The title of this year's vacation Bible school program at St. John's Lutheran Church in Coplay was SonWest Roundup.

The VBS program took place July 22-26.

The week of fun, games, music and Jesus was accompanied by a special western theme this year, complete with cowboy, cactus and wagon props as well as an enthusiastic bandanna-sporting staff.

St. John's Pastor Tim Boyer said the children learned a total of six songs with country roots by the end of the week, along with dance motions for each one.

With his help, the children learned their first song, the "SonWest Roundup" theme song, which features lines such as, "We're gonna ride with Jesus Christ," and "Round up your friends, we're on a quest, we're heading out to the wild, wild west."

After the daily song, the children were encouraged to present a prayer offering.

A simplified Bible story was on the VBS agenda next. Rochelle Swoyer, the storyteller on Monday, described Moses' birth in the story, "Born to Save." A different story was featured each day from the book of Exodus, which related to the western theme of the VBS program. After each story, the children completed a craft.

Each day, staff member Carolyn Darabaris featured an animal to further incorporate the wild west theme. A real snake even visited for the kids to learn about it, said VBS coordinator Gail Yudt.

Drama and games were a big part of the week. Participants performed a skit every night. The story behind the skits took place in the fictional town of Dirt Clod with fun characters such as Sheriff Otis Leroy and Dirty Daryl. Outside, children ran relay races to demonstrate and learn the importance of teamwork. They also cooled off with a water balloon fight.

Before the end of each VBS day, the snack center refreshed the children and gave them time to socialize. Even the snacks were western themed, ranging from Rice Krispies Treats known as "mud bricks" to Bible-themed popcorn, called "mighty manna."

At the closing picnic, held at the Coplay Parkway Pavilion that Sunday morning, the children performed their songs and motions for parishioners and families.

Yudt explained that the VBS program took six weeks to prepare for, but "we all had a blast."