Last year, Andie Bell’s 8-year-old daughter called Families on Mission the “best family vacation ever” — and the family didn’t even leave their Alabama county. This year, 187 volunteers from 11 Shelby Baptist Association churches pitched in to help with Families on Mission, joining forces with 50 additional volunteers from out of state and from different parts of Alabama.
Together, the volunteers tackled eight different missions projects in Shelby County, including backyard Bible clubs, construction and yard work and a waiting room ministry at a local hospital.
“Most other ministry and missions projects are structured so the youth work on different projects from the adults, or they don’t include young children,” said Debbie Snyder, ministries development director for Shelby Association. “Families on Mission is neat because it gives families an opportunity to do missions together.”
Since the North American Mission Board (NAMB) introduced the Families on Mission concept in 2009, Shelby Association churches have been active supporters of the event. In fact, even though NAMB had to cut the program from its budget this year, Shelby Association churches coordinated their own Families on Mission.
“Families on Mission always involves lots of prep work, and it did this year in particular since we weren’t working through NAMB,” Snyder said. “But we love doing it because it’s great to see families serving Christ as well as helping us meet needs in our association.”
The Bell family, who are members of First Baptist Church, Pelham, have enjoyed being a part of Families on Mission.
“I think our kids love it so much because they’re so used to being served through VBS at our church and other church activities for their age groups, and so Families on Mission gives them a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ,” Bell said. “They get a chance to serve others for a change by leading music or helping to teach craft projects, and they’ve loved it every year. “
The five-day event begins on Saturday, when all volunteers arrive at the host church — this year the Shelby Association event was hosted by Meadow Brook Baptist, Birmingham — and have an orientation. On Sunday, they continue training and prep and also worship at the host church. Then, the volunteers spend Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at their work sites. The event culminates in a celebration on Wednesday night.
“When planning for the projects, we let our smaller churches in the Shelby Baptist Association let us know some of their needs, and then we can often turn those needs into Families on Mission projects,” Snyder said. “For example, we have a great partnership with First Baptist, Vincent, where we help them put on a children’s day camp.”
Darryl Wood, pastor of First, Vincent, said his church wouldn’t be able to host the camp without the help from Families on Mission volunteers. Plus his congregation enjoys the chance to work with the Families on Mission group throughout the week.
“Our folks have been pleased with it because of the bond they form with the other volunteers,” Wood said. “Our volunteers work alongside the Families on Mission volunteers, and work together to invest in the lives of children in our community. We get to do missions right here in our own backyard.”
For Snyder, it’s always amazing to see what families give up to be a part of the Families on Mission week. Aside from taking away from precious summertime, some families travel from places like Texas and Missouri to work with the other volunteers.
“It always humbles me, seeing the sacrifice families make to be here,” Snyder said. “It shows how much they believe in creating a heritage of missions and ministry for their children.”
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