Vacation Bible School Brings Christian Olympics to Court Street

The historic Court Street School was filled with laughter, learning and faith for two weeks in July for the Community Vacation Bible School’s second year.

The program, spearheaded by Trena Parks-Bradley and sponsored by , had 40 to 50 children from Kindergarten through high school age in attendance each day, according to Andrea McPherson, vice president of the Board of Trustees.

Parks-Bradley visited area congregations and spoke to friends and neighbors with children, informing them of the summer activity available in the community.

“She’s like the pied piper,” McPherson joked. “She’s a longtime resident in the borough, and she went around Freehold telling everyone about the camp. She also comes up with the theme each year.”

For 2011, Parks-Bradley settled on Christian Olympics as the Vacation Bible School’s focus because of the Hebrews 12:1-2 verse, which reads, “let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”

“Something struck me about it,” Parks-Bradley said. “[The Christian Olympics theme] is about teaching the children to endure. The idea of a race puts things into perspective. We will encounter these difficulties in life. Everybody has a race. We need to keep pressing toward the mark.”

The lessons, arts and crafts, and recreational activities incorporated this theme, with volunteer teachers adapting it to each age group. Classes were divided into groups of about seven to 10 based on age. Guest teachers were brought in each night for the teens, MacPherson said.

At graduation on Friday, July 22, the children in Community Vacation Bible School showed family members all they had learned in the previous weeks. Students read scripture and sang hymns, and the younger classes displayed handmade Olympic torches, medals and crowns.

Following the ceremony, the graduates and various community members enjoyed a barbeque together.

“The spirit of the Olympics is about different groups coming together for a common cause,” McPherson said.