Vacation Bible school carries on tradition
July 25, 2011 12:24PM
Kids eat cake during the vacation Bible school. | Tamara Bell~Sun Times Media
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Updated: November 2, 2011 3:40AM
It’s summer, and that means a time-honored tradition has returned to the churches of Western Springs — vacation Bible school.
Families pay nominal fees or no fees at all for their children to attend. The children color pictures, learn Bible stories, sing songs and do craft projects, usually for a few hours for a few days, sometimes for as long as a week.
“Who can ever forget the songs they sang at vacation Bible school,” asks Barbara Gordon, church secretary at the Christian Reformed Church of Western Springs.
First to hold a vacation Bible school session in Western Springs has been Western Springs Baptist Church. They start their sessions the first week after school lets out in spring.
“We have a big pool of volunteers — over 100 people, from junior high school age to 70 plus,” they said. “We have skit people, band people, music people, photography people and game people. They’re all pretty much still in town to help us out. Our congregation doesn’t think of leaving town for summer vacation that early.”
In exchange for $15, each enrollee gets a weeklong experience, from 8:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. daily, including T-shirts, CDs, crafts and snacks.
This year’s theme at Western Springs Baptist was Beach Bash. The program served 250 students, from kindergarten through sixth grade.
Parents will pay $12 per child for the vacation Bible school experience at All Saints Episcopal Church, in Western Springs. The sessions will meet from 6 to 8 p.m. Aug. 16 through 18 at the church, at 4370 Woodland Ave.
“The evening hours seem to be very popular with our working parents, they said.
This year’s camp is expected to enroll about 30 to 40 children, from 3-year-olds to fifth-graders. The children will deal with the PandaMania curriculum, which asks the question, “What would you do if a group of fun-loving pandas invaded your congregation?”
Registration for the All Saints sessions will be handled by Emmanuel Episcopal Church in La Grange, whose children will also participate in the experience. Call (708) 352-1275 for information.
Western Springs Presbyterian Church and the Christian Reformed Church programs both ran during the fourth full week in July.
“We have about 90 students here, from 9:30 to 11 each day,” said Gordon. “They start and finish their days together, singing songs. Then they break into small groups for craft projects.”
The Christian Reformed Church does not charge students for Vacation Bible School.
“It’s an outreach ministry for us,” Gordon said.
Most parents choose to donate something though — some craft supplies or cash.
“They’re likely to write a check if they have more than one child in the program,” Gordon acknowledged.
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