West Rehoboth youth attend Vacation Bible School

In between the roars of lions in a reenactment of Daniel in the lions' den, kids in West Rehoboth are learning about faith.

The West Rehoboth Youth Program at the Westside New Beginnings Community Center is offering Vacation Bible School for the first time since the youth program began in 2002, co-founded by Brenda Milbourne and Diaz Bonville.

The program offers class one day per week over five weeks where kids can learn about faith, make crafts and enjoy some snacks.

The theme of the program is praise, using the Bible story of Daniel in the lion's den for one of the lessons, where excited and energized students reenacted Daniel being trapped in the den with the lions because he had praised God.

While most kids in the youth program and Vacation Bible School are from West Rehoboth, Bonville says anyone in the community was allowed to join the summer program.

“The most rewarding thing for me is to see these kids laugh and dance and have fun,” says Denise Snyder, an instructor at the center who recently retired from a 35-year teaching career.

Bonville, also a teacher, is the center's program director.

“These kids, they're just wonderful to be around,” he says. “I hear people say, 'Children are our future.' “No,” he says. “They're our present and our future.”

In addition to Snyder, Debbie O'Neal and her daughter-in-law Courtney O'Neal lead the Bible School program. Debbie is also a retired teacher, both she and Snyder retired together June 30.