Vacation Bible School Wrap-Up 2011

What can I say this year that hasn’t already been said from years past? It was great, wonderful, awesome, fantastic, the best year ever? I’d say, it was all the above!

It was great because we had great curriculum with great volunteers teaching it. Great volunteers which where willing to cover each other when life got in the way of someone not being able to be there.

It was wonderful because we had such wonderful snacks! Wow! Every day was delicious!!

This year was awesome because we had such wonderful bible stories such as Jonah and the whale (a whale of a good time!). This year was fantastic because we had sunshine every day and lots of water to keep from getting too hot!

We had the best volunteers – jumping in and decorating the Saturday before we started VBS. What a great job all of you did with the kids; acting or teaching or guiding each student. I heard such good stories Friday night that came from the kids and their parents about what the kids said they learned. It’s wonderful to hear feedback about what we do – good or bad (it was all good!!!).

Some of the staff said this was the best year ever. The best year ever!! Wow. What can I say? You volunteers are the ones that made it happen. Someone said to me that I let God mold me. I just prayed and God did the work. He has molded each of his workers and teaches us while he is helping us teach others.

From the bottom of my heart, let God continue to teach and mold you for the next year and make it be the best year ever every year after.

A Farewell

Well it’s been one special year for Vacation Bible School. We always have a little drama to go with VBS every year. It’s Satan’s way of trying to bring us down. We have always prevailed though because we have Jesus on the winning team!  One year it rained and rained and rained but we just moved everything inside including the cookout and the animals! Another year when I was in very sick, Bud and Tony handled everything (we still won)! Last year we had a hole in the side of the Parish hall but we patched it and went on!

This year is the year to say goodbye. Phil and I are turning the reins over to someone else.My right hand man Bud Marecek is retiring as well. We all feel like it’s time for some new blood to take over and expand what we started. It’s been a joyful ride and we will miss all the wonderful faith-filled volunteers. I have a long list to thank but I can’t begin to list every single person because it would take the whole newsletter.

I always will remember each of you in my heart and prayers. You have done so much for us in your own special way.  Without you Vacation Bible School would have been nothing.  We needed every smile, every hand, every silly thing that was done, and of course every heart that you touched. You don’t realize all of the people you have touched and how God’s word spreads from what you started. I don’t think any of us realize what we are doing but sometimes we just feel it’s the right thing because we are asked by God to do his work.  Sometimes we say yes and sometimes we say no but God gets us involved like he did with Jonah (which was what we studied this last week at VBS!). 

Again to each and every one of you, thank you for working with me, pushing me to improve each year, and for loving me even with my faults.

I love you.

For the Glory of God.

Carolee Wylie

Hello All You Jackie Chan Fans!

I know, I know, Kung Fu may not be your thing, but China is where the Pandas are, and that’s where we are going travel this year! We are planning to swing through the Holy Nativity Bamboo Jungle this summer during VBS.

I have asked a lot of you already but, ya’ll are so great about helping out with everything we need. That’s what makes our Church and Vacation Bible School so wonderful; we have the most caring and giving church in the state of Texas!

In case you haven’t heard we have a donation drive going on in the Narthex. You donate to VBS then write your name on a paper doll. This is a donation to send a child/children to VBS this summer. We hope to get enough dolls to cover the wall in the Narthex. That should more then cover any cost we have for all children to participate. We will be registering children for VBS the 1st three weekends in June.

I also could use your help in collecting items for us to use this summer. If you would like to donate any of these items or let us borrow them that would be wonderful. I have made a list of items that you might have around your home or you could pick up at the store next time you go shopping.

