This post is an update on the FUMC Children’s Ministry activities during the 2023-2024 school year, specifically our support for the Klondike Kids Club. Provided by Pastor Denny Frank, Director of the Klondike Kids Club.
So much has happened since 2017 when Klondike Kids Club was a vision for the year ahead. Point West Mobile Home Community offered the use of their community room at no cost. This allows KKC to meet Monday through Thursday daily for a two-hour after-school program for children living at Point West. Snacks, tutoring in reading and math, field trips, and other enrichment activities are provided free of charge. By using facilities where the children and families live, transportation for children is no longer a problem. Children come directly to Kids Club from their school bus.
Klondike Kids Club spring 2024 field trip to the Lilly Nature Center, located at the Celery Bog Nature Preserve.
Individual donations, grants from the FUMC Foundation, Indiana UMC Commission on Diversity, Missions and Justice, McCaw Foundation, Noontime Kiwanis Club, and the Greater Lafayette Community Foundation, have made Klondike Kids Club possible at no cost to parents. This funding has enabled the purchase of iPads and Chromebooks for the children to use for homework.
Students grades 4-5 working with an aide. Chromebooks are indispensable for homework. Completed work goes directly to teachers via a designated router.
In addition, with our own router, homework is sent directly to the individual teachers. Funding also supports weekly Buddy Bags for each child to take home to supplement their families’ food budget.
Klondike Kids Club Family Cookout in May 2024
Kids Club funding allows the ministry to hire a supervisor and two aides to work with the children and support volunteers. However, volunteers are the backbone of the Kids Club. Many of our children have math and reading skills that are below grade level through no fault of their own. Some are neurologically divergent, while others speak only Spanish upon entering school. Most do not have technology or internet in their homes, and the COVID-19 shutdown took a large toll on not only social skills but academic progress. These are children who need individual attention not available in their classroom. Volunteers make the difference and allow children to build one-on-one relationships with their tutors as their academic skills improve.
Special guest Mr. Rich brought gravel from the Peace River in Florida. In the gravel, prehistoric shark teeth have been deposited over the millennia. As students learned about shark and their teeth, they were able to search, find, and identify the teeth for themselves.
Klondike Kids Club meets Monday through Thursday from 4:30 to 6:00. It follows the Tippecanoe School Corporation calendar. On Monday’s and Wednesday’s, grades 4-5 meet, and on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s, grades K-3 meet. If school is canceled, so is Kids Club. Volunteers aged 16 years and over are welcome, as are adults of any age. A background check is provided at no cost to volunteers. What are the qualifications for a volunteer? An open heart, a willingness to spread kindness, the ability to read, and a basic knowledge of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Without volunteers, there is no Klondike Kids Club.
If you have questions or wish to volunteer, please contact Pastor/Director Denny Frank at frankdenise41@gmail.com or 765-714-1149.
Pastor Denny Frank
Director of Klondike Kids Club
0 Comments