Backyard VBS Frequently Asked Questions

BACKYARD VBS is an outreach event where a host invites kids in their surrounding area (neighborhood, school, sport teams) to come to their residence for a fun time of building friendships and growing in the good news of Jesus through a FUN, Christ-Centered Hour four days/nights a week. We also have many community locations too. There will be crafts, games, songs, a Bible story, snack and science object lesson…all in ONE HOUR! If you are a host/leader, everything is prepped and ready for you…training, invitations and all materials!

BACKYARD VBS will be happening various dates, times and locations between July 13 – 23 and you choose what works best for you! 

BACKYARD VBS is at homes in neighborhoods, park pavilions, Family Haven, Grand Rapids Dream Center, Serve GR, Urban Family Ministries, etc. If you are hosting at your home, don’t get hung up on the “backyard” part. Maybe for you, your front, side yard or open garage is better to host your VBS.

1. Host and Lead: You would love to host at your location and lead the BACKYARD VBS activities. All materials needed are provided and prepped for you!
2. Host: You have the perfect location and would love to lend your house/backyard for the 4 days but don’t feel comfortable leading the week but just assisting instead. We will find a leader for you but would still need someone in your home (host) available to assist (be a helper) and be present during the event. 
3. Assist/Be a helper: You are willing to help with a BACKYARD VBS either in your neighborhood or another location. You would not be the main leader but would be there for the duration and help with the various activities. 
4. Assemble Kits: Since we are preparing all materials and activities for all our hosts, we will need a lot of hands on deck to make this happen. Some of the preparation can happen at home and some will be done at church on various dates.
5. Prayer Team: We know the power of prayer! We will have different prayer teams praying at each host location ONE week before the BACKYARD VBS and ONE day before the BACKYARD VBS.

First, you must be 18 years or older to host a BACKYARD VBS. All hosts and leaders/helpers (age 12 or older) will go through our St. Matthew screening procedure including a REQUIRED background check for all adults. In addition, all volunteers will attend training to learn more about having a safe and successful BACKYARD VBS.

Additional Safety Precautions: 

*One host and one helper (age 12 and older) is required for every 10 kids at every location at a minimum. An additional helper is required for each additional 10 kids. We can help you with finding a helper. 

*Parents of children with special needs are asked to note if their child needs a 1:1 buddy to stay safe and have the best experience possible. Our Team will arrange buddies if needed.

What if a child needs to use the restroom?

If a child needs to use a restroom, their parent will need to be called to take them back to their home to use their bathroom or it is up to the host if you are comfortable with the parent coming into your home to help the child use the bathroom. Regardless, a parent should be called and under no circumstances should the host or helper take the child inside.

*Parents will be made aware of this procedure and will be encouraged to have their kids use the bathroom before coming so they won’t have to miss anything. It’s only an hour so there should be minimal bathroom necessities.

Our team will be providing door hanger invites, postcards, social media shares, and email invites for each Host. You will give us your name, address, and time frame you choose and all other information will be on these forms of information. All invites will have a QR code for parents to register their kids and all registrations will happen through Planning Center by our church team. Children from St. Matthew who are not part of a Backyard VBS in their neighborhood will also be registering for locations if you are willing to have additional children.

There will be no minimum size. You can let us know if there is a maximum number of children you feel comfortable with at your location.

Most BACKYARD VBS locations are for all children ages 3 – 5th grade. Some locations will be open to children under 3 years of age. If a child has not been enrolled in Kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year, then a parent/guardian needs to stay with that child.

The host home will be making the decision as to if they will hold their BACKYARD VBS in their garage with the door open or cancel for that day. If you cancel for bad weather, it will be your responsibility to contact your participants to let them know that day is canceled at least 30 minutes prior to the event.

Our team is planning on providing training for hosts to explain expectations and to provide ideas on what running a BACKYARD VBS might look like (we will go through activities, ways to keep children engaged, etc.). We will also provide you with paper copies of the curriculum and any digital links needed to teach the materials to participate (music videos, etc.). We will manage the online registration process and provide you with a paper copy of the roster for you prior to your BACKYARD VBS beginning. We will provide you with every single supply needed for each day.

Each participant will sign a waiver which will exempt you as a host to be responsible if something does happen on your property.