News Story
BACK TO SCHOOL FOR WILD WEST FUN!
Over 120 Guildford children have signed up for five days of summer holiday Wild West fun and adventure - but back in school!
Christ Church, Guildford's Holiday Club, entitled 'Gold Rush!' will for the first time ever take place at Tormead School because of building
work at Christ Church. 'Gold Rush' runs from 4-8 August 2010 and includes a wide range of activities for 4-11-year-olds, including songs, games, craft, drama and Bible teaching. This year's Wild West theme will mean stetsons, cowboy boots and suspect American
accents all round!
Christ Church has been running its Holiday Club successfully for over 10 years. It is the biggest single event in the church's year and involves a legion of volunteers. Some people, including this year's overall leader Michael Tame, take time off work to be involved. Others, including dozens of teenagers, give up part of their holiday.
Around two-thirds of the children who participate do not come to church regularly. Children are key to Christ Church's mission, 'To love Christ and to make him known.' As a church it aims to be a community which affirms and encourages children in their faith journey, recognising that if you create a positive environment for children you appeal to parents too.
'One of the keys to Holiday Club is that it is owned by the whole church," says Christ Church Vicar, the Revd Susie Sanders. "That means absolutely everybody can have a role. So as well as all the volunteers working with the children, we've got people doing admin, making tea and cakes for leaders, running a creche to help leaders and others are praying. Where people can do nothing else, they can pray!'
This year Michael Tame has stepped up to run Holiday Club, as the church has been without a Children and Families Minister, although two new ones start work in September. Michael has been a key member of the team for some years and is involved in a range of activities at Christ Church.
"Holiday Club has been the highlight of my year since I was first recruited to the team. It's been a natural progression to run
things this year and I'm really enjoying it. It's a big challenge, though, particularly figuring out how it all works at a new venue. It wouldn't be possible without the fantastic team of helpers and it's a real encouragement to see lots of people helping for the first time this year, including so many of our teenagers.'
Additional Comments: The event runs from 10am-1.30pm daily from Wednesday 4 August to Saturday 7 August at Tormead School
(you would need permission to get on site), with a special Holiday Club service at Christ Church at
10am on Sunday 8 August, followed by tea, coffee and smoothies.
