Our Story

On Sunday, June 21, 2020, 18 year old Linda Stoltzfoos of Bird-in-Hand, PA was kidnapped on Beechdale Road and later murdered by Justo Smoker. Justo is my (Tim) brother-in-law and my (Megan) uncle. Beechdale Road is our attempt to share our story of grief, anger and pain but also unexplainable grace, kindness and mercy at the hands of the Amish community.

For over a year following Linda’s disappearance, our family had various encounters with members of the Amish community. In this book we reveal for the first time to the public what it was like for us to encounter kindness when condemnation would have been understandable. From meeting Linda’s parents to having a birthday party with Linda’s closest friends to being invited into Linda’s home for her wake, we walk through what it was like to be confronted and changed by the disarming and shocking power of grace, kindness and mercy.   These events captured the attention of our county, region and even became national and international news. We are sharing our story because while many reacted to these events with sadness, anger, grief or disbelief, we were taken further than most people could imagine.   

We hope in sharing our story, you can experience what it’s like when undeserved mercy confronts undeniable evil, when kindness upends condemnation, when heaven engages hell. This is what we experienced at the hands of the Amish community and we are hopeful its healing power can reach even further to you.