EP #251 - 04.01.2021 - Anabaptist Communities in the Pandemic Year

Today is a discussion with Jason Kauffmann & Jean Kilheffer Hess, creators of the Anabaptist History Today project—the project captures Anabaptist experiences (including Mennonite and Amish communities) throughout the pandemic.

Jason Kauffman is the Director of Archives and Records Management for Mennonite Church USA in Elkhart, Indiana. Along with managing and providing access to the recorded history of the church, he also interprets and raises awareness about Mennonite history for the broader denomination. A graduate of Goshen College (a Mennonite college in northern Indiana), he has a M.A. in Latin American History from the University of New Mexico and a Ph.D. in Latin American History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  He is also a Certified Archivist and has a Digital Archives Specialist Certificate from the Society of American Archivists. He has a growing interest in oral history and directed his first oral history project in 2019.

Jean Kilheffer Hess is Executive Director of Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. With a staff of 18, three museums, and a historic site hosting a home built in 1719 and a Native longhouse replica, the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society interprets Mennonite life and early Pennsylvania history. Jean is a graduate of Messiah University and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. She is especially energized by collaborative efforts that help people value their own and others' stories: both historical and "history in the making."