In July, the Mountain Grove Church held its first Vacation Bible School in several years. In total, 28 children attended the five-day event.
The church has less than 60 members and 11 children who regularly attend. According to April Randall, Mountain Grove Adventurer club director, having 28 attendees was a success.
However, the first day of VBS, attendance was not that large. To get more children to come, Randall and Jackie Manzano, Mountain Grove Pathfinder director, gave attendees an incentive to invite their friends. Children were told if they invited a friend, they could receive a special item. Many of the children then invited their friends.
On the last night of VBS, Randall and Manzano gave a presentation about the church’s Pathfinder and Adventurer clubs. Each child was given a piece of paper with the club registration date.
When registration day came, the church was pleased to see that in addition to returning club members, there were also some children from VBS who registered. In 2021, the Adventurer club had nine members, but the club now has 13, with the possibility of two more individuals joining. The Pathfinder club also grew, from one member to four, also with the possibility of two additional members.
Randall credits the VBS for the growth in the clubs. “I don’t think our clubs would have really grown that much without VBS,” Randall said.
Manzano said she is pleased to quadruple the size of the Pathfinder club. “The VBS was fantastic; we had a great turn out. I’m stoked for this year’s Pathfinder club,” Manzano said.
The directors aren’t the only ones happy about the clubs’ growth. Club members who invited friends to VBS said they are excited to see some of their friends join the clubs.
“I’m happy because my friends are in Adventurers and we can do stuff together,” said Julia, an Adventurer club member.
According to Randall, the clubs’ growth and the high number of VBS attendees have been encouraging to the church. The church members are already discussing VBS plans for next year.
