3rd and 4th graders reading a story about the lost sheep

Thursday last day!

We had a successful last day at Beth-El! VBS ended on a great note... our animal of the day was the sheep. The 3rd and 4th graders were team sheep so they were happy!  Then at the end of the day we counted animal tickets the kids had been earning for participation and good behavior and the sheep team won so that REALLY made them happy. We will purchase a sheep from Heifer International to be sent somewhere there is a needy family so they can use the sheep for materials, manure, milk, motivation and money. Packing continued in the food pantry to get ready for next week's distribution. The kids enjoyed snow cones after a hot day outside during games. Eric took the kids on a hunt looking for the lost sheep which luckily they found :)  At the end of the day when the kids returned to their home rooms they were surprised with packs full of food and some extra goodies for them. Food insecurity is unfortunately a way of life for many of them...  It's safe to say everyone from all 3 churches is exhausted, but in high spirits after a successful week of working with the kids at Beth-El. Planning is already taking place for next year! 

Monday- Trinity thoughts

Trinity Presbyterian Church Clearwater views on work day #1 at Beth-El:

Our 3rd/4th grade shepherds thought that day one went well and the best part of the day was spending some one on one time getting to know the kids of Beth-El. Hardest part was keeping kids on task. In the Pre-K and Kindergarten class a great thing was how the kids complimented and encouraged each other. The challenging part of the day with Pre-K and K was keeping the volume of their voices down :)  In 5th grade once the kids were comfortable they showed kindness to each other and the leaders. The 5th graders are also good readers which impressed our teachers & shepherds. A game that kept them engaged was Ninja played during free time! Overall Trinity thought day #1 went well.

Wednesday at Beth-El

Day #3 of work at Beth-El went well with the exception of a few hiccups ( a few kids making poor choices)  The teen program went great today and the youth from our 3 churches loved it!  After handing out 450 bags of food in the food pantry yesterday, it was time to pack lots of bags today to replenish. Our animal of the day was the fish and our bible verse was "Come, follow me Jesus said and I will send you out to fish for people".  In games the kids got to go 'fishing' and do a bean bag toss. In lessons with Eric the kids got to get in a "boat" (aka a towel on the floor) and hear the story about Jesus calming the seas and walking on water. In crafts the younger kids made fish mobiles and the older ones made fish out of water bottles gluing colored tissue paper to them. After working at Beth-El we headed back to Cedarkirk for the climbing wall and archery.  It's great to watch the youth from each of the 3 churches developing friendships and hanging out together.  It's also been rewarding to see them take a leadership role. All our youth would like to make our VBS program at Beth-El two weeks next summer!

Day 3

The Beth-El kids had a blast at VBS today!  Check out our pictures of them enjoying games, reading, lessons and crafts.  They all made masks today that match their team name, which coincides with the Bible stories and Heifer animals they've been learning about.  The food pantry team helped hand out 450 sacks of food to families from the community.  We then came back to Cedarkirk for an enjoyable visit with Rev. Juan Rodas from the Presbytery of Honduras.  He came to the US to participate in General Assembly in Pittsburgh, and is now visiting various churches in the Presbytery of Tampa Bay, due to the strong relationship between the two Presbyteries.  We enjoyed a meal and a lot of laughs together at Cedarkirk, where Ana and Darline did a marvelous job translating and keeping the conversation moving.  Many of the teens just headed back to Beth-El to participate in their Youth Group this evening. The rest of the adults are looking forward to a little breather before another full day tomorrow!

Day #1 pictures:
1. First/second graders with Laura

 2. Cute girls (3rd/4th grade)

 

 3. Opening session with Eric

Hard at work in the food pantry with some teens from Graviti Church in Tampa

Day 2

Today was our first day of VBS, and what a great day we had!  Things go so much more smoothly the second time around, so it was nice to take advantage of knowledge gained during last summer's trip.  We recognized many of the kids from last year, and they remembered us too!  Crafts with Lynn, lessons with Eric, games with Bill Hemme, reading with Diana, the teen program with Barb Rijo and Mike Frandsen....a great time was had by all!  Our shepherds and teen shepherds did a great job helping keep the kids organized and focused on having fun, and our teen teaching assistants were knowledgable, prepared and great with the kids, and our food pantry workers packed bags for over 450 families who will be here tomorrow for their week's food.  We're hoping the weather clears up so we can enjoy the Cedarkirk zip line and climbing wall before dinner, and then it's off to our daily debrief and devotions.  Thank you for your prayers, your love and your support!