Local author and lifelong resident of Shipshewana, Brenda Yoder, knows just about everything in town. On a recent tour with her, she walked the street where she grew up, sharing stories of her life and how the town has changed throughout the years.
“I grew up at the corner of Morton and Davis Street before street names were in town. My first job was at the Wana Cup at age 13, just like many teenage girls in the area. My dad, Carl Lazzaro, was on the first volunteer Emergency Medical Team unit and started the Shipshewana Insurance Agency. My mom, Arlene Lazzaro, was a second-grade teacher at Shipshewana Elementary School and was Shipshewana Town Board President for 8 years during the late 80s to early 90s when the town started booming with tourism.”
Her roots run deep in Shipshewana, and those ties led her to writing Uncomplicated: Simple Secrets for a Compelling Life. The book follows her professional journey along with being the wife of a Mennonite dairy farmer.
“Growing up before hotels were in town, thousands of people arrived on Tuesdays and Wednesdays before daylight, and they would all leave town between 3-6 pm. There was bumper-to-bumper traffic from the four-way stop to State Road 120 and south of town to U.S 20 at those times of day.”
Brenda, attended Westview High School and married her high school sweetheart. After teaching at Westview High School before getting a degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and School Counseling, she began a private counseling practice and works part-time at Waterford Elementary School in Goshen.
“We live across from the Yoder farm, where we raised our four children, who all graduated from Westview and now live in Indiana, Ohio, and Oklahoma. We have five grandchildren and host the Picket Fence Farm Airbnb suite in our empty-nest spaces. I have authored three books, write for Guidepost’s Mornings with Jesus, and have been published in Chicken Soup for the Soul books, Every Woman’s Bible, the Washington Post, and wrote a local column for the Hometown Treasure for over a decade.”
That passion for writing, getting to know people, and the community of Shipshewana led to her authoring her latest book, Uncomplicated: Simple Secrets for a Compelling Life. That and a conversation with a visitor to town.
“In 2021, as an Airbnb guest packed up to leave our home, he said, ‘You’re so rich. I envy you.’ He described that our wealth was because of our community and culture, not necessarily the size of our home. This comment echoed other remarks I’ve heard from people all over the Midwest when I speak at events and they find out I’m from Shipshewana: ‘We love it there! It’s so peaceful—I wish I could have what you have there.”’
The idea of the book was sparked during the pandemic, when Brenda realized the Shipshewana community is one that visitors want to be a part of.
“Those who live here know the resourceful, grounded, peaceful, sustainable way of life is how we have lived for generations. As a therapist, educator, and writer, I wrote Uncomplicated: Simple Secrets for a Compelling Life for those who visit Shipshewana—and any reader–to implement the back-to-basic lifestyle that people crave amidst the chaotic, relentless, and demanding modern lifestyle.”
“Uncomplicated takes the principles from the Shipshewana lifestyle and puts them in a book that visitors can take home with them and transfer to their lives, no matter where they live. It’s filled with stories as a busy dairy farmer’s wife, mom, and career woman who has lived and raised kids here, with similar challenges as those who visit.”
When asked what one thing is that makes Shipshewana a destination worth visiting, Brenda said, “We have something here that people want and need! Shipshewana was voted the 2024 #1 Tourist destination in the Midwest.” And for good reason.
She noted that people visit for the unique opportunity to immerse themselves in Amish culture by day and enjoy a popular live music performance by night. That blend of traditional and contemporary experiences is something visitors can’t find anywhere else.
“Though the landscape may change, our integrity, values, and character don’t. We are hard workers yet value rest and family (that’s why shops close at 5:30 and are not open on Sundays). We are slow to change and weigh the costs of how change affects others and our lifestyle. We are community and service-oriented outside of the tourism industry. We lift one another and look out for one another, even those who visit. One Airbnb guest could not believe a local business owner went out of their way to serve them. I smiled and said, ‘It’s what we do here.’”
Brenda’s commitment and passion for Shipshewana come out when you speak with her. It’s found in the words in her books and her speeches. There’s a lot she’s looking forward to in 2025, and it’s only a matter of time before she pins another book about the Heart of Amish Country.
To learn more, you can visit her website, brendayoder.com, or email her at [email protected]. Her books are available at the Glow Bookstore, Light of Grace Bookstore, The Craft Barn, Seasons in the Mercantile, Menno Hof, the Das Essenhaus, and Fables Bookstore in Goshen. The book is also available online.
