Grieving Amish raise money for killer's family

[Desertdog]

Grieving Amish raise money for killer's family
'This is possible if you have Christ in your heart'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=52296

In what's being called a stunning example of "the imitation of Christ," the Amish community devastated by the cold-blooded murder of five of its schoolgirls is raising money for the killer's family.

Amish residents of rural Lancaster County, Pa., have started a charity fund to help not only the victims' families  but also the mass-murderer's widow and children, reports the New York Times today. The killer, Charles Carl Roberts IV, 32, committed suicide at the end of Monday's attack, in which he shot 10 girls. Five of them, aged 7 to 13, died.

Dwight Lefever, a spokesman for the Roberts family, said an Amish neighbor comforted the killer's family and extended forgiveness to them after the shooting, the Associated Press reports.

Explaining the Amish way, Gertrude Huntington, an expert on children in Amish society, told the AP that Roberts' Amish neighbors would probably be very supportive of the killer and his wife, "because judgment is in God's hands: 'Judge not, that ye be not judged.'"

Monday morning, Roberts, heavily armed, stormed into the one-room West Nickel Mines Amish School, sent the boys and adults outside and barricaded the entrance with wood before tying up the 10 girls and shooting them, finally turning the gun on himself. In a sordid subplot, investigators say Roberts also brought lubricating jelly and plastic restraints with him, apparently planning to sexually assault the Amish girls. When the police showed up quickly, Roberts reportedly panicked and began executing the girls, then himself.

In suicide notes he left for his family, as well as a cell-phone call he made to his wife from inside the school, Roberts revealed that he was tormented both by memories of having sexually molested two young relatives 20 years ago  and by dreams of committing the heinous acts again.

However, investigators who have spoken to the two relatives, who would have been only 4 or 5 at the time Roberts specified, say no such abuse ever occurred.

"Both of them have no recollection of being sexually assaulted by Roberts," state police Trooper Linette Quinn told the AP. "They were absolutely sure they had no contact with Roberts."

Regardless, said State Police Commissioner Jeffrey B. Miller, "It's very possible that he intended to victimize these children in many ways prior to executing them and killing himself,"

Reacting to the Amish outpouring of support for the killer's family, columnist Rod Dreher writes: "Yesterday on NBC News, I saw an Amish midwife who had helped birth several of the girls murdered by the killer say that they were planning to take food over to his family's house. She said  and I paraphrase closely  "This is possible if you have Christ in your heart."

And Journalist Tom Shachtman, who wrote a book on Amish culture called "Rumspringa: To Be or Not to Be Amish," told the New York Times: "This is imitation of Christ at its most naked. If anybody is going to turn the other cheek in our society, it's going to be the Amish."

He said, "I dont want to denigrate anybody else who says they're imitating Christ, but the Amish walk the walk as much as they talk the talk."

Added Huntington, "They know their children are going to heaven. They know their children are innocent ... and they know that they will join them in death. The hurt is very great," she told the Associated Press. "But they don't balance the hurt with hate."

[Antibubba]

Thus sharply illustrating the difference between pacifism and the "sheeple" mentality.

[mustanger98]

They also realize the murderer's family is probably hurting as badly as they are. Not only will a real Christian forgive like they do, they also don't condemn an evil person's family just for being related. I don't think they're into guilt by association the way a lot of us are.

[LadySmith]

The faith and the actions of the Amish humble me.

[Stand_watie]

I disagree with their pacifism (and I only state that in this context as a contrast to the next thought), but I agree that their example of forgiveness is a better reflection of Christ than mine.

[Ben]

The faith and the actions of the Amish humble me.

I'm becoming more than humbled as I read more about how they handled this. I can only hope that were I ever in a similar situation, that I would be as brave and honorable as these 11 and 13 year old girls:

------------------------
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=2531138&page=1

'Shoot Me First,' Amish Girl Said to Ask
Friend of the Victims' Families Says Girl Tried to Divert Killer From Classmates; Killer Allegedly Said, 'Pray for Me'
By CHRIS FRANCESCANI
ABC Law & Justice Unit

Oct. 5, 2006  - The oldest of the five Amish girls shot dead in a Pennsylvania schoolhouse is said to have stepped forward and asked her killer to "Shoot me first," in an apparent effort to buy time for her schoolmates.

