After their annual vacation Bible school fell prey to pandemic restrictions, members of the First Baptist Church of Meriden started brainstorming ways to keep children in the community engaged during the summer.
“Knowing that we can’t do that, we were trying to come up with a way for families to enjoy each other,” church member Sue Jones said. “We were trying to come up with things family could do together, to get to know their town better and to get to know people in the town better.”
Thus was born The Great Plainfield Family Adventure, a townwide scavenger hunt set to begin Wednesday and continue through August. Each week, a new activity sheet will be available in a box outside the church, which is located on Main Street in Meriden Village.
“We’re going to have up to 10 different sheets of trivia and questions and fun things to do,” Jones said.
Some activities will focus on town history — how many cemeteries are in town? — while others will focus on geography — where is Baptist Pond located? Participants can answer questions by going out and exploring or interviewing older town residents (socially distanced, of course) who might know the answers.
There will also be activities for days when the weather keeps families indoors.
“One of the (activities) is to make a musical water glass scale,” Jones said.
The activities are meant for children of all ages. The history questions might not be a good fit for preschoolers, but other activities are.
“One of our things is to find a rock in the shape of a fish,” Jones said. “We’re trying to involve all members of the family.”
After completing an activity sheet, participants are asked to return it to the church, where it will be entered into a drawing for prizes, some of which are donated from area businesses. While the scavenger hunt is directed toward Plainfield residents, people from neighboring towns can participate, too.
“People probably won’t be traveling too far, and what a nice time to get to know your town better, especially for younger kids,” Jones said.
Editor’s note: For more information about The Great Plainfield Family Adventure, email firstbaptistchurchmeriden@gmail.com.
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
