By Leslie Hawthorne Klingler

Leaders at Grace Bible Church in Arroyo Grande, California, thought that the 300 children attending Vacation Bible School (VBS) could raise $500. That would be enough for the Sierra Leone Childhelp Water Project to repair a much needed hand pump on a well.

Much to everyone’s surprise, the young group raised a total of $1,370! Because of the children’s generosity, Lifewater in partnership with Childhelp in Sierra Leone was able to repair the hand pump and hold a hygiene training. During the course of the week, VBS leaders were impressed by the children’s sacrificial giving. Many kids committed hard-earned money toward the goal of helping children in Sierra Leone. For example:

• Seven-year-old Abi decided to give Lifewater the money she was saving to buy a special doll.
  
• Three siblings— six-year-old Alyssa, seven-year-old Joshua, and ten-year-old Michaela contributed the money they were raising to buy a new puppy.
  
• Eleven-year-old Patrick studied Lifewater materials, then wrote a paragraph sharing about Lifewater and asking people to contribute spare change. He distributed the letter to neighbors and his dad’s colleagues.

VBS coordinator Carolyn Thom believes that the Lifewater fundraiser was successful because it nurtured the children’s developing sense of compassion. She explained, “A primary goal of the church’s children’s program has been trying to create in our children a heart of compassion for people in need around them. The Lifewater project helped our kids see that a heart of compassion that begins locally can extend to help people around the world.”

When the children raised almost five times more than had ever been raised in previous VBS missions projects, Thom and the rest of the staff felt humbled. “The children gave not because they had to but because they truly wanted to help,” said Thom. “The fact that they kept exceeding their goals challenged us, the adult congregation, to follow their example.”

Keys to a Successful Children’s Missions Project Grace Bible Church VBS coordinator Carolyn Thom has several suggestions for people coordinating a missions project geared to children:

1. Involve a real missionary. Throughout the course of the week, Lifewater board member Tim Cleath—who has been on numerous Lifewater training trips—taught the kids about safe water and how Lifewater projects help communities obtain the vital resource.

2. Help children to see they are helping other children. Cleath used photos, PowerPoint, and posters to help the VBS children visualize the children of the community that they were helping.

3. Offer hands-on experiences. Cleath set up a drilling rig and a hand pump in the church lobby which the kids could see and touch. Older kids were also encouraged to try to carry buckets of water as do the children of Sierra Leone.

4. Pray together and emphasize God’s provision. The VBS group prayed together for the children of Sierra Leone. Thom reminded the children that it is God who provides; in giving money for safe water, they were simple participating in God’s work.

* If your church would like to coordinate a Lifewater missions project geared to children, please contact Lifewater. We would be happy to help you get in touch with a staff member or Volunteer Trainer in your area, obtain visual aids, and develop hands-on experiences for your young group.