Vacation Bible Schools under way

School’s out, summer begins. And that means summer camps and studies are officially under way. Children are lining up for the chance to spend time with friends to participate in recreational activities, school studies, and Vacation Bible School. One summer program, which began Monday, is at the First Baptist Church in Eunice.
The staff working in this five-day event are mainly volunteers, taking time out of their summer to work, and help children. They are friendly and enthusiastic about what they are doing. Each seemed to have a cohesive connection with one another, passing information around from one person to the next getting involved in the matters at hand.
Parents begin the day, prior to nine a.m., signing their youngsters up for a day. Parents go through the routine of jotting down information for registration, hug and kiss their child, and say, “I’ll be back after while to pick you up. Ok?” But the kids are already off calling for a friend they recognize.
The main hall is filled with children, volunteers, and event organizers. Children are seated next to their appropriate age group in the pews of sanctuary. Each pew has a corresponding grade level for the staff to easily group them.
The room is filled with kids and event staff, and the joyful banter that proceeds them. Children are speaking and laughing with one another. The volunteers go around the room speaking with kids and adults alike, creating a fun, carefree atmosphere for everyone.
The main theme of this VBS is an investigative agency where the motto is “Discover. Decide. Defend.” Here they mean to help children discover faith, and teach them how to defend it, once it has been discovered.
Moments before the children begin their journey to the inner workings of their faith, the room heightens with anticipation. The atmosphere changes and the movement from the staff and speakers works up and raises the enthusiasm of the kids. It becomes inviting, and begs the question, “What happens next?”
It begins with the youth minister and pastor standing the kids for the Pledge of Allegiance, and a few quick prayers. After that, youth minister Mike Fontenot speaks to the children. He welcomes them, and explains the “mission” and the means to what he hopes for these children to achieve.
After his introduction, a few staff members played a song and danced to it, teaching the congregation of young onlookers the dance routine. Kids smiled and laughed and danced along with the song.
Then, they asked the kids if they brought some spare change with them. The ones that did were encouraged to donate for a charitable cause. Girls put their donation in a bucket labeled girls and boys put theirs in one labeled boys. One boy put his hefty donation in the girls’ bucket, but no one noticed. They weighed the individual buckets and it’s suffice to say that the girls won, HEAVILY.
They showed the kids a brief video and sent them off to do individual group activities.
Each room is designed specifically for a certain activity. One room is designated forcrafts, another for Bible studies, and one for missionary studies, detailing the lives of families that present life lessons for the young viewers. Also, there is a group recreation activity where kids play games outside. The kids and event staff pair very well and get along nicely with one another.
When it is the appropriate time, the kids all rotate between rooms into different activities. They all regroup later in the evening to enjoy snacks and refreshments in a large area that has been prepared by the staff.
Towards the end of the morning, the young camp goers all assemble back in the main area. Once there, they are asked about their experience. Parents line up outside to pick up their children. The day ends and the wait for another begins again.
“We hope the kids have fun, not only just have fun, but leave at the end of the day realizing that they learned about themselves and grew stronger in their faith.” Fontenot said, when asked what he hopes children learn here at camp.
Notices of other church camps and Vacation Bible Schools appear in News Notes (Page x today) through the summer season.