The initial meetings of planning the theme start around 8 – 10 months of the actual date. Of course, a lot of this is social time around dinners, talking in the halls, etc. But we really do start planning that far in advance.
Families plan their vacations around our VBS. The work is so intense and involved, that many of our families have just accustomed themselves to planning their family vacations so that they can still be here to help out at the church building.
Having a lift is a necessity. I don’t know if you have been to our building before, but if you haven’t here is a fact: the ceilings are huge! And since we do things BIG, we need a lift to get up into the ceiling area. So when it comes to decorating, we just assume we will have a lift, and that we can hang things from the ceiling WAY UP in to the air! The kids love that stuff, because it is like creating a completely different world!
Most everyone is involved. I am quite certain you would be hard pressed to find a family at our congregation who is not in some way involved. Whether they are a teen who is an actor in a play, a retired older gentleman directing traffic, or a college student who is herding children from one location to another, every family is represented in some fashion. Our VBS is one of the biggest events that we do each year, and it helps in building our own relationships while we teach some 300 kids about Jesus.
Nail guns, water balloons, black lights, endless supply of card board, and a bag of fireworks are a must. Enough said…..
Food for the staff is amazing. I am not really sure how else to explain it, but we have individuals who bake home made goods for the staff, so that they have enough energy to keep up with all the little ones! Its just another perk of working VBS at Farragut Church!
Sleep overs at the building are not uncommon. There have been a couple of days where we got there in the morning, and a couple of people were sleeping in the halls! They worked all night, crawled into their sleeping bag, and woke up then next morning, ready to go! They felt the travel time to and from home was too much, so they improvised!
Professionals are running the show. We have interior designers, construction contractors, engineers, teachers, ministers (currently working and presently in school), IT professionals, chefs, you name it, we got it! They are all doing their part in showing Jesus to a ton of kids are eager to hear!
Oh, and did I mention that my wife is in charge? She is doing an awesome job! When you see her walking the halls making sure that your child got that craft done, stop her and tell her how great a job she and the rest of the volunteers are doing!
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