news-record.com

HIGH POINT – Children and parents react with a lot of “wow” in the new children’s facilities at Green Street Baptist Church, Phillips Avenue at Rotary Drive, High Point.

Kid World and UpStreet are the themed areas for babies through sixth graders. A lot of eye-catching things – places named after Bible characters and others with the décor of “Land, Air and Sea” – greet the children Sunday mornings.

A community open house will be held for Kid World and UpStreet from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday. Greensboro’s WCOG (1320 AM), Radio Disney, will broadcast from the church, providing music and tons of prizes. The Jump of Boone, a company that deals in amusement toys, will provide five giant, inflatable bounce toys and a rock-climbing wall.

Renovations represent a renewed focus for the church to reach out and connect with Triad families, said Senior Pastor Darryl Craft.

“We are committed to family ministry at our church,” Craft said.

“Children of all ages are a priority, and this project enables us to expand and intensify our efforts to minister to them in a creative learning environment where they can grow and mature,” he said.

The “Land, Sea and Air” theme is for preschoolers in Kid World. Along UpStreet, for children in grades one through six, signs include Jacob’s Ice Cream, Samson’s Subs, Connect Coffee House, Luke’s Pharmacy, Peter’s Bait and Tackle and Jonah’s Surf Shack.

UpStreet Club House is a large worship theater, with state-of the-art video, sound and lighting technology.

“Both Kid World and UpStreet are a partership with the parents of the children in these ministries,” said the Rev. Eric Davis, connection pastor for discipleship and education.

“We truly believe that what happens at home is more important than what happens at church,” Davis said. “We simply want to partner with parents and equip them and their kids by sharing the same truths.”

Davis said that most of the church’s meeting rooms for small groups have been renovated, including those for adults.

The same company that did the artistry for the Green Street project, Iron Spirits of Cummings, Ga., has done similar work at one other church in the state, a community church in Wilmington, said Eric Smith, owner of the company.

Smith and his workers provided the artistry to develop the themes for the departments, but church volunteers did much of the painting and other chores. “This offers an opportunity to bring people together for fellowship and helps lower costs of the overall project,” Smith said.

Renovations throughout the church are being handled by Roswell Construction of High Point, Landmark Builders of Winston-Salem, CCL Associates of Alpharetta, Ga., and ADW of Charlotte.

Landmark is finishing remaining area for 2- and 3-year-olds in Kid World. Iron Spirits will develop the “Air” theme for that section, expected to be completed by mid-May, Davis said.

Both Kid World and UpStreet have the latest in computer check-in and check-out security measures. “We are taking every measure we can to make sure our children are safe when parents entrust them to us,” Davis said.

-- Green Street Baptist Church