When the pandemic hit the U.S. last year, one of the major events we had been working toward all year had to be cancelled: the 2020 Lads to Leaders convention. Like everything else last year, it was quite the disappointment for the kids and adults who had worked tirelessly and looked forward to a great convention. It made this year's convention that much sweeter--although we had to follow some very strict protocols, and many things were not the same as in the past, we were so thankful to be able to participate in the 2021 L2L convention. This year's theme was "Better Than" from Hebrews, although kids were able to use last year's "Lost" theme from Luke in specific events such as speech and puppets.
Every year, our family splurges on a couple of nights staying in the Gaylord hotel for the convenience and full experience of being right there in the midst of everything for the convention weekend. In fact, L2L works out a good price with the Gaylord, so we're able to stay for a relatively low cost. This year, considering all the things we've not been able to do and knowing we would be pretty busy and involved starting first thing Friday morning, we decided to go a day earlier so that we could really enjoy an evening with the kids in such a beautiful resort!
One special treat was eating at Zeppole, a yummy Italian restaurant that Noah declared to be "fancier than Olive Garden."
After dinner, we strolled around a little, just taking in the sights.
Audrey was DYING to swim, so she changed and we went out to the heated pool. Noah was so stuffed from his lasagna that he relaxed in the hotel room while Chris made a Target run for some soft drinks and treats for the weekend.
Friday, after several coordinator meetings and check-ins, the kids kicked off their weekend with Oral Bible Reading.
This event is not a competitive event, but the kids are given evaluation forms with feedback from the three "judges." I think it's a really valuable experience, and the added bonus this year was the extra practice reading and projecting with a face mask--a controversial requirement for all participants.
Noah received high marks for his final year of eligibility for Oral Bible Reading!
I was so proud of Audrey for her awesome job reading clearly and loudly, even through the mask.
Audrey also received top marks!
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| Audrey and her friend Corinne |
We had some downtime that afternoon, so I took Audrey and Corinne for a walk around the hotel to pose for silly photos and look at different points of interest.
Meanwhile, a lot of the youth group started a rowdy game of soccer with a plush soccer ball.
One thing we started doing years ago is fundraising in order to pay for catering the meals for our congregation's participants. This year we had SO MUCH FOOD! It's a blessing to be able to eat right there, since the restaurants are all expensive and busy at mealtimes.
After dinner it was time for our Bible Bowl teams to compete! I worked with these kiddos starting virtually over the summer. They learned more about the book of Hebrews than most adults know.
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| Bible Bowl 2021 teams |
Only four students are on a team, and since we had nine, Audrey was the alternate. However, the Bible Bowl coordinator was so kind to allow Audrey to still participate by herself, and I just judged her answers for fun. He then gave her a giant Easter basket filled with goodies, and told me he was working on a way to recognize her on stage the next night.
On Saturday, we had an EARLY start with girls' Songs of Praise (basically, song leading) at 8:00 a.m.!
Audrey's chosen song was "Blue Skies and Rainbows" and she learned how to conduct a 4/4 time signature pattern. She was fantastic in practice! Unfortunately, in the room she was leading and the audience was dragging the tempo pretty drastically. She didn't adjust enough so her timing was off. It was really frustrating because the audience is instructed to follow the song leader since that is how they are judged. Additionally, putting a mask over her mouth meant that people who typically follow by watching the song leader's mouth were lost--and I think this affected all of the girls. Still, I am unbelievably proud of Audrey's confidence and poise. She made HUGE improvements and overcame a lot of timidity this year!
Noah's song leading event followed the girls' Songs of Praise. He was in a friendly competition against six other sixth grade boys. He had also been working hard and chosen a song with a 3/4 time signature, which posed an extra challenge. I worked with him to add two hands for portions of the song, and he nailed it! He was loud, confident, and stayed on pitch and on tempo. He was pretty disappointed when they drew numbers, because he drew the first position and was concerned that could hurt him as far as the judging would go. Still, we were extremely proud of him and his leadership!
Later that afternoon, Noah participated in the Boys' Speech Event. This was a speech I wrote last year for the 2020 convention, and he had most of it ready to go before that was cancelled. We dusted it off this year and he buckled down, memorizing the entire thing (over six minutes until we cut it down!) and working on his pacing, projection, and hand gestures. He was so nervous to give his speech but you would never have guessed. This kid is going places!
After dinner Saturday, it was time fo the awards ceremony! But first, some obligatory group photos of our congregation representing at 2021 L2L.
The Awards Ceremony begins with a Parade of Leaders, where two participants from each congregation carry the banner across the stage as that congregation is announced.
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| We chose two juniors, A.J. and Chris, to represent our congregation. |
The Awards Ceremony is a great time to celebrate all our kids and the hard work they put in. Not only that, but it is inspiring for our kids to see the achievements of kids from other congregations, and makes them want to try a new event or two next year! Our church had lots of winners in categories such as art, scrapbook, song leading and songs of praise, speech, Bartimaeus, and many more.
Noah and Audrey did not place in the top three in their song leading events, surprisingly (to me). I think Noah's misfortune of going first probably affected him, and I think Audrey could have been third place but you never know what the judges are seeing or how inexperienced they might be.
However, Noah DID receive a medal in speech!
Congratulations to my first place speaker! Next year, he will compete in the "Winners' Circle" with 7th-9th grade past winners. Talk about the next level!
Part of the Bible Bowl event is a written multiple-choice test (40 questions) the kids take in February and submit for grading. They are competing individually against other kids from their grade level. Noah received recognition for being a top scorer on the Bible Bowl Test!
Audrey also was called on stage in recognition of being a 3rd/4th grade "team" since there were only two other teams--so she received medals for Bible Bowl, too!
Noah, Audrey and Shelby worked on a Group Banner together and won first prize for that!
Audrey won second place in her age division for her painting, "Jesus is Better than the Angels"
Our 11th grade team also won first place!
Of course, the kids really love the recognition and awards they receive at the Grand Awards Ceremony.
However, they don't always win or even place, but we encourage them that the awards are secondary to the experience and all they gain through the process. Not only is my heart full to see them leading songs, giving speeches, learning the book of Hebrews, performing puppet skits, and more, but I am so proud to see how they handle disappointment at not "winning" against their peers. We really emphasize the process and their achievements before we even get to the awards ceremony, and those prizes are just the icing on the cake. We love Lads to Leaders and are already looking forward to next year's convention and all the preparation and education that will lead up to it!
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