Bible Surf 2009

I admit that I hadn't been all that excited about signing up to help at VBS this summer. Truthfully, I was still burnt out from teaching and helping with VBS over the past ten years. Knowing that Colin would say he wanted to go, then change his mind making it difficult to drag him with me, made me a bit reluctant. However, the pull of being at a new church and it being Colin's last year to attend VBS, I decided to go ahead with it against my better judgement. God was to have the last laugh and show me that not everything turns out as expected...
First of all, there were around 12o kids enrolled which made the opening extremely fun and dynamic, not to mention loud. Pastor Bill led with fantastic music which Colin loved and continued singing in the car long after VBS was over. Bill also came up with some great competitions between the "lifeguards", including a soda drinking contest and having to eat saltines then whistle. All the kids loved it! And, volunteers? Between the youth and adults, there was plenty of help to go around. I was in awe!

I helped with crafts, which was a really good place for me to be. All the kids loved the projects we did each day, including the 4th and 5th grade class, which are usually the first to moan and groan. And, speaking of the 4th and 5th class, it was the largest! They had over 40 kids in the group. Not only were they excited about being there every day, they were looking forward to next year when they could sign up to be lifeguards.

This was the day we made whales with Jonah's inside. The theme of Bible Surf 2009 was, of course, water. This being the case, the kids were invited to wear their swimsuits and bring towels because during the game station, they'd be getting wet. This was an absolute blast for Colin. And, everyday one of the lifeguards got doused after the kids were dismissed. I believe the picture below is of Kayla getting the big splash.

Colin was excited that he'd be hanging out with his good buddy Nathan at VBS. A surprise came when he saw Joshua, a neighbor friend. Unfortunately, Joshua's brother Gabriel couldn't make it for the week, as he was home sick. But, the three boys had a hoot together. And, there were other kids attending that the boys knew either through church, school or sports.

Probably the biggest highlight of the week came during opening on the last day of camp. Pastor Bill had a whipped cream eating contest for the lifeguards and did not forsee his impending doom. Some of the lifeguards had extra hidden cans of whipped cream which when done with the contest proceeded to coat the pastor with lots of white fluffy cream. You hope the kids would remember the lessons they learned at VBS, but I'm pretty sure its this memory that will stick with them the longest.

To this day I'm amazed at how much fun Colin had attending VBS and how much I enjoyed volunteering. Although I was tired every day, the work was gratifying because all the kids were well behaved and really enjoyed being there. It truly was what I'd hoped VBS would be each year, but unfortunately would fall short. SVLC's program and leadership was outstanding and I'm astonished to say that I will totally sign up to help again next year.