John Schmid (born 1949) is an American country and folk singer and songwriter who is popular among the
Amish
The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church fellowships with Swiss people, Swiss and Alsace, Alsatian origins. As they ...
and
Old Order Mennonites
Old Order Mennonites ( Pennsylvania German: ) form a branch of the Mennonite tradition. Old Order are those Mennonite groups of Swiss German and south German heritage who practice a lifestyle without some elements of modern technology, still dr ...
. He sings songs both in English and in
Pennsylvania German. He is especially popular in the
Holmes
Holmes may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Holmes (surname), a list of people and fictional characters
** Sherlock Holmes, a fictional detective
* Holmes (given name), a list of people
* Gordon Holmes, a penname used by Louis Trac ...
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Wayne Amish settlement in Ohio where he lives. He may be the "only man ever to write songs in Deitsh".
He is not a native speaker of Pennsylvania German, but learned it at a young age from classmates. According to Ira Wagler, author of the best selling book "Growing Up Amish", he speaks "flawless PA Dutch". He grew up north of
Fredericksburg, Ohio in a not very religious family, but as a young adult he became a Christian.
Soon after their wedding in 1980 John and his wife Lydia moved to
Costa Rica
Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
working as teachers and hosting a house for visiting missionaries. He also was a youth minister in association with Latin America Mission and later, Young Life. In 1990 music became a full-time calling for him. In the beginning he did mostly prison-ministry journeys with his songs. According to his website, "In a typical year, John ministers in more than 50 prisons, 30 churches, four to five camps, six evangelistic crusades, 40 banquets, a street fair or two, several weekend seminars, as well as numerous concerts and living rooms," particularly in Ohio, Indiana, and Florida.
He has recorded 24 CDs, three of them entirely in Pennsylvania German. He sings popular Pennsylvania German songs like "Mei Vadder un Mudder sinn Deitsch" and "
Schnitzelbank". He is an admirer of
Johnny Cash
John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...
and has sung many of his songs.
He lives with his wife Lydia in
Berlin, Ohio and has three grown children.
''Conversations with John Schmid''
at amishleben.com
Literature
* Denice Rovira Hazlett: ''John Schmid - Finding Common Ground through Uncommon Kindness'' in Just Plain Values, pages 6–24, September 201
References
External links
Common Ground Ministries
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schmid, John
1949 births
Living people
20th-century American singer-songwriters
20th-century Anabaptists
21st-century American singer-songwriters
21st-century Anabaptists
American Anabaptists
American acoustic guitarists
American country singer-songwriters
American folk guitarists
American folk singers
American male guitarists
American male singer-songwriters
American performers of Christian music
20th-century American guitarists
People from Berlin, Holmes County, Ohio
Guitarists from Ohio
Country musicians from Ohio
20th-century American male singers
21st-century American male singers
Singer-songwriters from Ohio