Treats, games, school supplies at Onset Foursquare Church’s Back to School Bash
Aug 29, 2021
Scarlett Butler, 4, hugs the backpack she won from the Back to School Bash raffle. Photos by: Madison Czopek
The Back to School Bash was held at Lopes Field on Sunday, Aug. 29.
Scarlett Butler first claims her new backpack.
Nerf war was one of the celebration’s most popular activities.
Phoenix, 3, reacts to a comment while getting his face painted.
Phoenix was patient as a volunteer worked on his face paint.
After the strangeness of the 2020-2021 school year, Onset Foursquare Church leaders decided that what school children in Wareham really needed was a bit of back-to-school fun to start the new school year off right.
“I used to be a school teacher, so knowing that the kids and the teachers had a really difficult covid year, we really wanted to celebrate coming back to school,” explained Shelly Johnson, who is a family life pastor at the church alongside her husband Pastor David.
Onset Foursquare Church — located at 301 Onset Ave. — hosted a Back to School Bash for children of all ages on Sunday, August 29, at Lopes Field from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The event was held in partnership with Word of Life, which facilitated some of the activities.
The event featured a variety of activities designed to get local kids active and eager to return to school. The Back to School Bash included obstacle courses, bubble soccer, archery tag, Nerf wars, bounce houses, raffles, popcorn and cotton candy and face painting — to name a few things.
Johnson said the church hoped the celebration might ease kids back into the school year.
“We wanted to encourage [kids] as they’re going back, because there could be some fears,” she said. “There’s also excitement. There’s that mix of emotions — that tension there. We just wanted to bring some peace and joy.”
In addition, Johnson said the church hoped to provide an “education element” with Animal Adventures — a Bolton-based exotic animal caretaking organization — giving a presentation and some physical activity in the form of the obstacle courses, bubble soccer and other activities.
The Back to School Bash was a big hit: Hundreds of kids attended over the course of the afternoon, volunteers said.
Caitlyn Butler, who attends the church, brought her daughter Scarlett to the celebration at Lopes Field.
“It’s incredible,” Butler said of the event. “It’s such a great opportunity for the community, especially during this tough time.”
Scarlett, 4, was one of several raffle winners and took home a brand new backpack.
“She was very excited,” Butler said. “She starts preschool, so she is quite excited now to have school supplies.”
