Divine inspiration: A mission trip inspired Club 218

Since mid-June, Faith on Grove in Hutchinson has been the hub for Club 218, a day camp for children ages 4 to 10.
From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 31 children are enrolled in the first-year program. They spend their morning rotating between four areas: music, crafts, games and stories.

Lunch is provided at noon and ranges from such kid-pleasing dishes as spaghetti and tacos to homemade macaroni and cheese, plus fresh fruit, milk and bread. Afterward, it’s quiet time to relax and watch a movie such as “VeggieTales.”

The last activity of the day is big group games. It’s all tied together with a weekly theme such as western rodeo, American idol or the Olympics.

The eight-week program was the brain child of soon-to-be Hutchinson High School senior Kirsten Grorud. Helping her with Club 218 is a volunteer staff of 20 and a group of adult volunteers.

“It’s so cool to see the intergenerational connection between our adult volunteers and the children,” Grorud said.

To read the entire story, see the print edition of the Hutchinson Leader for Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2008.

(Kay Johnson is a staff writer at the Hutchinson Leader. She can be reached at johnson@hutchinsonleader.com).