The Sheringham BeachLife team have met to start preparing for their summer mission after two years of scaled back activities. Tony Rothe reports.
Sheringham BeachLife is organised and run by the churches in the town primarily for the benefit of young people in Sheringham and the surrounding areas. It was formed in 2012 with the team of over 50 DBS-checked volunteers coming from the different churches.
BeachLife’s main summer outreach provides four free days of fun-packed youth and children’s activities on the beach and clifftop and in the town each summer as well as follow-up activities during the year, often during the October and February half-terms.
The 2020 outreach was held on-line only because of pandemic restrictions, and the 2021 event was a hybrid of on-line and outdoor family events.
This year’s mission will take place from Tuesday 30 August to Friday 2 September, during the last week of the school holidays, and immediately after the late summer bank holiday. All ages are catered for, from toddlers to late teens, with the morning “going deeper” sessions split into four age groups.
Activities will include: beach sports, drama, music, creative bible teaching, crafts, gunge tank, competitions, picnic, tide fight (below right), treasure trail, beach sculptures (above right), swimming (at a pool), circus skills, putting, chips, etc.
The planning team are expecting at least 200 young people, predominantly from Sheringham, to attend at least one of these activities, and the afternoon and evening events will enable families to be involved.
Peter Skivington, planning group leader, said “It is rewarding to see children come back year after year, and those relationships are further developed by the work the churches do in schools and in children’s and youth clubs throughout the year, investing into the lives of many Sheringham children and youth. Some of those that originally attended BeachLife as young people are now helping with the running of the event.
“BeachLife also attracts a sizeable number of holidaymakers and other visitors, many of whom return each year. There was a non-church family from Hertfordshire whose teenage girls saw the event when walking past to the beach one day and decide to join in. Through hearing about Jesus in the youth group, they became Christians and then connected with a local church back home! “
Visit the Sheringham BeachLife website and Facebook page.
The top picture above shows some of the team with a publicity banner at a recent training morning.
Other pictures are from previous BeachLife events, and are courtesy of Gareth Gabriel.
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Tony Rothe, 12/07/2022
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