The Tracy Adventist church had not held a vacation Bible school program in over 10 years, but the members and pastor believed God wanted them to do something for the children in their neighborhood during the summer of 2007.
Church members liked Group Publishing's VBS program, “Avalanche Ranch—A Wild Ride Through God’s Word,” and many of the members agreed to be part of the VBS team.
“Programs like this are many times the first opportunity for children to know Jesus in a fun way,” said Lisa Sanchez, who served as the games leader.
The VBS team prayed for God’s blessing, and they believe He answered their prayers. The VBS program attracted 95 children, two-thirds of whom were not from the Tracy church. Many of the children had never been to any church before the VBS program. At the close of the Friday evening program, a boy named Kyle, whose family didn’t attend church anywhere, walked to the front and gave the closing prayer.
"I liked the Bible stories and the snacks," said second-grader Natalie Retes. "My Favorite was when we were hiding from the soldiers on Rahab's house," added Michael Koeppen, a third-grader.
Church members were so pleased with the VBS program that they decided to keep the momentum going all year—so the "Avalanche Ranch and Beyond" children’s church program was born. Some of the parents are now attending the 11 a.m. worship service every week, while their children participate in the Avalanche Ranch & Beyond program.
The Tracy SDA Christian Elementary School has also reaped positive benefits from the Avalanche Ranch VBS program this past summer. Three children from outside the Tracy church have enrolled in the school this year due to the positive community outreach resulting from VBS.
Members of the Tracy church say the excitement and fun of the VBS program was only the start of their children’s ministry.
"It has been exciting to see the impact that VBS has had within our church and the community," said Tracy pastor, Jim Witcombe. "I definitely would encourage any church that hasn't had a VBS outreach for some time to give it a try again."
