Saturday, June 25th: First Day of Vacation Bible School

                                                 Haitian Children at Vacation Bible School at Valley of Hope Church in Bernard, Haiti

Valley of Hope Church, Bernard, Haiti

VBS camp kids gather near the well the church installed for fresh water in the community

Saturday, June 25 (Day 2)

We start out the morning with the luxury of a shower, but a rather cold shower as there is no warm/hot water. Yes, it is summer, but to wake up to a very cold shower is something that we usually do back in the states.  We prepare to leave around 8 a.m. as it will take around 2 hours from where we are staying to get to the church in Bernard.  Saturday is market day so driving through the streets proves slower with the fruit, clothing, and live chickens to be sold along the way.

The church is surrounded by mountains and a breeze that helps with the warm sun.  The children attending the Vacation Bible School greet us with singing welcome.  We originally had 50 youth that would attend this camp, but when we arrive it is well over 100 and as the camp progresses we have 185, nearly 200 youth.

Susie with help from Pastor Maxeau as the interpreter, gave a  lesson about how God loves us and how we come from God.  She used a felt board with pictures and had two children volunteer to hold the felt board.  After the lesson, we divided the kids into groups for music, games, and crafts.  The kids learned “He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands”, first in Creole and then in English. The kids also sung “Jesus Loves Me.” Mandy and Amanda helped with the games, Steve and Pastor Maxeau led the songs, and Susie and Kristine made a pinwheel with the kids. 

All in all, it was a great day.  We appreciated the help that some of the pastor’s church members provided to help explain the games.  With so many children, our group will be sure to plan extra games and think about how to do as many crafts possible with extra kids coming to the camp.

After the day’s lesson, we gave a snack to the kids and bid them goodbye until Tuesday and Wednesday for the remaining two days of Vacation Bible School.

We board the truck and head back to our lodging for a good dinner and rest to start another day.