live, work and interact with residents and visitors. Built on the rich heritage of the woodworking industry, the railroad and Amish culture, here you'll find the hearty handshake and vigorous work ethic of yesterday driving the industry of today, with a vision for tomorrow. There is also a large number of Mennonite people in the area. TIME® magazine listed Nappanee as one of the Top Ten small towns in America that has reinvented itself to face the future in prosperity. Come enjoy the clip clop of horses hooves and the quaint, friendly atmosphere, knowing that underneath beats a heart of progressive vitality. This area in Indiana is the RV capitol of the world, with about nineteen RV manufactures. One of every two RV's you see on the road is made here.
We took out coach to Mike's Paint Shop in Bremen, which is eight miles from Nappanee to get it repainted (see odds & ends page, before and after pictures of the coach, as well as the project cost). Spent a week in the area picking out colors, touring the Newmar factory, and sightseeing. The Thursday we were there was an Amish Holiday, so when the young lady that waited on us at the Country Table Restaurant (best place to eat in town) was working we assumed she was Mennonite, not Amish, so we asked her about a Mennonite Church we could visit. She invited us to her church, which is a Beachy Amish Mennonite Fellowship, and to her home for lunch after church. The ladies all wear bonnets and the same type of dresses, the men beards and black and white clothing (no hats). The ladies sit on one side and the men on the other. We were told they would not be offended if we wanted to sit together. The people of this church have no TV's or radio's, but do have phones, computers and drive cars. Enjoyed the service and the old songs they sang. We received another invitation for lunch from the wife of the gentleman that gave the message. She said they were going to her parents home and would like us to come, her dad is Mahlon Miller, the owner of Newmar Corporation. The family we had lunch with was Jennifer and Stephen Yoder, Stephen works at Newmar and they have twelve children. We had a wonderful lunch and a very nice visit. We will come back in early June to pick up the coach.

September 2006 .............

We needed to bring the coach back to Mike's for some touch up painting. The paint had a two year warranty and we will not be in the area next summer, so we're having the warranty work done. We spent two nights in their parking lot and they worked on the coach for three days. Nothing major, and they did a great  job as usual. We enjoyed eating at the Country Table (the best restaurant in Nappanee), and saw some of the area we missed before as we drove along the "Heritage Trail"  The trail is a 90 mile drive through Elkhart County, guided by a CD that is available at Newmar customer lounge, or Amish Acres Motel. There is sometimes a $20. fee, that is refunded when you return the CD. If you are associated with Newmar there is no deposit. The trip is wonderful and there are some interesting stops along the way.

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