Middle School Group Update

By Susi Jensen

Middle School Group (MSW) meets every Thursday night in West Berkeley, led by volunteers Susi Jensen and Wes Reed. Weekly meetings include dinner and some combination of crazy games, learning about God and the Bible and free time, during which MSGers break off into groups and chat up a storm, play soccer, draw cartoons on whatever paper they find handy or build cool objects with Legos.

Our current teaching focus has been on the Book of Proverbs. We’ve titled the series, “The Power of Words.” Our attendance ranges from 8 to 13 kids. MSG meets during the same time and shares a space with CWOW en espanol. It’s been a great opportunity for the two groups to mix.

The first Sunday of each month, Wes and Susi take Middle School kids out of the regular church service and drive three minutes to Nations, where we discuss life and bond over pie and french fries. This short meeting allows us to include kids who might not be able to attend the mid-week meeting.

This winter, MSGers will participate in a Young Life Winter Camp (Feb. 15-17) called Woodleaf in the Sierra Foothills. The program is high quality and relevant to youth, the prices are reasonable and the campers are from lots of diverse backgrounds. Young Life is a great organization with core values close to CWOWs. They are known for an enthusiasm for Jesus and for crazy games and skits.

Please feel free to contact us if you think your child might be interested in attending MSG. Our kids go to various middle schools in the area, including: Kingl, Longfellow, School of the Madeleine, Willard, Prospect Sierra and Joaquin Moraga Intermediate. Also, if you are interested in learning more about how you can help, send us an email youth@churchwithoutwallsberkeley.org.