Welcome to St. Richard Church's
Vacation Bible School Experience
August 22 through 26
9:00 AM to 12:00 PM
What is Vacation Bible School?
Vacation Bible School, VBS for short, is an innovative, action packed, theme centered program that not
only teaches kids about their faith, but gets them excited about it too. This year's theme is PandaMania - Where God is Wild about You!.
Our VBS experience at St. Richard Church is designed for children who have currently completed Pre-K through 4th Grade as of June 2011.
This year, Kids will explore a bamboo forest filled with crazy pandas, as they discover that God loves us. Kids participate in memorable Bible-learning activities, sing catchy songs, play teamwork-building games, dig into yummy treats, experience electrifying Bible adventures, and create Bible Point crafts they'll take home and play with all summer long. Plus, kids will learn to look for evidence of God all around them through something called God Sightings. Each day concludes with a Rowdy Wrap-Up-a celebration that gets everyone involved in living what they've learned. And that's not all! There's drama, cinema, and even cool music that every kid will end up rockin' to all summer long and long into the school year!
How does it work?
St. Richard's VBS experience will be held August 22 through August 26, 2011. Children who participate will begin to gather in the school hall beginning at 8:45 AM.
Our day officially begins at 9:00 AM. Prior to their arrival on the first day, children will be organized into groups, which will serve as their VBS "Crew" for the
entire week. Each day they will travel with their "Crew" to several VBS activity sites. The majority of our VBS experience will take place in the comfort of
our air-conditioned school hall. Ahhhhh! Games will be held in the schoolyard (weather permitting of course!). Theme centered snacks and beverages are provided each day to the children.
Our VBS experience ends at 12:00 PM each day with parents picking up their children in the school hall. On our final day (Friday, August 26), family and friends are invited to join
our VBS participants in Church for a unique, fun-filled (and song-filled!) closing celebration!
For a list of our VBS policies and procedures, as they pertain to St. Richard Church, click here.
How do I enroll my child?
To enroll your child in our VBS experience, you need to complete a registration form for each child you enroll. Registration forms are available
here. The cost for participation is $35.00 per child. Participation is limited to 80 children, so applications will be taken on a first come,
first served basis. We're sorry, but incomplete registration forms or forms submitted without the required fees will not be processed.
You can submit your completed registration form and fee to the rectory via the mail or drop it off in person by placing it in the rectory mail slot. Registrations will be accepted through the end of July. After July 31, please call for availability (215-468-4777). If we have met the 80 participant limit prior to the registration deadline, we will inform the parish community via this WebPage and the parish bulletin. Any registrations received in excess of our 80 participant limit will be returned. Register today...Don't delay!
How can I become involved?
There's plenty of opportunity for parents and teens (8th grade and above) to become involved in our VBS experience. Best of all, we've done the work for you! Everything you need to lead a group or activity site has been planned down to the smallest detail. Volunteering has never been so easy, and let's not forget FUN!
Here's a listing of the volunteer opportunities available:
- Group Leader - lead a group of 12-15 children with the assistance of teen helpers. Group Leaders assist the various activity site leaders as needed, make sure that their group stays on schedule, and help maintain a safe and well ordered environment during our VBS experience.
- Activity Site Leader - lead or co-lead one of 5 different activity sites: snacks, games, arts and crafts, bible story, and DVD. Leaders are provided with materials that have each day's activities planned out to the finest detail.
- Junior Group Leader - an ideal position for teens seeking to fulfill service hours. Jr. Group Leaders, assist the adult Group Leader in managing their VBS group.
- Activity Site Helpers - another ideal position for adults as well as teens seeking to fulfill service hours. Activity Site Helpers assist Activity Site Leaders with the running of the activity site.
Volunteers need to be available from 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM all week long during our VBS experience. If you or someone you know is interested in volunteering for this exciting week long program, contact Dennis M. Mueller at 215-468-4777 or via e-mail at dmueller@strichardchurch.org.
An organizational meeting will be held for all VBS volunteers on Thursday, August 4, at 7:00 PM in the school hall. Please note the change of date for this meeting..