Rita Rhoads, a midwife who delivered two of the victims, told ABC News' Law and Justice Unit that she learned of 13-year-old Marian Fisher's plea from Fisher's family.

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What's more, Fisher's 11-year-old sister, Barbie, who survived the shooting, allegedly asked the gunman, Charles Carl Roberts IV, to "Shoot me second," Rhoads said.

"They were amazing," Rhoads said, "absolutely amazing. There was a tremendous amount of calm and courage in that schoolroom."

"Marian, the oldest one, did ask to be shot first," Rhoads said. "The faith of their fathers really was embedded in them. & How many adults are willing to do that? Not many."

Marian Fisher is being buried today, along with Naomi Rose Ebersole, 7, and sisters Mary Liz Miller, 8, and Lena Miller, 7.

Anna Mae Stoltzfus, 12, is to be buried on Friday.

Rhoads' revelations come as the mystery surrounding the alleged motivation behind Roberts' attack deepens.

Roberts entered West Nickel Mines Amish School on Monday and shot a total of 10 girls before turning the gun on himself.

Rhoads said that before killing himself, Roberts uttered three words -- "Pray for me."

Her account of Roberts' final words matched an account attributed to another named source in The New York Times.

"He asked the children to pray for him, and that's kind of interesting because he said he hated God," Rhoads said. "He must have recognized the faith in them, God in them."

Cathy Saunders, another friend of the Fisher family who met with them on Tuesday, the day their daughter Barbie was taken off a ventilator, said that the girl's first words were "where's Marian?"

But when the family told her her sister had died, Barbie was insistent that she be taken home to view the body.

"She wanted to be home to see her sister," Sauders said. "Viewing is a big part of the [Amish] culture." Despite being shot in the hip and shoulder, Barbie "really wanted" to see her sister one last time, Saunders said.

Investigators believe Roberts, who brought lubricating jelly and plastic restraints with him, may have been planning to sexually assault the Amish girls.

In notes left behind to his family and a cell-phone call to his wife, Roberts said he was haunted by memories of molesting two young relatives 20 years ago, according to police.

Roberts, a 32-year-old milk truck driver, also said he had dreams of molesting children again.

However, investigators said that the two relatives, who would have been 4 or 5 at the time of the alleged attack, had told them that the abuse never happened.

"Both of them have no recollection of being sexually assaulted by Roberts," state police trooper Linette Quinn said. "They were absolutely sure they had no contact with Roberts."

Meanwhile, two relatives of Marie Roberts, the killer's wife, told ABC News that she was not yet emotionally prepared to meet with the families of her husband's victims.

"In a couple weeks, she's going to meet with all the families," said Shirley Girvin, Marie Roberts' great-aunt. "That's her intention."

Jacquie Hess, Marie Roberts' aunt, said that she and her father, Lloyd Welk, the widow's grandfather, had met on Tuesday with the Fisher family.

"They told my father there were no hard feelings. There is forgiveness," Hess said.

She added that to this day she still had a hard time believing what Charles Roberts had done.

"I have asked to see his body," she said, "because, I said: 'I do not believe it was him.'"

[Guest]

While it is VERY much in line with Amish thought to support the family of the killer (families of the victims were praying with the family of the killer within hours of the shooting, and they have publically forgiven the shooter himself), I think the idea that the Amish set up a charity is a little suspect. The Amish *do not* ask for charity from anyone, and have a hard time accepting it even if its thrust upon them. I suspect that the charity is set up by an outside group, and that the Amish have asked that the shooter's families recieve money as well, while they grudgingly accept their portion.

It may be a small difference, but I think it is an important one. The faith of the Amish is a central part of this story and it is important to undertand how that faith works. I suspect that they may be insulted by the insinuation that they set-up a charity fund for themselves.

[Guest]

Actually I believe they have from the reports I've been reading. Maybe not the immediate families of the victims, but others.

"Amish residents of rural Lancaster County, Pa., have started a charity fund to help not only the victims' families  but also the mass-murderer's widow and children, reports the New York Times today."

Another report cites pledges ranging from one dollar to $500,000.

John

[Guest]

Actually I believe they have from the reports I've been reading. Maybe not the immediate families of the victims, but others.

