If I recall correctly, shunning (in their dialect: Meidung) is reserved for Apostates (i.e., for those who were once Amish but - due to their worldly ways - have been excluded from the community).
However, people who never were Amish - so-called "Englische" - are treated hospitably.
Regards,
What if you have women coming and going at all hours? :)
Shunning is practiced on active members of the community.
...However, people who never were Amish - so-called "Englische" - are treated hospitably
Quite correct.
If the Amish community decides they want to purchase a non-Amish farm at a public sale no "English" will be able to touch it.
They will pool their money to outbid--and pay in cash.
The Amish are quiet neighbors. Since they operate their own schools their large families do not put any strain on the public school system.
Enough families have moved into my neck of the woods to sustain two schools. Better than any gubbmint program for "farmland preservation".