Dear Families,
I hope everyone is doing well! It really feels like spring today and we have almost made it through Lent!
CALLING ALL 5th GRADERS:
- Mark your calendars for our5th Grade Celebration Breakfast in the Solarium on May 1st at 10am and make plans to join us!
- Register now for Great Wolf Lodge on August 8-9!! This is a special overnight trip that is only for rising 6th graders as they make the transition to FPC youth! You can sign up HERE. (Donna Chase will be chaperoning the trip. Chaperones may also include a youth intern and/or me, depending on numbers & needs)
LAST CALL FOR PASSPORT CAMP!!!
Passport is a 4-day, 3-night camp for current 3rd-6th graders. We will be attending at Greensboro College July 11-14. Cost is $305 per child. If your child would like to join us, please let me know by the end of this week. Payment in full will be due by April 15.
Registration continues for VBS and Summer KDC!! Registration is now open to the community, so invite your friends!!
- VBS registration (for ages 3-rising second grade)
- KDC registration (for rising 3rd-5th graders)
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This Sunday
This Sunday is Palm Sunday!!
We’ll have a RESURRECTION EGG HUNT at 10am during the Sunday school hour! Meet on the Elm Street Prayground (where the labyrinth is) at 10 am. We’ll also have some doughnuts & juice. Children do not need baskets – we will provide bags for the eggs.
Children are invited to join the PALM PROCESSIONAL for either Rejoice or Sanctuary service. Children in second grade and under should be accompanied by an adult. Children in 3rd grade and up may process by themselves, but be sure they know where parents are sitting so they can find you after they process!
- For Rejoice processional – meet in the hallway behind the Life Center at 8:55am.
- For the Sanctuary processional – meet in the Welcome Center at 10:50am.
- If your children are in choir, please follow the instructions sent by John & Anne!
**ALSO THIS SUNDAY, join us at 2pm in the Life Center to count and wrap diapers for the Greater Triad Diaper Bank! We have about 35 boxes of diapers that were donated by a local fraternity alumni chapter and they need to be sorted and wrapped! Feel free to bring some additional diaper donations as well!
Next Sunday, April 17, is EASTER! Join us on the Elm Street Playground at 10am for bells, bubbles, & parachute games! Remember to bring your flowers for the cross, too! There will be two identical worship services in the sanctuary, one at 9am and one at 11am.
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Coming Up
- April 24 – No Sunday School for children & youth
- May 1 – 5th grade Celebration Breakfast – 10am
- May 15 – Children’s musical and preschool bibles in worship! (If you have a “rising” three year old, you will be receiving an email from me about the bible presentation.)
Sunday school in May will be simple family fellowship on the playground! On May 1, 15, & 22 parents of preschoolers and elementary children are invited to come together with the children on the Elm. Street Prayground for some casual conversation, food, and fun.
Mark your calendars for Neil’s Meals on May 14 from 9:30-11:30 in the Life Center! We’ll package thousands of meals and gather with Neil Dunnavant for a final celebration of his ministry.
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LENT AT HOME
During Lent, I’ll be adding this section to the E-News to share some easy ways you can experience Lent at home with your family.
- We have talked about giving and I hope you are working on your Favorite Things Boxes! See attachment. If you have been filling your box, being it in this Sunday or next!
- I shared some prayer practices to consider trying with your family. If you missed it, you can read those HERE.
- I offered some suggestions age appropriate ways to approach fasting with kids. You can review that HERE.
- I shared some ways to make or look for crosses. Lent is a journey toward the cross and making or finding crosses is a tangible way children can participate. You can see them all by clicking HERE.
- Last week, I shared a few of may favorite Easter Children’s books. You can see the list HERE.
In case you are unable to attend the resurrection egg hunt this Sunday (or if you want to duplicate it at home!), I have attached instructions for making your own resurrection eggs at home. This is a great way to engage children in the Easter story.
Next week is Holy Week. You are invited to join us for services on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. All services begin at 7:30pm. These services will all be livestreamed as well. If you are unable to attend, but would like to observe these special days at home, below are links to some handouts for each day. The handouts are from buildfaith.org, from the Virginia Theological Seminary.
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Other Notes and Info
The children’s committee will soon begin working on plans for next year! 
If you would be interested in serving on the committee, please let me know or reach out to our incoming committee chair, Catherine Freeze. We would be happy to share more information with you.
Also, I know this year has still been Covid weird, but if you have feedback on the programs and activities we have offered (or NOT offered), ideas you would like to suggest, or any type of constructive feedback, please feel free to reach out and share your thoughts! The past 2-3 years have changed a lot about the way we approach children’s ministry (as well as many other things!) and our church is in a time of transition. The children’s formation committee will be meeting in early May to dig in a little by reviewing our mission statement, evaluating where we have been, and discerning where we are headed. We would welcome your input.
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Please be in touch if you have any questions or concerns!
Blessings,
Lisa Witherspoon
Director of Children’s Ministry
First Presbyterian Church, Greensboro, NC
(336) 478-4726
