Can you believe it? Summer is almost over and school is going to start in about 2 weeks!!

What's been happening in the last month or so, you ask?? WELL... let me tell you, it's been very energetic and exciting around here!!! Waaaaay back June 10th we started a summer program - a day camp - kinda thing called DCP Summer Blast. From June 10th thru July 17th, every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we were down in Taft Homes "hanging out" with the kids. We did art projects together, played board games, we painted, learned how to draw, watched educational videos, learned how to (correctly) type with awesome computer keyboarding "skillz n drillz" AND (get this!! It's amazing) we learned math skills by using very cool animated computer games!! Special shout out to Doug from the Peoria Art Guild for coming out and teaching the kids some sweeeet art skills and also to Mike for coming out and teaching his outta sight computer, keyboarding and math skills!!! You two fellas are a blessing for sure!!

Our Summer Blast program came to an end (it was an awesome success with sometimes 20+ kids, ages 4 thru 12 in attendance!!) and then we kicked it into high gear to get last minute things ready for Mission Peoria. Dream Center Peoria was taken over by 160 youth from all over Illinois and among the many, many cool things they did to serve the Peoria area... was to run 7 baselines (at 6 different sites) all over Peoria!!! The baselines were fast paced, energetic programs where the Mission Peoria teens played games, sang songs, acted out skits, gave away candy, facing painted and presented a gospel message to kids (ages 4 thru 12) ALL over Peoria. (kinda like what we do for Metro Kidz down at Taft Homes!!) Talk about an impact on the lives of kids in Peoria! I think the Mission Peoria teens were blessed as much by the little kids they witnessed to and served as the little kids were to have the "big guys" come out and hang with 'em!!!

We concluded the week long Mission Peoria with BACKPACK Peoria on August 2nd. Dream Center Peoria had roughly 4,000 people come thru it's doors and we gave away 2,500 backpacks filled with school supplies to area kids!! We also had an EXPO that day with various businesses and organizations in attendance to let the community know of their services etc. It was awesome!! Whew!! What a week!!

Soooo... what's next?? We have some very cool ideas and dreams and plans scooting around in our heads!! Wouldn't it be COOL if we had a Metro Kidz site launched at every baseline thruout Peoria where the Mission Peoria teens served??? THAT would ROCK!! That may be a ways off... but we're in the works of getting a Metro Kidz site launched at Glen Oak in the very near future. Will you pray for us?? Not only will we need a lot more volunteers for Metro Kidz, we'll be doubling our expenses too. Please pray and ask God what HE wants you to do to get involved??? We need you and would LOVE to have you on board!!

So... as the temperatures start to lower and the dog days of summer come to a close... pray for all the Metro Kidz who are heading back to school!!! Pray for the volunteers and everyone involved with Metro Kidz and for the record... why don't you come on out on a Saturday and check it out?!?! It'll change your life!! I promise!!

Better go... this blog is starting to take up it's own ZIP code!!

Love you guys!!
Devo
(Metro Kidz Coordinator & Athletics Director)