2009's Vacation Bible School was a huge success.
80 children participated and raised $427.37 towards a well project in Thailand and collected over 100 items for the Fayetteville-Manlius Food Pantry. Each day the staff encouraged the kids to see how God appears in their daily lives. Throughout the week the children' voices rang through the church to the day's Bible Point with a hearty, "Fear Not!"
Activities revolved around:
- Singing songs during "Sing and Play".
- In the "Bible Bayou" children enjoyed an interactive and dramatic reading of the day's Bible story.
- At the "Dockside Drive" In students learned about God's love for them through video and discussion.
- The "Gator Games" station provided an outlet for their boundless energy while providing learning opportunities during physical play outdoors.
- Each student learned about God in the "Crawfish Crafts" room while making something to take home for the day.
- Every day the students learned about God while they helped make a snack related to the day's Bible story at the "Snack Shack".
The older children sought to serve the community by performing random acts of kindness, including:
- Headlight and rear view mirror washing
- Polishing the church sanctuary furniture
- Making some of the large "building blocks" out of paper for the "Bible Bayou" station
- Cleaning and disinfecting all of the outdoor playground surfaces
Perhaps the best highlight of the week happened on Thursday when the children were asked to come up to the cross in the church if they wanted to ask Jesus to be their friend. The pews were quickly emptied and the cross covered with childrens' names as they each made the decision to ask God to be a part of their life.
Thanks to all the volunteers and organizers for making this year's VBS such a big success.