Saturday, June 6, 1998

Vacation Bible School goes high-tech

By LORETTA FULTON / Abilene Reporter-News

'Star Quest: a Galactic Good News Adventure" isn't the latest box office hit, but rather it's the latest trend in the old summer standby, Vacation Bible School.

Even VBS, once the primary summertime fun for children, has gone high-tech. No longer can churches expect to see neighborhood children, whether church members or not, flocking to their doors for Kool-Aid, Oreos, Popsicle stick creations and feltboard drama.

"We all have to be much more creative," said Sandy Dlugas, director of youth and music at Brook Hollow Christian Church.

Competition from a number of other sources has taken away some of the allure of Vacation Bible School, veterans say.

"It used to be all we did in the summer was go to Bible school," said Beverly Allen, director of Vacation Bible School at Pioneer Drive Baptist Church.

To compete, VBS leaders have to come up with fast-moving, high-energy programs suited to children accustomed to television, movies, video games, and the Internet.

Especially important to today's children is music. "Jesus Loves Me" may not have been replaced entirely, but it has been supplemented with more contemporary sounds.

"The music is a lot more sophisticated," Dlugas said, with jazz and Jamaican rhythms popular today.

To make marketing Vacation Bible School simpler, many churches have chosen prepared packages with themes such as "Star Quest."

"We saw that happening about five years ago," said Allen, who has been in charge of VBS at Pioneer Drive for 20 years.

"It brings more excitement when you see a theme," she said.

Another trend over the past few years is nighttime Vacation Bible School. That change came when Mom got a paying job and was no longer available to volunteer for morning duty at Vacation Bible School.

"So many of our moms are working now, they just literally had to in order to have enough workers," Allen said of adding evening VBS.

No matter the time of day, kids can expect a good adventure at this summer's Vacation Bible School.

Brook Hollow Christian Church is offering "Following Jesus Every Day: Passport to the Holy Land," June 15-19. The school will feature a Jerusalem marketplace, and the children will interact with the boothkeepers.

On one day during the week, the children will visit "Bethlehem," which will actually will be a trip to a sheep ranch in Potosi.

"It's all very interactive," Dlugas said.

Another popular theme this summer is "Code: Jesus," a "Mission: Impossible" spinoff with the children trying to solve a mystery.

"They're trying to find the mystery behind why Paul was full of joy," said Linda Leach, a volunteer at Ridgemont Baptist Church, which just completed a week of "Code: Jesus."

Leach, who attended VBS "many years ago," said she was surprised at how much the summer tradition had changed.

"This is the first time I've ever seen it like this," said Leach, as she made her way, dressed as a guard, in search of the Apostle Paul.

The children joined her on a weeklong search for Paul and were rewarded Friday when the church's pastor, the Rev. Rudy Fambrough, portrayed the missing apostle.

But before completing their mission, the children were treated to a week's worth of mystery, complete with all kinds of spy gadgets they made from an assortment of supplies.

In each cleverly decorated room, leaders acted out a drama, asked the children questions, and led them in making crafts.

"My name is Stella, and I'm a Stoic," Shanda Tijerino, draped in a bedsheet-turned-toga, told one group.

"And I'm an Epicurean," added Tate Ellison, a student at Hardin-Simmons University.

The point of the lesson was for the children to "try to figure out who to worship and who is the one true God," Tijerino said.

The children paid close attention, but soon diverted their energy to the crafts that followed the lesson. As they enthusiastically rubbed a pencil over a sheet of paper to decode a secret message, Billy Jones suddenly shouted, "I found it! I found it! Mine says John 11:3."

Little Grace Remo, a second grader at Bassetti Elementary School and first-timer at Vacation Bible School, was a little more reserved. The best part of the adventure for her?

"Learning the Bible and coloring," she said.

ven with names like "Star Quest," the modern Vacation Bible School retains some of its older charm. Leaders still find creative uses for blocks of Stryofoam, contact paper, pipe cleaners, leather strips, and felt.

Allen, Pioneer Drive's veteran VBS leader, notes that even if the methods have changed, the results haven't.

"Truly it has changed," she said, "but I think the excitement is the same. We just have to sell it a little differently."

And oldtimers needn't worry that their favorite Vacation Bible School refreshments have been replaced with something more nutritious in today's health conscious world.

"We still do punch and cookies," Allen assured.