Lynn Walsh

A story written for the Buckeye Institute:

Food, Family, and A Search Warrant
Monday, April 20th, 2009 By Lynn Walsh

A family living in LaGrange, Ohio likes to know where the food that they eat comes from. That is why they eat all organic, all natural, and locally grown food. Little did they know that by helping their family and friends eat the food that they want they would find themselves facing possible misdemeanor charges. In December of 2008, the Lorain County Sheriff’s Department went through with a search warrant delivered to them by the Lorain County Prosecutor’s Office on behalf of the Lorain County General Health District, and the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Officers with guns drawn entered and secured the property while the family was held in their living room for hours. No one in the home was allowed to answer a phone call or the door.

All of this because the Department of Agriculture thinks the Stowers’ food giving organization, “The Manna Storehouse,” needs to have a retail license in order to continue operation. “Manna StoreHouse” is described by members as an organization that made it easier for them to get the healthy food they wanted to feed their family. Watch the Stowers tell their story and look for more information on this case as it develops.