The Rural Voice, 2019-09, Page 47couple opened a second location on
the main street in Milverton
(replacing the Sweet Harvest
Mexican variety store) and they have
a third location opening soon on
Highway 73 in Aylmer.
One of the highlights of the
original Aylmer location is the
brightly coloured stucco building and
a gorgeous mural painted by local
artist Peter Simons. Peter will also be
doing a mural for the second
location.
Willy and Maria were born in a
Mennonite community in
Tamaulipas, Mexico. They married
in 1991 and moved to Ontario in
1996 where they had four children.
But their families had been Canadian
before.
Mennonites originally came
to Ontario and the Prairies
in the late 1800s, fleeing
persecution in Europe, and continued
to speak a Low-German dialect,
called Plautdietsch. When the
education laws became stricter in
Manitoba and Saskatchewan during
World War 1, members of the
community sought out land in
Northern Mexico. In the 1920s,
thousands of Mennonites moved
there, settling in Chihuahua,
Durango, Zacatecas and Tamaulipas.
“My grandmother was part of that
migration,” says Maria. “She was
actually born on the train, somewhere
in Texas.” When times were tough in
Mexico, Maria’s grandmother
applied for and received American
citizenship, due to all the witnesses
on the train.
Growing up in Mexico, Maria
spoke Plautdietsch, but learned to
read and write German in school. It
was not common for women to learn
Spanish, but Maria ran a store in
Mexico and needed to speak with
locals.
With poverty and unrest in
Mexico, many Mennonites are
coming back to Canada to work for
the summers and some can get
citizenship to stay here. Being back
in Ontario, she says the Mexican
Mennonites can still understand the
dialect from Mennonite communities
that never left, but that an accent
developed from being separated for
two or three generations. Religious
beliefs and community rules also
changed over that time, so the
Mexican Mennonite communities
now worship in different churches.
The Mennomex store is a vital link
for this community. It offers the
nostalgic brands, foods and fabrics
for Mexican Mennonites and, for the
rest of us, it is a culinary adventure in
the heart of rural Ontario.
Mennomex is open six days a
week from six a.m. to nine p.m. in
Aylmer. Be sure to check out their
Facebook page. ◊
September 2019 43
No pressure, just exceptional service
REALTY EXECUTIVES PLATINUM LIMITED
34 Main Street South, Seaforth
Office: 519.600.4949
Dave Boonstoppel ~ Sales Representative
Direct: 519.440.2444
Email: propertiestownandcountry@gmail.com
Website: www.daveboonstoppel.com
Dave Boonstoppel
Sales Representative
Let’s find your
Dream Home
Let’s find your
Dream Home