TAUNY - News

TAUNY, Traditional Arts in Upstate New York, presents its next “TAUNY Talk & Taste” lunchtime program featuring Karen Johnson-Weiner, scholar and author of New York Amish. Life in the Plain Communities of the Empire State, on Thursday, November 9 from 12:00-1:00pm at The TAUNY Center. This program will include a talk and book signing. Between the publication of New York Amish in 2010 and the appearance of the 2nd edition in 2017, over 20 new Amish settlements were established in New York State. There are now over 50. With their plain and traditional lifestyles, the Amish of New York are bringing change to the state and challenging their new, non-Amish neighbors. So that folks can understand better where the Amish come from and their relationship to other Christian groups, this talk will briefly trace the origins of the Amish in the religious confrontation and political upheaval of the Protestant Reformation and describe contemporary Amish lifestyles and religious practices. Karen Johnson-Weiner seeks to help people understand the diversity on Amish life in the Empire State by exploring how and why the Amish in particular regions of New York realize core Amish values in different ways.

As a part of the TAUNY Talk & Taste Series, this lunchtime presentation also includes an opportunity to purchase a specially crafted meal by Big Spoon Kitchen (Potsdam, NY), inspired by the themes of the talk. The menu for this program will include Best Meat Loaf and Swiss Broccoli Chowder from the Amish Quilting Cookbook.

The cost for the lunch is $12 or $10 for TAUNY Friends. Guests can reserve their lunch by November 7th by calling TAUNY at 315-386-4289 or at TAUNY’s online folkstore at tauny.org. There is a suggested donation of $5 for this presentation, for those not purchasing lunch. Additional information about the TAUNY Talk & Taste Series can be found at tauny.org.

The TAUNY Center is located at 53 Main Street, Downtown Canton, NY. TAUNY, Traditional Arts in Upstate New York, is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people understand and appreciate the folk traditions and local culture of everyday life—present and past—in the North Country. To do so, TAUNY seeks to research and preserve a record of diverse groups, customs and traditions; to recognize and empower traditional arts and artists; to identify and promote regional identity; and to provide opportunities for people of all ages to learn about folklore and culture. More information is available at tauny.org.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER:
Karen M. Johnson-Weiner
Distinguished Service Professor Emerita
Department of Anthropology
SUNY Potsdam

Karen M. Johnson-Weiner is Distinguished Service Professor Emerita, recently retired from the Anthropology Department at SUNY Potsdam. Having earned her PhD at McGill University (Linguistics, 1984), she has spent over 30 years researching the language and culture of the Amish, focusing in particular on Amish family life and education. She is the author of Train Up a Child. Old Order Amish and Mennonite Schools (2007, Johns Hopkins) and New York Amish. Life in the Plain Communities of the Empire State (2010; 2nd ed. 2017, Cornell University Press). Karen is also a co-author (with Donald Kraybill and Steve Nolt) of The Amish (2013, Johns Hopkins). She is currently working on a book about Amish women.

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Photo: New York Amish. Life in the Plain Communities of the Empire State by Karen Johnson-Weiner

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