Joining us in the studio this morning we have Susan Mochler with Ripon Vacation Bible School and actually that may no longer apply for much longer from what I understand Sue.
Well we did some thinking and looking at what
families we were reaching and what children we were bringing in and we wanted to broaden our scope a little bit and maybe get a little more modern because certainly Vacation Bible School has a term that's been used for many years.
So we are becoming Rippon area kids church camp and for this transition year we're still using Rippon area Vacation Bible School in conjunction with that.
But we want parents to understand that we are
First of all, non-denominational, but very definitely Christ-based, and that we want very much to have a wide variety of children come and join us and learn about exploring the nature of God and understanding what God does for us on a daily basis.
All right, so how many churches do you have involved?
It's at five or six
this year.
We have four We're working on bringing one more in again for next year, but this year we have four we will be located at Emmanuel Methodist on Fond du Lac Street and then we are partnering with Grace Lutheran the Federated Church of Green Lake and our Savior's United Church of Christ on Scott Street
Okay, and the dates for this year is camp
dates for this year.
That's one other change We are going to four days instead of five.
We will start on Monday, July 27th
We begin at 545 probably parents should try to get in the parking lot around 530 So that we're sure drop off goes smoothly But the program will start at 545 and we'll end just as close to eight as we can So Monday through Thursday now Thursday is a very special day in that it's family night and we invite all the families to come join us
We invite them to come.
We have a scavenger hunt.
We have special activities for the families and a special presentation by the Ignite.
youth praise band.
So Thursday's a real big night and we do invite everybody to join us and then every night we try real hard to be wrapped up by eight o'clock.
Last year on family night we went well past eight because a lot of the families were engaged in the activities that we had and we didn't want to cut them off but we do try to plan to be done by eight.
So are there food or snacks involved in this at all or?
Monday through Wednesday, there will be snacks midway through the program.
So probably about quarter to seven, seven o'clock.
We'll have snacks and then Thursday's a full meal.
Okay.
Is there a cost to attend?
None whatsoever.
Nope.
Free of charge.
Come and join us.
But you have to register, right?
Correct.
good catch yes please register in advance so that we are sure we have enough materials we're sure we have enough of everything for the children and that we understand we arrange the children in what we call crews and they travel together through the activities with that crew with a high school or adult
crew leader.
So we want to have the time ahead of time to be able to put them in those crews, understand that we have enough numbers and we make everything balanced.
So please register ahead.
It's www.rippenvbs.org and that will give you all of the information about dates, times, registration form, information about the Ignite Praise Band,
There is one error on the website that I noticed this morning.
I have to get corrected.
The Ignite Praise Band is going to be from 3.30 to 6 o'clock, and the website I think still says 3, but we'll get that fixed in the next day or two.
So Ignite Praise Band, and it is a praise band.
We welcome all children, whether you know how to play an instrument or not, and you don't need to bring your instrument with you.
We have all sorts of things for you.
to use and be part of the band.
Now in the past there have been themes so I hesitate asking but do you have a theme for this
year?
Oh we do.
It's rainforest falls exploring the nature of God so we're going to be in the rainforest and our decorating team is already well underway with
decorations and they do such a wonderful job.
We have a retired art teacher, Kay Kelch, and she has a team that puts together some very, very awesome decorations.
Okay.
Is there a registration deadline?
We like to have people registered a week in advance.
Will we accept walk-ins?
Absolutely.
We don't turn anybody away.
But as I said, the organization and being in the right
crew, age group-wise, that registration is really appreciated.
Okay, anything else that people should know about Rippin Vacation Bible School, also known as Rippin Area Kids Church Camp?
Yes, every year we pick a mission, and we usually alternate our missions between something worldwide and something local.
And this is our year for something local.
So we have chosen to partner and choose as our mission this year, Sleep in Heavenly Peace in Fond du Lac County.
Now Sleep in Heavenly Peace is a nationwide nonprofit organization that volunteers go in and build beds for kids who are sleeping on the floor.
And we have a group in Fond du Lac County.
The website indicates that they've built over 1,400 beds, totaling 3,000 volunteer hours building beds.
And so we're going to take monetary donations to buy the wood and the frames and the mattresses, et cetera.
And then we are also collecting
twin size bedding, sheets, pillowcases, whatever they want to do.
But this is our mission for this year is sleep in heavenly peace.
Yeah, they can build the beds, but you still need the bedding.
You got it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So it sounds like a very worthwhile cause.
Um, so again, if people are interested in attending a rip and area kids church camp, how do they register?
They register by going to the website.
www.rippinvbsallsmall.org, make sure it's .org, and then all the information is there.
There are tabs across the page describing the praise band, describing registration process, who our member churches are, how you can be a volunteer, and we are always in need of volunteers, both
to guide the activities and lead them and plan ahead for the activities as well as to be the crew leaders and take the children around.
So, and we probably should mention, Bob, before we leave that age group wise, we're talking, we do have a preschool group and they stay
pretty much self-contained by themselves.
They do their own activities.
We have two really special leaders in that preschool group.
And then the elementary kids, kindergarten through fifth grade.
And then our middle schoolers also say somewhat self-contained and do a slightly different program, all based on the same theme.
Okay, very good.
Susan, thank you for visiting with us today and telling us about the Rippin Vacation Bible School, also known as the Rippin Area Kids Church Camp.
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.
