KINGSTON TWP. — Three-year-old Audrey Colgan whispered to her friend Sage Bruce that she forgot her hero cape when she came to Trucksville United Methodist Church’s summer Vacation Bible School on July 25.
Audrey’s concern over her missing accessory was soon forgotten when Geisinger Life Flight Helicopter Pilot Scott Walters met the pre-school aged children in his blue, one-piece flight suit.
“Heroes can wear pajamas to work,” Walters said, tugging on his clothing.
The children, some of whom wore hero capes and crowns, voiced their opposition with a unified “no.”
“A hero is someone who imitates God’s courage, wisdom, heart, hope and power,” Walters said.
The children nodded their heads in agreement.
Walters was one of several guest speakers scheduled to talk to the youngsters. Children, ranging in age from pre-school to sixth-grade, attended the church’s five-day Vacation Bible School, held July 23-27 on church grounds located at Knob Hill Road in Trucksville.
Trucksville United Methodist Church’s summer VBS has a different theme every year, said Kristen Ecenrode, event coordinator. This year’s program is called Hero Central.
Children throughout the Back Mountain and Wyoming Valley were encouraged to dress in their finest hero garb and learn how their belief in God can strengthen hero characteristics, such as having heart, courage, wisdom, hope and power, Ecenrode said.
On Tuesday, programs that evolved around wisdom included a skit performed by older children, games, a Bible lesson and Walters’ presentation.
Trucksville UMC Pastor Dick Williams defined wisdom as “taking the good things you know and putting them into practice” during a Bible lesson.
Walters was a perfect example of the concept. He discussed how he applied his flight knowledge acquired in the U.S. Navy and is using it for transporting sick or injured people to a hospital quickly.
Walters also held a show-and-tell presentation for two groups of nearly 10 pre-school students to familiarize them with some of his aviator equipment.
He passed around a pilot helmet, a knee board, which is a paper clipboard that strapped to his knee, and maps.
Walters said there are times when flying with the U.S. Navy that a pilot can become afraid. In those moments, he found strength and courage through his faith.
Walters flipped through the pages of his U.S. Navy flight crew checklists booklet, also called ‘Blue Brains.’ He kept information about God in with his flight procedures.
He flipped through the pages and said, “It talks about following God and how He is a faithful God, forgiving God, a Glorious God.”
“Sometimes I would forget and I would read over this,” Walters said. “To be a hero, you have to trust in the Lord.”
