Canterbury Kids Coach 2017

The Kids Coach ministry runs out of a bus in the Hoon Hay area every week of the school term.  The ministry is under the umbrella of the Anglican Church Army, and being a faith mission, relies on supporters for the funding needed as well as accessing funding from the local Community Board. Louise Weller heads up the team of seven. The bus goes to different streets 3 days of the week and runs a programme for 5 - 12 year olds.  On Tuesdays there are 14 kids, every kid in that street, and 5 - 6 kids on Thursdays and Fridays. A typical afternoon consists of afternoon tea, puppetry, story-telling, games, and craft around the theme. This week’s theme was looking at how God can turn difficult situations into good, based on the life of Moses.  The programme isn’t just about reaching the kids, but about supporting the families in the street.  They build relationships with the families.  The bus draws the children in and that way the team get to know the families in the street.  A lot of their themes are about what it is to be part of community; looking after ourselves, looking after others, looking after property, what it means to be a good citizen. A Bible story is used to teach each theme and the games and crafts are based on the Bible story. There has been a real openness from the locals. Sometimes people drop off food or clothing that the team can then pass on to families in need.

When the bus goes to a new street, they visit every family in the street and let them know that they’re running a free programme for the children and helping build community.  As families invite the team into their homes, they experience the love of God and hear about Christianity.  Over the 14 years in ministry about 400 children have been part of the programme and approximately 200 people, including parents, have become Christians. Louise also runs a preschool music programme for the families on a Wednesday morning, a Saturday night Bible study group, and a Bible study group for teenagers on Sunday nights.  She attends the Rowley monthly prayer meeting with other ministries in the area.

Last week Louise and her husband Bernard received a Community Services Award for the work they have done in Rowley.  While they love the locals, they are getting on in age so are looking for a keen person who has a Christian passion for the children of Hoon Hay, to join the team and take responsibility for the programme.