What a busy and excitement filled year we have had! Some good and some bad… but overall, we have had a great year on the youth and family ministry side!
We have had a ton of highlights even with the building being out of commission
Easter Egg-stravaganza- after not being able to do anything last year and this year still not able to do all the things we wanted/used to do pre-Covid, we had thousands of eggs that we passed out to hundreds of kids. We had 12 trunks for our bunny hop, and tons of happy faces!
VBS- This was our first year back since Covid and we up 12 kids at VBS! Each student learned how treasured they are by God and lots of stories from all over the bible. There were a few setbacks as we were in the middle of a construction zone, and we were not able to use the sanctuary yet. However, the kids left fed, happy, and knowing that to God they are a Priceless Treasure.
Youth Room remodel- In lieu of a mission trip this year, we decided to remodel the youth rooms upstairs. Most of the flooring was already coming up, the ground wasn’t level, and the walls desperately needed a new coat of paint. A week isn’t a lot of time to redo everything that needed to be done, so we just focused on the High school room, kitchen area, and bathrooms. There was a lot we got done: old furniture was moved out, old floors were ripped out, wallpaper was taken down, holes were patched, the floor was leveled, walls were painted, vinyl was put in. We are almost done, we do have a workday on November 13th to finish the vinyl, add the cove base (baseboards), put the doors back on, and put the toilets back in working order.
Trunk or Treat- First off, I wanted to thank every single person that had anything to do with helping Trunk or Treat be the huge success that it was. There was absolutely no way we could have had such a great event without everyone coming together and lending a helping hand.
We had 22 trunks! Which is a huge growth from last year having 14. We had over 500 kids come to trick or treat, play games, enjoy the bounce house, listen to live music, and of course smash some pumpkins. We passed out flyers to each child for a free kid’s gift bag when they come to a Sunday service.
Pumpkin patch- We made a profit of about $800! Considering everything that worked against us this year I am very thrilled! We did not make as much money as last year, but we had a late delivery, and people are back at work this year. I am very thankful for having over 50 volunteers of all ages show up to help unload the pumpkins in less than an hour! I also appreciate everyone who had the ability to cover a shift and sell some pumpkins.
There have been some changes this year.
The Structure of Children’s church has changed quite a bit. We read the same scriptures that are read in church, but from a children’s bible. We sing songs together, work on a craft and do a children’s message. I have found that this a lot better than having a children’s message in church because it gives us the ability to go more in depth, have the children ask questions, and have a more personal setting.
I know it has been an adjustment for everyone not having a children’s message every week, but once a month you get to hear the kids sing and worship Jesus together with the adults during church!
Since we have not had a functioning building for a good part of the year, youth ministry has had to work a little differently. The traditional setting of having kids come to church for 2-3 hours on a Sunday afternoon was no longer an option. So instead, the whole youth group gets together once a month to hang out. The goal is to give them time and space to just be kids, where they do not need to worry about school, jobs, sports and everything else that pulls them around on a regular basis. We are all looking forward to going bowling in November!
We did have a few let-downs this past year. The Flood being a HUGE one. It forced confirmation classes to go back online when we had just been able to come together again. We were also not able to do our annual Spaghetti dinner and Dessert Auction, which was a huge disappointment. However, between Covid and the flood, I also do not have ANY volunteers to teach Sunday school, or children’s church.
We were not able to go to Lake Charles, Louisiana, as they kept getting hit by storms. However, with everything that has happened this year, I am very thankful for our ability to think of new ways to reach people and teach them about God!
The year is also not over yet, we have great things coming up!
Youth Room Workday on November 13th
Teacher appreciation November 19th
Christmas Caroling on December 5th
Live nativity is coming on December 11th
I really do appreciate each and every single one of you for supporting me and this ministry. I have high hopes for 2022!
Here are a few things to look forward to:
Spaghetti Dinner will finally be able to happen and will be our last fundraiser before the mission trip.
We will be confirming 3 kids into the church.
Mission Trip! I am not quite sure where we are going, just that we are ready to go! I am hopeful to have a one adult per student ratio this year.
Vacation Bible School will be back in the sanctuary.
More youth events, including the boy scouts and girl scout troops we have.