Out of the Box

An Ohio Orphan’s Unlikely Journey Through Teenager Entrepreneurship, Military Conscription, the Plain Mennonites and His Quest for Family
As a newborn, John Freeman was abandoned outside a Zanesville Ohio Hospital by a desperate mother. He spent his early years inquisitively exploring how things worked, from electric lamps to car engines, to the world at large and sometimes with surprising results. As the years passed, he started questioning his place in the world. Tragic loss and the kindness of strangers led him into a Conservative Mennonite church. Despite feeling at home there, the mystery of his birth haunted him, until he set out to find answers, a search that would eventually take him across the ocean. Written in an approachable, common style and filled with curiosity and humor, John’s autobiography is flush with amusing vignettes and deep reflection.

2022