Indiana University anthropologist Nicholas Toth '74 has collected a bagful of academic and scientific awards. Just last year, he and his wife, Kathy Schick, were elected fellows of the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science for their highly acclaimed research in early human tool use. But this latest recognition -- in the field of construction -- may be a first: Last fall, the Associated Builders and Contractors of Indiana recognized their Stone Age Institute as the "best commercial construction worth more than $2 million built in Indiana in 2003."  

Currently on leave from their jobs as professors of anthropology at IU, Nick and Kathy are co-directors of the institute, a stunning 11,400-square-foot, $3 million building, built on a 30-acre site just north of Bloomington, Indiana, of flint, Indiana limestone and sandstone. It houses laboratories, offices, a press room, conference room, kitchen and a two-story vaulted library containing more than 50,000 books and articles. In an interview with Indianapolis Star reporter Barb Berggoetz, Nick said, "We pinch ourselves every day we come here. There really isn't anything like this in the world."

The building, which is independent of the university, became a reality through the efforts of the Friends of CRAFT (Center for Research into Anthropological Foundations of Technology), a nonprofit organization the couple founded and also co-direct from their on-campus office. Not open to the public, it is headquarters for Nick, Kathy, and several other scientists conducting research worldwide and in addition -- according to the Star article -- provides "a serene gathering site for visiting scholars and conferences."

An entrepreneur at 26, Kevin Williams '00 founded and owns Middletown, Ohio-based Oasis Newsfeatures Inc., which syndicates cooking columns such as "The Amish Cook" and "The Kitchen Scientist" and Debbie Farmer's "Family Daze" humor column to more than 120 newspapers around the country -- and offers a food line based on its recipes.

Actually, Kevin has been "in business" since his student days -- his high school student days -- when he developed a fascination with the Amish way of life, which he saw as "a living link between a simpler time and the hectic world of today." He got in touch with Elizabeth Coblentz, an "Old Order Amish wife and mother," living with her family in their 40-year-old clapboard farmhouse in midwestern Indiana, and persuaded her to write a weekly cooking column. "The Amish Cook" was born.

So popular was the column, a mix of recipes and Elizabeth's homespun observations on her daily life on their farm, that it was just a matter of time until the two -- Amish grandmother and enterprising young journalist -- collaborated on a book. The Amish Cook: Recollections and Recipes from an Old Order Amish Family (published by Ten Speed Press, available at Amazon.com) is a full-color cookbook, based on Elizabeth's columns, but including Kevin's story of how they got together, as well as pictures of the Coblentz farm, gardening tips, family anecdotes, and traditional Amish lore.

Sadly, Elizabeth died in 2002, while on a book-signing tour. Her daughter, Lovina Eicher continues the column. Kevin, considered a "noted expert on Amish culture," continues editing and distributing the column, as well as speaking at community gatherings and writers' workshops.