Community VBS set July 24-27

By Sam Waller

Preparations for Community Vacation Bible School are under way with volunteers setting up for the event, which will run Sunday, July 24 through Wednesday, July 27.

A new feature for this year is the addition of the R.O.P.E. program (Rights of Passage Experience) for rising seventh graders. That group will meet 5:45-8:15 p.m. at The Feed Store.

Darla Cotter will lead the program, which focuses on learning to handle issues facing those entering adolescence.

“We’re excited to offer a VBS kind of experience for kids going into junior high who normally would have aged out,” Cotter said. “Quiet frankly, that typical format and content doesn’t catch their attention because they’re focused on the next phase of life. We’re jumping in with content I think will be helpful for them.”

Cotter said the program will help youth learn to face issues such as feelings of inferiority and peer pressure.

“Our goal is that these youth will know who they are, that they’re loved and valued, and that here’s a purpose in their life,” she said. “We’re all different, and that’s a good thing. They don’t have to compare themselves to other people.”

Students who were in Pre-K through fifth grade during the 2021-22 school year will meet 5:30-8:00 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Albany. Attendees must be 4 years old before Sept. 1.

Organizer Angie Hinshaw said she does not expect the recent upswing of COVID-19 case to derail the event.

“Even when the first outbreak happened two years ago, we still had VBS,” Hinshaw said. “As long as it’s in control, we’re going to keep rolling with the plans.”

Meals will be provided each night.

On July 27, a Wednesday night program at 5:30 p.m. in the FBC sanctuary will be followed by supper and swimming at the city pool.

Attendance is free.

The Vacation Bible School and R.O.P.E. programs are sponsored by the Albany Ministerial Alliance, and members of all congregations are encouraged to participate.