Milton
July 16 – 20, 2007
6:00 to 8:30 pm
Avalanche Ranch (by Group)
Leader: Karen Villanueva
Report from Cheri Corder
Of all the things to be excited about at Milton’s VBS, one of my favorite was the story of their leader. Karen Villanueva, at age twenty, has been leading out for five years,starting when she was just fifteen!! Her first year, her pastor was A J Grant and he was looking for ways to develop and empower young leaders. He asked Karen to “assist” him with VBS. “All he did,” she grinned, “was show up and give the talk each evening!” Karen’s been the head leader ever since.
The most satisfying thing for Karen happened two years ago. Another leader had stepped up to the plate that year, but backed out at the last minute, so rather than see VBS cancelled, Karen took it over again. That year, as a result of VBS, twofamilies came to Jesus and were baptized and are still active in the church!
This year, the staff had bright green shirts (I loved them!) and had nearly 50 kids attending, about two thirds of them from the community. Milton’s VBS has been held in the evenings (from 6:00 to 8:30) for over five years.
This is where I heard the little boy gasp, “You mean… God DIED???” He had been completely entranced by Vonnie Olesen’s portrayal of one of the women at the tomb of Jesus, visibly shaken to learn that He had died and then GREATLY relieved to learn that He had been resurrected!
