Pie Wars

Last month, during our Vacation Bible School, the VBS director challenged the kids concerning how much money they could bring in for offering each night, over the course of the week.  All of the offering money was going to be donated to a food pantry here in our community.

If they made the initial goal, they would get a pizza/ice cream party.

It was obvious by the second night that the kids would make the monetary goal--$100--by the third night, so they needed a new incentive, so the kids would keep bringing in money.

So Hubby held a quick confab with Mr. D (who was the emcee every night for the full-group sessions) and PeeJay.  Mr. D agreed, if the kids reached $200, he'd take a cream pie in the face at the pizza party that would happen some time after VBS finished.  Hubby agreed to be the schmuck who would take a cream pie in the face if the kids raised $300.  PeeJay agreed to take one for the team if the kids brought in $400.  And then he went to Miz Sherry, the VBS director, and explained their tiered pie-getting system.  "Who do you think," PeeJay mused, "we could get to take a pie, to reward the kids for bringing in $500?"

Miz Sherry never thought they'd make it...so she agreed.

Little kids were coming to VBS with $10 and $20 bills.  The same kids were then waving them in Hubby's face and saying, "You're goin' down, Pastor D!  You're goin' down!!!"

One little boy, whose family doesn't regularly even attend church, went home that third night and asked his parents if there were any extra chores he could do around the house to earn some money.  His (probably skeptical) dad asked why.  And when his son explained, he was so moved that he called the church and informed us that, should we be short our $500 goal, they only had to call him and he would make up the difference.

Wow.

Turns out, we didn't need his help.  Although, it was really cool that he offered.

How much did the kids raise?

Had I actually gotten to the ATM on the last day of VBS and taken out $30 so each of the Fries could put in a $10, it would have been more.

As it was, these kids raised $825.

Let me repeat that.

EIGHT HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE DOLLARS!

Go, kids!

Tonight, screamingly happy kids piled into the church's fellowship hall to stuff their faces with pizza.  They were already hyped up by the time we went outside--thankfully, the rain had held off, and we were able to hold the creaming out on the lawn--and our four victims sat down in folding chairs.  The kids (one from each class) picked out their favorite victim, and everybody lined up.

Enjoy:

And that's how it's done.

I'm told that Hubby has already determined, based on the sheer number of "You're goin' down!" comments he got, that he's got to be the highest-dollar creamee next year.  Everybody was gunning for him.

Except maybe Small Fry (Large and Medium are apparently less concerned).  She still doesn't quite understand why her daddy had to get a cream pie in the face.