Life has come full circle. As a little girl I went to Awana clubs faithfully – you could say I was the poster child. My church offered the program through sixth grade and I went every week. I earned my Sparky, Excellence and Timothy awards (which are now probably holding up cobwebs in my dad’s basement). In seventh grade, I became a Leader-in-Training (LIT). 
Club was life to me. I can even remember a few days when I was really sick. I still put on my uniform, grabbed my book and headed off to club. Other kids had sports or academic clubs, but I had Awana.
After I graduated from Bible college, I had a couple jobs until I landed one at none other than Awana headquarters! A few weeks into my job it was time to decorate my cubicle; put a little personality into my personal space. So, where do you think the poster child for Awana went to decorate her office? You guessed it – Dad’s basement. After pulling out a box with various awards from Awana, I unearthed not a shiny trophy, but a neon pink, heart-stickered Grand Prix car. “This must go in my office!”
 I remember cutting the car with my dad and brother and sanding it until my fingers turned translucent. Then my mom and I went to get paint, and I couldn’t resist the girly pink. To top it off, I found girl’s pink stick-on nail stickers and used them as headlights. After the paint dried, mom asked, “What number do you want to put on the car honey?” I thought long and hard but came up with 19 because that was the basketball number of a certain boy I liked. I’m glad I can laugh about it now!
That car was a tangible way to bring all the fun memories of club to mind.
Just as an encouragement near the end of the year – you may not think your work means that much to your kids. But it does. I can’t remember what each night of club was like or what candy I received for winning games. I can’t really remember all the names of my leaders or how many times the green team won. But, what I do remember is far richer. I remember how much I felt loved at club. I can remember wanting to go and learn more about this Jesus my leaders seemed to be so in love with. So from a former kid in Awana to the current leaders out there, I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel … (Philippians 1:3-5).
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Speaking of the year being off to a quick start, have you noticed how the stores rush through all the holidays? The day after Easter they had already consolidated all the leftover chocolates to one small clearance shelf near the front of the store. The fourth of July decorations will be out by the end of April. Commercialism leaves no room for the slow-moving 
It’s finally warming up a bit at our Illinois headquarters, and we are excited that summer is on its way! That could be a scary thing for leaders as you are still focusing on finishing up school-year activities. We want to take some of the stress for summer planning off your shoulders.
