Pancakes, Car Lines, and Bag of Donuts
The pandemic stinks. When it began, we were all stuck in our houses and couldn't really go anywhere. We couldn't see our friends, couldn't go to fun places, and couldn't do any activities. The church figured out ways to be near each other and have fun, while being safe at the same time.
One of my favorite things they did was having curbside services. There were these big lines of cars and some tents at the front of the line. The first time they had this, I remember while we were sitting still in line, I saw my friends poking their heads out of their sunroofs. We actually had a small conversation after what seemed like forever.
And it didn't end there. They started getting creative. Mrs. Dolores, Mrs. Kelly, and Mrs. Leigh Anne wore silly costumes. They handed out the amazing pancake mix that Mrs. Sherrie uses on Shrove Tuesdays. They even brought an ice cream truck to the church parking lot and let people go one by one to get ice cream. One time, Mr. Bill (Hippel) handed out individual bags of donuts like before when he bought them for Sunday School. I remember meeting Mrs. Hannah for the first time during one of the curbside drives.
They also gave us little projects to do. One of those projects was going to a church member's house to write messages and draw pictures with chalk on their driveways for them to find later. It felt great. The Family Ministry did a similar thing by putting a smiley face sign in our front yard without us knowing, saying they missed us.
Another thing that I really liked was watching the videos Mrs. Dolores started making. My favorite parts of those videos were the people submitting their talents and her trying to recreate them. My brother played "Yankee Doodle" with his nose on the piano.
Although things are getting better now, I do remember and appreciate the stuff the church did for us and helped us do for other people during a rough time.
John Wade is a 6th grader at WoodCreek Junior High. He is the son of Kristy Wade-Carroll and Larry Carroll, twin of Christian Wade, and nephew of Angela Bell. He plays the trombone and Mrs. Carla teaches him the piano. He is a member of The 527 Tribe, handbells, and choir.
