Special Event

[angie]

I am so glad this board is already running! I like knowing there are other nuts out there like me! Thanks to your ideas, this theme is growing on me. I do have one problem -- I like to do a special event that correlates with the theme. We had a little fair for SonHarvest, a campout for Kingdom of the Son, and a beach bonfire for SonTreasure. I am at a loss however for SonForce. Any ideas? This is for the whole church family as either a kick off or wrap up for the week. Thanks!

Angie

[TrinityJen]

Wow, you have had great ideas to go with the past themes. I am excited about the new theme, but it is difficult with out seeing the kits what it will really be like. What comes to mind would be a 'training night' or a 'mission / rally' where you come disguised as a VBS kids to gather more information on…

I would love to hear what you finally deside to do next year.

[karenedits]

The Director's Guide contains a section dedicated to "Special Events". We have suggestions for a "Preview Event" to be held at the church as well as other special events that can be held at the church as well as suggested field trips. There should be at least one field trip accessible to any church!

I'm sure you'll like our suggestions for SonForce Kids, but you'll have to wait for your Director's Guide to arrive to read what they are!

Karen McGraw
Editor, Gospel Light VBS

[TrinityJen]

Waiting, waiting, waiting...

I am glad to here there will be field trip ideas. This is something I have never looked into before. Next year we are planning on including something new for the oldest group of 5th & 6th graders.

[NormaVK]

This year we have 18 kids in our middle school group (6-8 grades). Our pastors take them "off-site" where they have their lessons, etc, all geared for older kids. Then they come back in time for closing--they just love the music and add so much to our closing. Just two years ago we didn't have anything for the older age group, but there were several just hanging around the church hoping to "help" that we decided to create a class for them. They are still kids and still need the lessons and fun and fellowship. That's why I don't use those kids for helpers, they still need to be a little crazy and they still have a lot to learn. So many don't attend SS these days. (As I said someplace else, 18 kids doesn't sound like many to you lucky people that have a couple hundred kids coming, but to our little church with about 25 people attending every Sunday, and most of us in our 70's, we are THRILLED to have our numbers. Another Praise the Lord--when we had our special VBS Sunday, those 25 people gave $725 to support our VBS! We will use what we need and the rest goes to missions, we never keep an extra dime. You can't outgive God!)

[TrinityJen]

NormaVK,
What a blessing to have so many kids come from out side the church and to have 18 6-8 graders. We had 18 4 &5th graders this year (our oldest group). We usually only have 6 in that age group. Next year I plan to go up to 6 (maybe 7th to get some of the 'helpers' from this year. I want to do something 'new' that can grow with them. I can't wati to see the suggestions from GL and to re-read this board to see what other churches do.

[spenceandme]

Okay Ladies, I need to know, have any of you ever taken your VBS into the 4th of July parade? I have been directing VBS for 5 years now and everyone at my church has been begging me to get into the parade. Okay, so this year I did. I only had 2 volunteers besides my own family members walk with me.:( It seems like what everyone thought was such a great idea just wasn't their idea of fun. Any suggestions for next year? Should we do the Parade again or should I bag it? I have never tried the preview event but would love to. Let me know what ideas you come up with for SonForce Kids preview events, this may be the year I try it out!


Keep up all of your good work ladies,
May God Bless you all,
Susan:rolleyes:

[NancyP]

So far the only connection our VBS program has had with the July 4th parade is that we hand out flyers for VBS along the parade route. The flyers give info about VBS, a registration form, and some general info about our church. But for the past couple of years I have been thinking about trying to do a float of some kind for VBS in the parade. If I did, I was thinking about sending invitations to some of the older kids who have attended VBS in the past asking them if they would like to ride/walk. I have also thought about possibly having some of the kids walk holding out a blanket or sheet for people to throw money into as a fundraiser for the program. I've seen Boy Scouts and Little League do it. I don't know how much they raise, but it's something I've thought about before.

[TrinityJen]

We have a local parade in early June. We adapt the parade theme to the VBS theme for the float. The question is always, 'Who will build the float?'

Our Counsel of Ministries organizes it. The contemporary band plays on it, and it advertises the church and VBS. But building it is always a burden to the same people each year. I tried to be more active this year, to help keep the VBS theme. Of course I am not a handy float builder, so I made palm trees and they figured out how to secure them. Another family made a giant treasure chest to hang off the back. Then it rained 1 hour before the parade and we canceled our float. We still have the candy and fliers.

Maybe we can have a thread about what our floats will look like next year!