Nearly 100 teenagers from the First Baptist Church of
Lewisville, Texas, will be arriving shortly in South County to
provide fun and meaningful opportunities for local children and
youth.
Nearly 100 teenagers from the First Baptist Church of Lewisville, Texas, will be arriving shortly in South County to provide fun and meaningful opportunities for local children and youth.
The visiting choir is sponsored by Baptist churches in Morgan Hill, Gilroy and Salinas. The choir will be staying for a week at the facilities of the Gilroy First Baptist Church and each day divide into teams to work at one of the three participating churches.
“We are very excited to have the group come and minister with us this way,” said Rev. Mark Milwee, pastor of the Gilroy church, when announcing the event.
The visitors are members of Voice of Praise, a choir for ninth- through 12th-graders at the suburban Dallas church. Members participate in a demanding Sunday evening rehearsal schedule from August through June to prepare for their annual tours. In previous years they have gone to locations like Seattle, Chicago, and Minneapolis.
The 92 members will present a number of concert performances during their visit: at local churches, the Santa Cruz Beach and a convalescent hospital. But they will do much more than that.
The teens have been receiving special training in baseball, basketball and soccer to enable them to offer sports camps in the three communities. From 9:30 a.m. to noon these free workshops will welcome kids entering grades two through seven.
Each session will include instruction, drills, games, snacks and devotions featuring stories tied to the sports theme. Locations for the events are Las Animas Park (in Gilroy) and the facilities of the First Baptist Church at 305 West Main St. (in Morgan Hill).
On Thursday, June 19, there will be evening closing ceremonies at all three churches. These programs will feature the awarding of medals to participants and refreshments for their families.
Registration forms are available on the internet at www.ccbaministries.org or by calling 847-6000 or 779-4914.
Choir members will have busy afternoons following the sports camps doing other ministry activities. A number of community service projects have been planned, including painting a church in Castroville and doing minor construction or yard work for residents needing such assistance.
A special youth rally called “Youth Blast” will be held June 18 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Gilroy First Baptist Church, 8455 Wren Ave. All teens attending seventh grade and above are invited to attend, Voice of Praise will be one of the featured musical acts, along with a barbecue, games and a general carnival atmosphere.
Morgan Hill resident Syd Garrett attended the Lewisville church five years ago before moving to California and was one of those instrumental in arranging this year’s choir visit. He invites everyone to attend one of the local performances to hear their unique brand of contemporary Christian music: “This group is on fire for the Lord. Their joy is really visible when they’re singing.”
For more information about performance times, places and dates call one of the church phone numbers listed above.
