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KiDs Beach Club® has been gearing up for a big fall by hiring some of the best and brightest people in Dallas-Fort Worth. Todd Lamb joins the corporate office staff as communications director, while Kelley Crow has been added as strategic growth director. Additionally, Kristen Forejt, Michelle Henderson, Amy Merritt and Beckey Traylor have joined the team as club relations directors.

Todd, who began his role June 29, will oversee communications activities and work in conjunction with Dave Crome, the VP of marketing/communications, to maintain and enhance the branding, marketing and public relations strategy to allow KiDs Beach Club® to cultivate and enhance its meaningful relationships with a variety of external audiences and key influencers. 

With more than 21 years of strategic communications experience, Todd will focus on electronic communications, including the KBC website and social media channels, as well as electronic newsletters and other correspondence while maintaining alignment with the organization’s strategic communications plan.

Todd has worked primarily in college athletics and professional sports, handling communications efforts in athletic departments at the University of Texas at San Antonio, Rice University, Clemson University and The Ohio State University. He also enjoyed stints with the Texas Rangers Baseball Club and at the national office of Delta Delta Delta Fraternity, both located in Arlington. Most recently he managed communications and media services for the Southland Conference in Frisco.

A native of Marion, Ohio, Todd graduated from McCullough High School in The Woodlands, Texas. He originally attended Baylor University before transferring to Ohio State, where he earned a bachelor’s of arts degree in journalism. Todd and his wife Melissa have a son Brady (9) and reside in Allen, Texas. They attend Chase Oaks Church-Legacy Campus in Plano.

Area directors have now been split into three distinct groups – club relations directors, independent area directors and strategic growth directors – to facilitate the rapid growth of this ministry.

Kelley Crow has joined KBC as a strategic growth director. She has called the DFW-Metroplex home for 34 years and lives in Bedford with her son Luke. Her adult daughter Jordyn Swingle is married to Dillon and they are expecting their first child in August. Kelley attends First Baptist Church-Euless, where she completed a two-year leadership program called SALT, learning about servant hood and leadership.

Kristen Forejt, Michelle Henderson, Amy Merritt and Beckey Traylor are the newest club relations directors at KBC.

Kristen has been a volunteer with KiDs Beach Club® for the last three years after serving seven years as an elementary school teacher. She resides in Richardson, Texas with her husband Brett and their three children Cooper (9), Brady (6) and Katelyn (3). They attend Trinity Bible Church in Richardson.

Michelle brings more than 20 years serving in the ministry, including seven years focused on children’s ministry. She started at Pine Cove Christian camps in college and still serves today teaching third and fourth graders with her husband Shawn at Trinity Bible Church in Richardson, Texas. The couple has two daughters, Abby (16) and Avery (13).

Amy joins KiDs Beach Club® after teaching fifth graders in Dallas-Fort Worth, most recently having taught in North Garland. She and her husband Chris live in McKinney, Texas with their 9-year-old daughter Caelyn. They attend Providence Church in Frisco.

Beckey has volunteered with KiDs Beach Club® for the last two years and has served other ministries, including Sunday school, vacation bible school, AWANA, Team Kid and her church’s women’s ministry. She and her husband Bill live in Mabank, Texas, where they attend First Baptist Church. The couple has three grown children, Michael, Katherine and Amanda.

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” – Psalm 119:105

Every month we share with you a story about how children are using their KiDs Beach Club® Explorer’s Study Bibles. We know the Bibles are being used throughout the school year, but what happens when the Beach Clubs break for the summer? This month we wanted to share two stories about the impact the KBC Bibles are having on children this time of the year.

It was the last day of Beach Club and it had been a good year. The volunteers and students felt that bittersweet feeling that comes with the last day

That same day, when a volunteer walked in to the school office to sign in, a parent there recognized the KBC t-shirt and began to apologize. She was filling out a KBC permission form for her child who stood beside her.

With a bewildered look on her face she asked, “Is it ok if he comes today? I mean, it’s the last day and all of a sudden he wants to come to KBC. I have tried all year long to get him to go and he decided today that he wanted to go.”

With a huge smile on her face and a chuckle in her voice the volunteer assured the mom that they would love for him to enroll and come even if it was the last day. The young man had a great time and even had his ticket drawn for a t-shirt. Most importantly, he left with a KBC Bible to carry the Word of God with him until he rejoins the group in the fall.

The other story is about a young woman who is armed with her KBC Bible as she moves to a new state, motivated to learn scripture.

When students in one Surf Team began reciting John 3:16 from memory earlier this year, one girl was feeling left out. 

She later went to her Surf Team leader and expressed that she seemed to be the only one that didn’t know that scripture. Realizing that it must be important and that she, too, wanted to be able to recite it, she asked her Surf Team leader to find and highlight the verse in her KBC Bible.

