Susan with her husband John, and their children Elizabeth (12) and Alliette (10)

Update October 3, 2025
 
Welcome!  We are excited for Second Baptist Church's 21st year of Awana and are making changes to reflect current levels of volunteers and registered children. Whether you are an Awana veteran or new to our ministry, I think you will find all the information below helpful. As always, please reach out to me if you have any concerns or other questions.

Uniforms
Uniforms are required this year. Each night your child(ren) remember to wear their uniform, they earn points (which are used as dollars to spend on fun items during our Store nights - see Points paragraph below for more info). Uniforms can be purchased on the first day of Awana, where we will have uniforms and books available for purchase.  Uniforms prices are as follows: Cubbies Vest: $13, Sparks Vest: $14, T&T shirts: $16

Books

All clubs have a book that needs to be purchased this year.  Cubbies handbooks are $13, Sparks books are $13, and T&T books are $13 and all will be available for purchase the first few club nights.  In addition, we ask all children to bring their Bibles each club night (it also helps them earn points). If they don’t have one, we have age-appropriate Bibles for purchase.

Dues
Dues are $.50 per clubber per night. The clubber can bring their dues in each night or bring $14.00 for the entire year (cash or you can write a check for $14.00 made out to Second Baptist Church with “Awana” in the Memo).  For each night your clubber remembers their dues, they earn points for Store. Dues are used to help offset the cost of awards and parties and other fun things we do.  

Text alerts
If you signed up for text alerts, I will add you to a group text. I try to use this option sparingly and only once a week. I will use it for weekly reminders that we have Awana club or don’t have club and anything special going on for the night (like having club in pajamas, food drive night, wacky hair day, a party, etc). I will also use it for weather cancellations. I only ask that if you have a question or comment, please send me a separate text so everyone’s phone is not buzzing for multiple texts they may not need.

Dropoff/Pickup times and location
Dropoff is at the gym entrance between 5:45-6:00pm. The gym entrance is the door on the right if you are in the parking lot looking at the building with rte 202 to your left. When you enter the building, please check your child(ren) in (at the table set up right when you walk in) so we can ensure accountability in the event of an emergency and it is also how we keep track of points.  Club starts promptly at 6pm in the gym with the opening ceremony, which includes group prayer and the Birthday Dice Roll. From 6:10pm - 7:20pm, children are with their respective clubs and will have their lesson, gym/game time, a snack and an activity. At 7:20pm, we meet back in the gym (sometimes the sanctuary) for the closing ceremony, which includes awards, announcements, and group prayer. You are welcome to join us for the opening and closing ceremonies. You are also welcome to stay during club time or just drop your child off at the check-in table.  Please ensure you check out your child(ren) so we can ensure they are going home with an authorized person (these people are the ones listed as the guardians in the registration form).  If a person other than one listed on the registration form is picking up, please let us know so we can release them without delay.  This is for the safety of all children.

Calendar
The calendar is up on the website. There are a few changes from last year, so please check the calendar often to see what we have going on. Now I am a mom of several clubbers myself, so I know how busy life can get and how easy it is to forget to check a calendar to see what I need to do to have my child enjoy their night at Awana. Not to worry!  This is exactly why I offer the group text - so you get a timely notification of what is going on in case you forget to check the calendar.

Points System
Twice a year, we have “Store” night, which is when our clubbers can use their points like money to purchase items set out in our Store. There are many opportunities for clubbers to earn points. See the handbook for a complete list, but just a few include: 50 points (for each category) if they attend club, wear their uniform, bring their Bible, pay their dues, and bring an item in for the food drive. For example, in one night, if they attend (50pts), bring dues (automatic every night if they have already paid for the year)(50pts), wear their uniform (50pts), bring their Bible (50pts), and bring an item for the food pantry (50pts), they can earn a total of 250 points just for that one night.

Discipline
With more clubbers in attendance this year and our volunteer staff being limited, our discipline policy will be very important to ensure that each clubber has the opportunity to learn without extensive disruption. Please review this policy in the Handbook, which will tell you that the third time we have to talk to your child about his/her disruptive behavior, we will need to have a conversation before the child can return to club. If you know that your child may have difficulty paying attention and needs extra attention to avoid being disruptive, please consider staying with that child throughout the night to help them. We want our time together to be productive and fun for everyone.

Allergies/medical concerns/behavioral concerns

If your child has allergies, please let me know how you want us to handle these allergies.  During each club night, the snack cart rolls around with a variety of snacks, many of which may contain the allergies/intolerances your child has.  While we strive to give each child the exact medical care or dietary needs they require, it is just impossible given our limited volunteer force.  Please reach out to me to let me know how you would like us to proceed.  If your child has no allergies but has behavioral concerns, please reach out to me to discuss the concerns and how we may proceed.  Again, our volunteer force is extremely limited this year.  We will do our very best but need your help advocating for your child with their individual and specific needs.

Webpage
The webpage is the most up-to-date place to find information. You can review the Parent Handbook, see the Calendar, view our photo gallery, and read my current notes/updates. Just go to www.sbcsouthhadley.com and click on Awana at the top.

Photos/Videos
If you signed the photo/video release in the registration, you gave me permission to use your child's photo for various uses.  Please know that I only do 2 things with these pictures - I upload them to the Awana Webpage gallery for you to enjoy, and I use them in the end-of-year video (this is a video I create so you can see all the fun things the kids did all club year).  I do not post Awana pictures to FaceBook or YouTube or anywhere else.  As a mother of two clubbers, I understand how important it is to protect our children.  If you did not sign the release but would like to give me permission, please let me know via email.

Puggles
Due to a shortage in our volunteer force, we are unable to offer a Puggles program (ages 2 - 3.5).  We are very sorry and hope to find a volunteer in the near future.

That is all I have for now - please contact me if you have any questions at any time! Thanks so much!  I look forward to another great year!

Many Blessings,

Ashley Rhodes
Awana email: awana@sbcsouthhadley.com