"Amish residents of rural Lancaster County, Pa., have started a charity fund to help not only the victims' families  but also the mass-murderer's widow and children, reports the New York Times today."

Another report cites pledges ranging from one dollar to $500,000.

John

Actual cited article from the New York Times, including the text of what it *actually* says.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Amish-School-Fundraising.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

October 5, 2006
Amish Reluctantly Accept Donations
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 9:36 p.m. ET

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) -- The deadly attack in a one-room Amish schoolhouse has fueled an outpouring of sympathy and offers of financial assistance for the community that generally rejects help from outsiders.

''For the Amish community, it's a bit overwhelming because they are not actively asking for any funds,'' said Scott Sundberg, spokesman for Mennonite Disaster Service, an agency collecting pledges on behalf of the Amish. ''They know this is at least one way that people can show their concern.''

In the attack, Charles Carl Roberts IV, the 32-year-old milk truck driver, took over the West Nickel Mines Amish School, sent the adults and boys out and bound the 10 remaining girls at the blackboard. Investigators said he might have been planning to sexually assault the girls before police closed in. He shot the girls and killed himself. Five girls died and a sixth victim was reported in grave condition Thursday.

Three victims died the day of the shooting, and two others died within 24 hours. Besides the victim clinging to life, four others are in the hospital with serious injuries.

Amish do not carry private commercial health insurance, and the families of the victims could face steep medical bills, said Richie Lauer, director of the Anabaptist Foundation, another agency collecting funds.

However, the Amish of Lancaster County do have their own informal self-insured health plan, called Church Aid, which helps members with catastrophic medical expenses, according to Donald Kraybill, an Amish expert at Elizabethtown College. About two-thirds of the Amish enroll, he said.

Hospital officials declined Thursday to provide any information about medical expenses, citing the families' request for privacy.

Calls have come in from across the United States and Canada as far away as Argentina, Germany and Vietnam asking how to help the victims' families.

Capital BlueCross pledged $500,000 to help pay the survivors' medical expenses, while 20 missionary churches in Africa have each promised to contribute $1, according to Kevin King, executive director of Mennonite Disaster Service.

As of Thursday, the agency had received about 200 credit-card donations -- in amounts ranging from $20 to $100 -- for a total of $15,, said Ron Guenther, the agency's director of finance.

''It's not big monies at this point, but that could easily change,'' said Guenther, especially since a number of corporations have contacted the agency about donating.

Wal-Mart has started coin drops at three of its Lancaster County stores and all 238 Turkey Hill Minit Market convenience stores in Pennsylvania are accepting donations, as are numerous regional banks.

A nine-person panel, called the Nickel Mines Accountability Committee, formed Wednesday to decide how the money will be distributed. Seven Amish elders and two non-Amish sit on the panel.

At the behest of Amish leaders, a fund has also been set up for the gunman's wife and his three children.

Fulton Bank set up an account in the name of Roberts' widow, Marie, on Thursday after securing permission through her minister, said bank spokeswoman Laura Wakeley.

''They really had nothing to do with this and now they are without a husband and a father, a source of support for the family,'' she said.

Beware of sloppy journalism, always check out the source for yourself.

[Perd Hapley]

Mennonite Disaster Service?  The Mennonites are more liberal than the Amish, right?  In terms of being less doctrinaire?

I should know more about this stuff, since my Dad's side of the family used to be Mennonite.

[Guest]

Mennonite Disaster Service?  The Mennonites are more liberal than the Amish, right?  In terms of being less doctrinaire?

I should know more about this stuff, since my Dad's side of the family used to be Mennonite.

My understanding (which could well be flawed) is that the Mennonites share a common religious ancestry (anabaptist) with the Amish and most of the belief system is the same, but without the emphasis on seperation from outside cultural influences. I think they are essentially Amish without the horse and buggy, so to speak.

[Stand_watie]

Mennonite Disaster Service?  The Mennonites are more liberal than the Amish, right?  In terms of being less doctrinaire?

I should know more about this stuff, since my Dad's side of the family used to be Mennonite.

My understanding (which could well be flawed) is that the Mennonites share a common religious ancestry (anabaptist) with the Amish and most of the belief system is the same, but without the emphasis on seperation from outside cultural influences. I think they are essentially Amish without the horse and buggy, so to speak.

Amish are an offshoot of the Mennonites.