It appears that the People Inc. plans to use the Mennonite Meeting House have collapsed. I believe this would be an excellent opportunity to recapture the true history and essence of this edifice and convert it into an authentic Mennonite Museum. We are blessed to have such a historic and original building, that most other communities do not have, so instead of running from this part of our early heritage, we should exploit and showcase it.

Mennonite Museums, though few in number, are very popular tourist attractions because they are rare and different. The Mennonites who originated in Switzerland, or Germany, are no
longer here, nor are the descendants, but they once were very prominent in the early history of Amherst and Clarence. Since they were always a minority and persecuted by both Catholics and Protestants alike, they have no local “fan club” of German-Americans to urge us to recognize and remember them. But they were real and they were here, and made many local contributions to pioneer life on the Niagara Frontier. We should do better to remember them, and should be able to make money on the enterprise as well.

I think we should get the Amherst Museum, and others in the community, involved to see if
this would be a viable project. I believe that there would be Federal and state grants available to do the restoration, and, who knows, we might even get some of the Mennonites themselves who would help us in the restoration. In any event, the end result should be faithful to the original structure and its purpose. If we can’t save and preserve one of the oldest standing religious structures in Erie County, what does that say about our values and priorities?

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