Preschool and Nursery Age Ministries "Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.'"    Matthew 19:14 First United Methodist Church offers a variety of ways to help children learn about God.  Parents know that their children are well cared for, safe, and being touched by God's love.  Kelly Mullins, our Children's Team Leader, will be pleased to talk with you about any aspect of our children's ministries and programs.  You may reach her at 335-5899, kelly.mullins@insightbb.com or call the church at 859-233-0545. Below are examples of how we strive to grow our little ones into to strong disciples through worship, learning, loving and serving. NOTE:  Please take a moment to scroll through the information, noting our children's ministry volunteer leaders, as well as our Safety and Security measures.  Our prayer is for your entire family to grow together as part of our church in an environment designed to make faithful followers of Jesus Christ.  Welcome to First Church!

KidsWorship KidsWorship is our cool, new Sunday morning worship experience for children ages 3 years through 2nd grade! Our KidsWorship curriculum intentionally connects with and compliments your child's Sunday School lesson for the same day, providing a more cohesive and expansive discipleship experience on Sunday mornings! During Worship Service, children are dismissed from the Sanctuary at a designated time and are accompanied to Room 208/a09 by our KidsWorship volunteers.  There we begin our worship experience with our fun, interactive large-group KidsWorship time, which includes a time of prayer, offering, cool worship music, drama and more! After large-group KidsWorship, the children divide into small groups for age-specific focus on the Bible story, application, and related activities. Small Groups: Ages 3 and 4 years:  Room 203/201 Pre-K 5's:  Room 204 1st and 2nd Grade:  Room 206 After the 8:30 a.m. worship service, volunteers escort the children to the Sunday School classes.  Following the 11:00 a.m. worship service, you may pick your child up from their small group.

Pre-School Sunday School Age 3:  Room 203 Age 4 - Pre-K:  Room 202 Your Preschoolers are invited to join us at 9:50 a.m. for Sunday School!  Our Preschool Sunday School teachers have years of experience.  Our classes use an age specific curriculum that incorporates a three-year scope and sequence to ensure that we are beginning to lay a strong biblical foundation of faith.  The children learn about god's love through Bible stories, crafts, music, games, and activities. Nursery Sunday School Children in the "Two's" room participate in an enriching, age appropriate Sunday School lesson during the Sunday school hour, as well as their own KidsWorship activities during both worship services. Nursery Age Groups Infants:  Room 102 (Babies and crawlers) Toddlers:  Room 102 (confident walkers who are not yet potty trained) Twos:  Room 101 (Two-year-olds who are potty training; all three-year-olds may promote to the Preschool Room on Promotion Sunday in August.) Nursery Hours:  Sundays, 8:00 a.m. - Noon; Wednesday nights during regular programming, and other church meetings and activities with advanced scheduling.

Cherub Choir Wednesday nights, 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. Rooms 204 and 207 The Cherub Choir gives children ages 3 - Pre-K a musical experience in a Christian atmosphere.  The children learn melodies, rhythms, songs, musical instruments and crafts.  The choir meets during the school year, and serves by singing in several worship services and musical programs throughout the year. For video click here [Video]

Vacation Bible School Ages 3 years through 5th grade Evenings, typically in early June, Sunday through Thursday VBS is always an incredible week in the lives of our children and in the life of our church!  We have a wonderful time learning about god and His amazing love for us--through Bible study, music, drama, missions, games, and crafts.  We also eat yummy snacks, spend time with friends, make new friends, and learn from great youth and adult role models!

Baptism "...We vow to surround our children with a community of love and forgiveness, that they may be true disciples who walk in the way that leads to life." -- First Church Baptismal Covenant For information about infant Baptism, please contact Ministry Assistant to Rev. Brunstetter, Norma Smither, at 233-0545.

God’s Children in Worship Children of all ages are welcomed and encouraged to be full participants in worship, and to receive Communion when it is served. Worship involves the senses as well as intellect. Each week we offer children’s bulletins based on the lectionary reading. These are designed with children and their adult helpers in mind. Jesus said, "Let the children come unto me." Our desire is to make that happen.

Acolyte Program Children in grades four and five have the privilege of serving as acolytes for our worship services. The word acolyte means one who serves the ministers. After being trained in September, children serve by lighting and extinguishing the candles, pouring water into the baptismal font, and distributing and collecting the offering plates from the ushers. Acolytes wear "albs," traditional robes worn by those who serve in the church.

The Safety and Security of Our Children We follow a strict registration, child identification, and sign-out system in all of our nursery rooms.  This system will be explained to you when you register your child for our nursery.  For the sake of all of the children, we ask that you follow these procedures each time hour child is entrusted to us. Background Checks So that we may continue to provide quality programs in a safe environment we ask that all volunteers undergo initial background checks and training.  We also provide periodic, ministry specific volunteer training. Illness Policy Please do not leave your child in our care if he/she has had any of the following in the past 24 hours: Fever, Vomiting, Diarrhea, Runny nose that is not clear, Unidentified or contagious rash.

Volunteer Children's Ministry Leaders Kelly Mullins, Children's Leadership Team Leader 335-5899, kelly.mullins@insightbb.com Kristin Fisher, Children's Leadership Team Interim Co-Chair 523-0191, mkkjfisher@yahoo.com Kathryn Mullins, KidsWorship Coordinator 576-9133, kmullins@lexmark.com Karen Olive, Children's Sunday School Coordinator 219-1534, lonluk04@aol.com Katie Whitworth, Children's Music Ministry Coordinator 273-3985, albin.whitworth@insightbb.com Lee Ellen Martin, Children's Seasonal Events Coordinator 277-1121, leeellen@insightbb.com Cathy Saunooke, Newborn Ministry Coordinator 255-7083, catcrank@hotmail.com Staff: Jean Wilson, Nursery Coordinator, 233-0545 Norma Smither, Ministry Assistant to the Senior Pastor 233-0545, norma@1stumc.org