Dream Center Peoria: Child & Youth Programs

2008-08-14T13:35:00.000-07:00

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)

Summer Blast!!

2008-06-23T10:08:00.000-07:00

Looking for something to do this summer? Come join Devo, Christina and the A4 kids down at Taft. Tuesday through Friday from 1-3PM, Dream Center Peoria is sponsoring Summer Blast. If you would like to share a craft or game with the kids, let us know!

I LOVE the SUNSHINE!!!

2008-04-30T12:36:00.000-07:00

We are OUTSIDE!!! It's awesome to be back outside!!

We launched the new season of Metro Kidz Peoria events on Saturday, April 19th. We have a new format, new games, new object lessons and awesome Bible stories!! AND... we're back outside!!

Unfortunately... that first launch date was very chili and very rainy. God knew we needed the rain and we had our Metro Kidz inside the community center at Taft. We still had a lot of fun and the kids liked the new format & object lessons!

The NEXT Saturday... April 26th - it was a windy day but it was BRIGHT and SUNSHINE abound and we had soooo many kids!!! We had more kids this one day than we had all winter long inside!! We played water games, messy games and again had a new object lesson and Bible story and it was amaaaazingly fun!!

This Saturday - we're praying for a warm, sunshiny (is that a word??) day again and we'll bring the fun!! Well... we will bring it whether it's sunny or rainy but it's just something about being outdoors in the fresh air after a long winter indoors!!!

Come on out to METRO KIDZ PEORIA on Saturdays from 11am til noon!! It doesn't matter if you live in Taft or not - come on out! You will love it! Your kids will love it! It will change your life forever!! It's changed mine!!

Goood Day SONshine!!! :)

devo

Metro Kidz - The Coolest Kidz in the World!

2008-04-01T10:27:00.000-07:00

Hey guys!
This is Devo! Welcome to my little place on the net! I'm new at the whole blogging thing - so I'm just gonna jump in feet first and give it my all and let you know what's up in the world of Metro Kidz!!

As many of you know - we've been doing a Metro Kidz in Taft Homes every Saturday mid-morning for almost a year!! We launched Metro Kidz last April outside on the back lawn in Taft Homes to a LOT of kids AND parents! It was the most beautiful day and we had so much warmth & sunshine and kids were flocking to the Metro Kidz area!! I think personally, it was the super cool loud music and the kids running up & down the streets with the blow horn saying "Come out to Metro Kidz!" Haha! Whatever it was -- we had a bunch of kids and it was a blast!!

We continued on all last summer and into the early fall outside in the big grassy area behind the community center and the program grew and grew and grew and we had so many kids give their hearts to the Lord!! I saw kids and young adult (student) helpers' lives change so much!! MY life changed tremendously last summer!! The kids in Taft have melted my heart and have become so special to me!

We had a couple awesome events involving Metro Kidz this summer and fall and some families came out for the first time and now their kids join us every Saturday! In July we had a cook out with burgers & steaks and every kind of yummy American food you can think of! In October we had a chili cookout with hay rack rides, carnival games and we gave away several bicycles to kids who come out to Metro Kidz!

The original plan was to end Metro Kidz in October and kick it back up the next Spring but I really did not want to let the kids go and not see them all winter long!! We decided to continue on with Metro Kidz and pull it inside the community Center during the cold, snowy winter months and have it be more of a discipleship, small groups study. Each week kids come from all over Taft to play games, sing songs and hear an awesome message about Christ given by The Grace Press Teens and A4 Teams.

It's come full circle and we're a couple weeks away from launching the Metro Kidz program BACK outside!! We have some awesome things in store for everyone who comes out this spring & summer!! We want to kick it up a notch, bigger, better, louder (wait, is that possible??? Haha!! You betcha!!)

If you'd like to volunteer and be a part of this life changing ministry - give me a call!! We will need a LOT of help when we take it back outside!! Do you like to act?? Sing?? Dance?? Or just hang with the coolest kids in the world?? Taft Homes on a Saturday morning is the place to be!!!