By Clinton Martin
Confused? I get it! I was too. I was reading a newspaper circulated mostly among the Amish, Mennonite, and Plain communities, and saw an ad for pie boxes, song boxes, dish boxes, and children’s furniture. A picture showed clearly well-made furniture for sale, and an order line phone number accompanied the advertisement. “Made by residents of Conestoga Retreat.” Logically, I pondered “What is Conestoga Retreat?” I had never heard of it, though the ad indicated the Retreat is located in Ephrata PA. Well I grew up in Ephrata – how is it I had no recollection of this place?
So I looked it up online… and found almost nothing. Conestoga Retreat Center is obviously not meant to serve a “plugged in” crowd. Nevertheless, I was able to find some information on the facility. It is a mental-health services facility operated specifically for Plain People. The center offers help for individuals, as well as couples, who are struggling with heavy issues. People stay there for a period of time, thus the “residents” line in the ad.
Unsurprisingly to anyone who knows anything about the Amish, the center helps people engage in addressing mental health issues through physical work. That just makes sense for them. Work is a confidence-building, community-forging, mind-clearing, spirit-lifting exercise for Plain People. The woodshop on site is a safe space of comfort and support for the people residing at the center.
More traditional counseling services are available at the center as well, with marriage-counseling, and other Anabaptist Christian suited counseling addressing difficult topics such as sexual deviancy and substance abuse.
The Retreat has a main house, where individuals reside. Couples stay in separate cottages. None of the staff is specifically described as “doctor,” “therapist,” or “psychiatrist.” Rather, they prefer to use terms like “mentor,” “big sister/brother,” “house parents,” and “shop foreman.” The staff members are all mandatory-reporters, and the facility is not unknown to local law enforcement and the court system. Some residents at the center are barred from being in the presence of children.
The facility is run by a board of directors that oversee the operation of the facility and the leadership of the employees. What is clear from social media posts about the facility, some people think the facility is great, and others think it is far from great.