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CommunityBelieving in fun
Vacation Bible schools teach tenets of Christianity through music, dancing and crafts
Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2008
 Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photos by GARY SMITH
Top photo, Joey Hall bats around a bright yellow balloon during some free time for preschoolers during Forest Park Baptist Church’s God’s ‘‘Big Back Yard” vacation Bible school in Waldorf last week.
Above, Laura Wise, helps Adam Price with a craft project while Jared Crooks looks on. At right, Paula Murdock, left, helps Tyler Mudd and Gage Murdock with some Bible memory verses.
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Numerous churches in Charles County hold vacation Bible schools during the summer. All of the programs have special themes that revolve around the most important tenets — love everyone and serve friends, family, community, neighbors and God with all of your heart.
‘‘God’s Big Back Yard” vacation Bible school at Forest Park Baptist Church in Waldorf was held last week, and it hummed with activity every evening with about 70 kids 4 to 10 who participated in music, dancing, Bible stories and crafts. Bible schools were primarily held in the evening to allow parents time to get home from work and take their kids to the program, said Lisa Fleming, Forest Park Baptist Church’s vacation Bible school director.
Fleming’s 4- and 6-year-old sons attended the Bible school.
‘‘My kids love it,” she said. ‘‘They run themselves ragged. They’re real excited about it.”
The church’s sanctuary was fitted out with a backyard theme, complete with three-dimensional trees, including one with a hammock on it.
A fake campfire made from a pumpkin with rocks around it and logs on top that simulate burning embers with a fan and light was a big hit, Fleming said.
‘‘You should see their faces light up when they see the makeshift campfire,” she said. ‘‘It looks like a real campfire. It’s really cool.
‘‘We try to give kids the wow factor when they enter God’s big backyard,” she said. ‘‘They hear birds twittering and crickets chirping. They think that it’s really cool.”
The Bible school’s theme emphasized service to others and to God. That is exemplified through activities they were asked to do, such as writing a letter to a military man or woman serving overseas or washing a neighbor’s car.
Service to the community was spotlighted by visits from local volunteer fire departments and rescue squads and a law enforcement officer, Fleming said.
‘‘They talk to the kids about how they serve the community,” she said.
At the end of the program the kids were given a certificate and a photo in a picture frame to remind them about all of the fun that they had during the week, Fleming said.
‘‘The kids love it,” she said. ‘‘They get so excited about coming. Some of the kids helped with the decorations.”
The objective of the Bible school is to teach kids to love others and God through hands-on activities, Fleming said.
‘‘The bottom line is to teach kids that every day they need to take the love of Jesus and share it with their neighbors and friends by doing acts of kindness,” she said. ‘‘It’s all about service. You start in your own backyard and go bigger and bigger and bigger with it. And, you don’t just serve people you know. We tell the kids that they can do acts of kindness for everybody.”
April Solitro’s son, 8-year-old Nathaniel, attended Forest Park’s Bible school. Solitro said he was eager to go every day.
‘‘He loves the songs and the puppet show,” she said. ‘‘I love the program. It’s well run and they did a great job decorating for it and getting the kids involved.”
‘‘I like the music and games because it’s very fun and I like music,” said Dylan Heishman, 8.
Betsy and Richard Heishman, Dylan’s parents, actually drove both of their vehicles to the Bible school because so many of their friends’ children were attending it.
‘‘My husband and I take two cars of kids to the vacation Bible school,” she said, laughing. ‘‘My kids look forward to it every year. We work our vacations around the program.
‘‘It’s a good opportunity for the kids to get to know about Jesus and the kids have a blast,” she said. ‘‘It’s fun. The kids’ enthusiasm speaks volumes.”
Jennifer Friason’s twin 9-year-old daughters, Samantha and Danielle, said they enjoyed all of the different activities the Bible school offers.
‘‘The crafts and activities make it fun for kids to learn about Jesus,” said Danielle.
‘‘Vacation Bible school is awesome,” chimed in Samantha. ‘‘We get to do fun activities and learn about how Jesus wants us to serve our families, friends, neighbors and him.”
Friason said the program was geared for all Christian religions.
‘‘They do a lot of nondenominational activities for the children,” she said. ‘‘We’re Catholic and this gives my kids a different perspective. It’s a really great program and they have a blast with it.”
Trinity Episcopal Church in Newport’s vacation Bible school theme was also God’s Big Backyard, said Liz Swann, who coordinated the program. About 20 kids turned up at the church’s parish hall for the Bible school, which featured a 9-foot-tall ‘‘tree house” with fence panels where puppet shows were performed each day.
Tents were also set up where the kids could listen to Bible stories in a camping atmosphere, Swann said.
‘‘The kids love that,” she said. ‘‘They like to curl up in the tent and listen to the Bible stories.”
Trinity’s Bible school also emphasized service to others and God, Swann said.
‘‘The theme is to serve and we reinforce it every day with the kids,” she said. ‘‘Every evening we talk about new ways to serve others.”
The Worship Center in Bryans Road is holding the Power Lab vacation Bible school for kids 4 to 12 from 6 to 9 p.m. Aug.11 through 15.
The science-themed program will teach kids the miraculous power of Jesus, said Ulrike Metz, who runs the program with her husband, Sterling.
The program will feature music, crafts, Bible stories and acting out scenes in the Bible, dancing and games, Metz said.
‘‘Kids learn that through Jesus they can live forever,” she said. ‘‘It teaches them to take what they learn at vacation Bible school and act it out, to be thankful and tell others about Jesus.”
Some of the activities at the Bible school are held in the church’s Kids Town — a bright space created for children by the pastor, the Rev. Steve Davis.
‘‘We’re really big on kids’ ministries here,” he said. ‘‘The Bible school gives kids a chance to be with other kids in a safe environment. They can socialize and get the spiritual input and realize that there’s more to life than just recreation.”
Michael Barbaza’s 6-year-old daughter, Audrey attended the Bible school last year and will be going again this year.
‘‘It’s an excellent way for kids to learn about God,” he said. ‘‘She loved it. Every night she would go over the memory [Bible] verse she had memorized and it was a blessing to see that she really knew it.”
‘‘It’s a good opportunity for kids who don’t come to church to get the experience of being in church,” Metz said. ‘‘It’s so much fun working with these children. They love it and they’re excited about coming here every year.
‘‘God blessed us with this ministry a long time ago,” she said. ‘‘It’s something that we really love to do and we love children.”