• 3 Buckets (plastic)
• Large bag of confetti
• Paper plates 100+
• A plastic siphon (1)
• Animal masks (2)
• Plastic spoons 100+
• Small container of gravel
• 2 pair of black socks
• Play dough (6)
• 12 stones or bricks
• 4 large chocolate bars
• Brown elec. Tape (1)
• Box fan (1)
• Siren (1)
• Yellow balloons (sm)
• 2 rolls of black plastic 10’x25’
• Roll of blue craft paper
• Feather boa (1)
• Can of sardines (1)
• Canvas tarp (2)
• Garden trowel (1)
• Individual wrapped candies (Enough for 100 kids)
• Colored feathers
• “Y” Joint (1)
• Party Poppers (100)
• Black Table cloth (6)
• 5 balls of various sizes
• Robe (1)
• Colored small bowls (6)
• Blanket (1)
• 6 cans shaving cream
• Roll red crepe paper (1)
• Pictures of Animals
• Roll of wax paper
• Gifts bags (4)
• A Screwdriver
• Flashlight (large)
• Marbles (bag)
• Leaf blower (1)
• Strawberries 3lbs
• Volleyball net (1)
• 3 toy Pandas (small) bear’s
• 50’ RCA cable & adapter
• Reusable cloth grocery bags
• Stickers: Stars, animals, crosses or other God like stickers
• Aluminum foil (1 roll)
• Imitation leaves, flowers & fruit
• Sunglasses & Heart Stickers
• Crepe paper streamers (green and blue1 roll each)
• Fuchsia, Teal, Purple or blue Rit dye (3 boxes of each color)

Any of these items would be greatly appreciated. You can drop them off at the volunteer office at the church.

Jungle Fever starts in June!

So mark you calendar to register your children for VBS the 1st three weekends in June.

Vacation Bible School Donations

I recently posted about the Vacation Bible School program charging for each child to attend. This has been an on going subject forever and God has always provided for us every year. The Bible says: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”  Luke 11:9

The VBS meeting on Saturday proved that a number of people are asking God for help in this matter. There are a number of people that have already started donating to this ministry, however; we are only half way to achieving our goal.

This is our Ministry and we do not charge for a ministry, and “Gods word is not for sale”.  I believe these people, that I have quoted, are right. I believe that we can achieve our goal and show the world that we may be a small church but beliefs are strong and we know that God will provide.

Therefore instead of charging for our Ministry we are going to have a donation drive. If you would like to donate for a child to go to VBS this year, you can come by the table in the Narthex; donate and sign you name on a paper child that we will be displaying in the hallway. The cost for a child to go to VBS for the week is $50 but we will accept any and all amounts.

Jesus said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. Matthew 19:26

Blessings, Carolee

The Power of Prayer

For those of you who do not know me, I am Carolee Wylie, the Vacation Bible School director, and I wanted to talk to you about prayer and just how powerful it is!

As many of you are aware, our economy is having various struggles which leads to a domino effect with personal finances. Due to several cutbacks, our church’s VBS program was informed there was a chance that we would not have the budget for the 2011 VBS program. After hearing that, and knowing that each year our VBS program gets better (last year’s was one of the biggest and best summer programs in our church’s history), I was completely heartbroken. I, as many others, began to pray about this burden on our hearts.

We asked for guidance and support from God, as the VBS program has helped our church minister to local families and children who, in their own lives, might be on a “vacation from God”. Several of our families who started out attending VBS have decided to make our church their home and have joined as parishioners.

Well, I am here to tell you that God answers prayers. While we have not met the budget needed to have the HUGE program we had in past years, we have received enough donations to have the program and to continue our ministry to local families and young children right here in our church.

I, along with many of the Vacation Bible School volunteers, will continue to place our “Faith” in God and continue to allow Him to work his miracles, but for now, I wanted to say “Thank You”! Thank you to those who support the VBS program and have donated or plan to donate towards the 2011 VBS program.

As of now, we are planning to ask each participant to pay $10 to participate in the week’s program which will cover shirts, activities for the whole week and a daily mid-morning snack. If a family has more than two children we will not ask more than $25 per family; if persons are working the VBS program for the week, they will not be asked to pay.

If you are in a financial place where you feel you can do more to help our program or support a child for $10 for a week of God’s love and guidance, we would be grateful. If you or your family are not at a financial place where you can help with a monetary donation, then I ask you to join along with the VBS volunteers in praying daily that God will continue to work His marvelous blessings.

I want Satan to know that he will not defeat our VBS ministry, and we want to be able to tell you at the end of the summer that 2011 was the BEST VBS in our church’s history and that we were able to minister to double the families and children that we did last year.

Thank you and blessings to you, and your family in the upcoming Lent/Passover season.