An Amish Boy and a Mother’s Prayer takes readers into the heart of Daviess County, Indiana, where Glen Graber was raised. His family was swiftly kicked out of the Old Order Amish church when Glen’s dad bought a rubber-tired tractor. Then Glen’s mother died, and left him with a request: She had been praying for a business that would alleviate the family’s financial hardship, and asked Glen to take responsibility for the family’s future. Despite the pressure, Glen and his family found hope and humor each day as God miraculously answered their mother’s prayer.
More than a biography, this book is about a boy being determined to change his place in the world, and the miraculous reversals of misfortune. It’s about the prayers of a mother, the idiosyncrasies and love of a father, and the strength of a family. It is, in other words, the story of us.
About the Author
Glen S. Graber was born in Davies County, Indiana. In 1973 he founded Graber Post Buildings. The company went on to be a huge success, and in 1993, Glen received Indiana’s award for Entrepreneur of the Year. He now winters in Florida with his wife Mary Jane.
From Graber Post History
Graber Post Buildings began in 1973 with Glen S. Graber running a 3-man Amish building crew just trying to support their families. The crew built post frame buildings, which was a rather new industry at the time. “We were just trying to make a living, and our growth just kind of evolved over a long period of time,” said Graber recently. “We’ve just had a gradual, sustained growth over they years”. In the early years, Glen would work with the crew during the day, rush home to shower and eat supper, then grab his briefcase and sell buildings to a growing list of customers at night.
In 1976, Graber built a 60 by 244 foot building to house Graber Post Buildings, Inc., on 11 acres of land sold to him by his father, Simon J. Graber. Since 1984, GPB has erected nearly 10,000 post frame buildings. Although the need for post frame buildings hasn’t disappeared, Glen once feared it would, so he expanded the business. He began buying building materials by the truckloads to save costs on materials, and thus plunged Graber Post Buildings into the retail AND wholesale markets. GPB used its own materials to build pole barns at lower costs, then sold the excess materials to other construction crews.
As the business grew, Graber made another major decision when he decided to roll form his own steel siding and roofing panels. In 1987, he invested in a computerized roll former which allowed Graber Post to purchase truckloads of steel coils and then roll form the steel into siding panels according to its customers’ specs. The risks paid off, and the business has continued to grow. Glen never went to high school, but learned what he needed to know about hard work from his dad.
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In 1993, Glen Graber was chosen to receive Indiana’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award. 2006 and 2007 were years of great expansion for the physical plant at Graber Post. After a devastating fire, new Truss Manufacturing and Trim Manufacturing facilities were built, giving GPB over 300,000 square feet of under roof production area.
In 2007, a new $1 Million state of the art facility was built to house the company’s offices, showroom, and Hardware Store. |
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My Thoughts
This story, the autobiography of one man, Glen S. Graber, will be enjoyed by all ages, men and women, and children. It would be a wonderful family reader, a homeschool reader, or a quality inspirational autobiography of a simpler time then families pulled together in difficulty, had excellent work ethic, and loved God and family deeply.
Glen Graber’s brought out the dark side of leaving the Amish community and the persecution that brings, as well as the difficulty of pulling a family out of poverty due to a family member’s illness.
The lighthearted moments of family pranks and “sitck-to-it-ivness” brought smiles to my face as I read this charming book.
This book is simply written. The author writes in a style that is folksy and uncomplicated, warming and endearing. His love for God and his family is very evident in his dialogue.
An Amish Boy and a Mother’s Prayer also shares the importance, and often prophetic, our prayers for our loved ones truly are. This story encourages the reader to never give up on prayer and believing faith, even unto death.
Thank you to the author and
Aneko Press for a free copy in exchange for my honest review.
I enjoyed every page!
I have a copy of this extraordinary book to giveaway to you!
Please leave a comment and I will choose a winner on
Aug 22
and personally mail you a copy.
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