FFC Foundation Holds Vacation Bible School 2019: Shield Squad

From May 6 to May 10, Faith Family Church’s Kids Ministry, in partnership with the Faith Family Foundation, held its annual flagship event, the Vacation Bible School. With the theme Shield Squad, this year’s Vacation Bible School had a double purpose: to educate children on stories in the Bible while teaching them disaster risk reduction and management. Throughout the week, over 150 children attended the Vacation Bible School, participating in various activities, such as games, storytelling, and arts and crafts.

This year saw an increase of participants with over 150 attendees. Children were separated into three levels: Keepers, Guardians, and Protectors. The Keepers were the youngest of the bunch, aged 4-6, but nonetheless as enthusiastic as the older children. The Guardians, aged 7-9, were the most eager in answering their teachers’ questions. Aged 10-12, the Protectors were the oldest group, taking care of the younger ones but still absorbing their lessons. Shield Squad: Secure in God’s Protection sought to remind children that they were not just victims, but heroes in their own right because of God’s protection.

To accomplish this, volunteers and teachers connected various disasters to stories in the Bible, such as Noah and what to do during a flood, to let children know how God’s people can overcome disasters and even help other people during it. To further ensure that the children would be prepared in the face of disasters, NDRRMC-Dasma held a seminar to orient children and their parents on what to do in certain disasters. The topics they discussed ranged from first aid to methods of evacuation during earthquakes. The children eagerly listened and were even able to demonstrate the knowledge they gained.

The Vacation Bible School is considered as the Kids Ministry’s flagship event because of how it touches the lives of children in the community. Head of the Kids Ministry, Jena Manabat, says that the Vacation Bible School “helps shape the moral values of the children that are based on the Word of God”. Throughout the week, the children were cared for, fed nutritiously by the gracious volunteers, and taught the Word of God by the teachers. During the graduation ceremony, certain children, such as 10 year-old Tristan Luciano, were handpicked to share their experience with all of them expressing how God’s presence in their lives has impacted them positively. While this year’s Vacation Bible School is finished, the work of making sure that children in the community are able to feel God’s love is far from over. The Faith Family Church and its charity arm are determined to follow up on the gains of this VBS by continuing their work with the kids and the community.