Take your publicity to where the people are! Here are three ideas for using Big Fish Bay resources to promote your VBS in your community.
Big Fish Bay Display
Set up a Big Fish Bay! Hooked on God’s Mercy display at your church or in another public place. Decorate with the theme poster and decorations (for ideas, see the Decorating CD in the Director Resources CD Set or the Director Guide). The only limit is your imagination! Display the Big Fish Bay backpack, buttons, logo stickers, and sample crafts. Put out invitation flyers, postcards, and doorknob hangers for people in your church to take for themselves or to hand out to friends and neighbors in the community.
“Color-Me” Murals
To make the murals, copy Big Fish Bay clip art from the Decorating CD in the Director Resources CD Set onto transparencies. Project the art you want to use onto a sheet of paper, and trace. Even better, if possible, have several murals: one at church and others at various indoor locations in your community. Leave invitation flyers where they can be seen and picked up by parents and older children.
Hang each mural where children can start coloring it. Invite younger children to add bird and fish, otters, or seal stickers, as well as Nautical Shape Stickers, to the mural.
Each mural will need to be supervised. Be sure to have crayons or washable markers handy for older children and stickers available for younger children. 3-D effects are lots of fun, though they take work. You’ll need glue and/or self-adhesive items. (Just a hint: keep wet wipes handy too.) Children will enjoy attaching these and other items to the mural:
- white feathers on seagulls,
- movable eyes on animals and people (look for self-adhesive styles; check the size of the eyes in the mural before you buy 3-D eyes),
- cotton balls on clouds,
- blue cellophane or paper pieces on the water (look for self-adhesive paper in varying shades of blue; cut them into small shapes),
- white foam pieces on whitecaps (you’ll need self-adhesive foam or foam glue if you use this option),
- string on fishing poles, or
- Popsicle sticks (precut to various lengths) on the boardwalk/pier (test that your adhesive material is strong enough to hold the sticks in place); kids can color the sticks for a darker walkway.
With murals, you will have great decorations by the time VBS begins, and the children will be excited about VBS.
Skit or Puppet Show
Go to a community park or gathering place for families and give skits or short puppet shows. If your church is in a residential area, perform the skit or puppet show on your front lawn. Be sure to introduce people to Oliver T. Otter. And use the Big Fish Bay music to attract attention. Have adults and teens (dressed in Big Fish Bay apparel) hand out logo stickers, invitation flyers, theme pencils, and logo balloons.
This is part 2 in a six-part Sunday series, Publicize Your VBS. Read part 1, “Publicity Overview: Countdown and Checklist,” and look for part 3, “12 Weeks’ Worth of One-Liners.”
