Rentown Fest Turns 15
Published: Friday, September 12, 2025
The 15th annual Rentown Old Fashion Days attracted large crowds from the community of Bremen and beyond on the weekend of Sept. 5-6. On Saturday, the pasture sectioned off for parking along Birch Road rapidly filled as visitors stopped in for a few hours of enjoying good food, watching demonstrations and browsing the wares of local vendors.
The proceeds from the event were donated to the Rolling Meadows Amish school.
Several food stands lined the entrance, advertising fry pies, brats, ice cream, coffee and tangy cups of hot apple cider.
A visitor to the event, Rick Andrews of Bremen, chuckled as he commented, "The food is amazing!" He said he enjoys attending the fundraiser because of "all the different details, the booths, the tractors, and everything," he noted. "(There's) a lot of history here."
That history encompassed a wide range of craft forms: pottery, blacksmithing, leather work, rag rugs and more. Grain was also threshed on site, apple cider pressed, and tractors and engines displayed.
In a row of chugging steam and oil-fueled engines, Orvan Lambright of LaGrange displayed his miniature sawmill, complete with a tiny engine propelling its belts. It was built as a replica of the Indiana Wood sawmill in Middlebury. Lambright explained how he built the wooden frame around the engine and belts, individually cutting out and gluing hundreds of miniscule shingles to the building's roof.
Lambright's creativity was mirrored in others who showcased their work at the event. Brothers Harvey and Mark Hershberger, who shared that they've been "playing around" with blacksmithing since they were kids, displayed their unique creations and their work process at the blacksmithing booth. Harvey commented that their work is "a lost art—unless you come to a place like this, you won't see people doing it. With all the technology we have now, [there's] a lack of people who know how to make stuff with their hands."
But at the Rentown event, the values of creativity, collaboration and community were celebrated. Tim Troyer, who was visiting the event with his young son Colson, explained that he was born and raised in the Amish community.
As he glanced over at the parade of tractors moving past, he said, "It's not just a tractor show, it's a community thing. It's mainly about family, I guess." He shared that he wants his son to see "the connection that people can have, just getting together."
Past the tractor parade, in tents under the shade of oak trees, vendors displayed a wide range of goods. Potholders and kitchen towels spilled colorfully over tables; soft handmade baby coats and outfits hung on a rack. Visitors could browse everything from cleaning products to handwoven baskets.
Dorothy Yoder of Nappanee worked at a rag rug on her loom as customers looked over her completed rugs. She shared that she learned rug-making from her husband's aunt, and she repurposes old clothing, upholstery fabric, and discarded hotel sheets to make the fabric strips for each rug. Not only are the rugs unique, but they also live up to wear.
"The first ones I made" I put in my kitchen," Yoder said." They've been washed many times now, and eight or nine years later, they're still holding together!"
At Old Fashion Days, the resourceful skills passed from family member to family member, and from friend to friend, were on full display. And in a similar way to those skills being shared, families and community members shared the festivities of the weekend together, splitting fry pies and manning booths together.
Friends Gerald and Perry Yoder, who were running the popcorn booth, reminisced about the past 15 years they've assisted with the fundraiser. The community collaboration that they're a part of ultimately makes the event a success: Perry commented that the event has grown larger and larger over the years.
"We love it," he said, and smiled broadly. "We're part of the crew."
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