She shared that she was moving to California and would not be able to attend Beach Club anymore; but that once she got to California she would work to learn that verse so that she too could recite it like her classmates. 

These children, on two very different paths, can rely on their KBC Bibles to help illuminate their journeys. Thank you for your continued support as we connect KiDs to Christ and put Bibles in their hands.

One of the many fun elements of Beach Club every week is earning those tickets for the right to head to the KBC Treasure Chest, which is filled with candy and toys.

Back in the fall of 2014, Trisha was able to collect tickets for saying her memory verse and wearing her KBC t-shirt but she never got one for bringing her Bible to Beach Club.  Week after week, she watched her friends bring their Bibles and get tickets, but she couldn’t because Trisha didn’t have a Bible to bring. In fact, there wasn’t even one in her house.  Not one person in her house owned a Bible.

This was just a few months before Great Treasure Day where every child in every Beach Club now receives their very own copy of the KBC Explorer’s Study Bible.  Trisha’s Surf Team Leader requested she be the recipient of the next Bible given to a child, and she was.  Excitedly she held her first Bible up to pose for a picture.

Trisha started reading her new KBC Bible and brought it with her to Beach Club the rest of the year to follow along during Bible Connection time.  She listened to the stories, participated in the discussion and started asking her Surf Team Leader many questions. 

Near the end of the school year, Trisha came forward for counseling saying that she wanted to ask Jesus to be her Forever Friend saying, “I’ve never heard any of this before.  It has all been new to me. You see my mom works hard at two jobs, and she just hasn’t had time to tell me about Jesus.” 

Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”  When Trisha started to read the Bible she received in Beach Club, it became powerful in her life and led her to a new hope in Christ.  Her home now has the living, powerful Word of God and thanks to the generosity of our faithful monthly supporters of Bibles for Beach Club, many other homes now have their very first copy of God’s Word.

You are making a difference for the Kingdom!

As Memorial Day approaches and we prepare to set aside a special time to remember those who have given their lives for our freedom, we wanted to take a moment and share a beautiful story with you about a Beach Club boy and a wounded warrior.

Justin, a 4^th grade Beach Clubber from Euless, Texas, lost his dad in 2009 to ALS and last summer he received a $2,000 inheritance from his father. To Justin this amount of money might as well have been a million dollars and he felt like he had to share it with someone in need. He saw a clip on television of an NFL player who had once been homeless and now makes a lot of money and is helping others because someone helped him get back up after a fall. This story inspired Justin and he began searching for a way to help someone else.

Talking to his mom one day, Justin learned about Texas Sentinels Foundation and what they do for veterans.  He learned about a Marine named Sgt. Erich Ellis and how a fundraiser was going to be held to support building a fully furnished home for this wounded warrior. Justin immediately decided to use a portion of his inheritance to sponsor a table at the fundraiser.

In a room full of charitable-hearted adults there was a little boy following Sgt. Ellis around. Dressed in a red t-shirt, to match his hero's, and camouflage pants that were just a little too short, Justin looked out of place and perfect, all at the same time.  Justin shared how he wishes for a world without war, but understands that it is still very much a part of our world and he has a great respect for veterans. He was so happy to help Sgt. Ellis get a new home. 

In June 2012, on his fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan, Sgt. Ellis stepped on an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) while on a United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) deployment. Resulting in the amputation of his right leg from the knee down, Sgt. Ellis underwent ten surgeries within the first 30 days of his injury. Embodying the characteristics of a true American hero, Sgt. Ellis was awarded the Purple Heart for his sacrifice and courageous service.

Sgt. Ellis was extremely touched by Justin's action to support building a home for him and he and Justin have forged a friendship that will surely last.

Johnny and Dontae are two boys in Beach Club who recently shared how they put their trust in Jesus Christ as their savior after exploring their new KiDs Beach Club® Bible.

A few weeks ago Johnny approached his club leader with his Bible in hand and open to the plan of salvation page.  He pointed to the page and began to tell his leader that he had prayed the prayer of salvation and showed where he had filled in his name and the date.  Then he pointed to the last line that says “Who Did I Talk With” and said he needed to get that part done. While talking with his leader Johnny explained that he was sitting in his room reading his new Bible and found this page.  After talking a bit more and making sure he didn’t have any other questions, his leader gladly signed his page and prayed a prayer of thanks to God for the free gift of salvation. Johnny is a third grader in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Not too long after hearing about Johnny, we got a special letter in the mail at our KiDs Beach Club main office in Euless, Texas.  It was from Dontae, a fifth grader in the west Texas area.  Here is what he wrote:

Dear Beach Club,
Today I made Jesus my Lord, Saviour, and Friend. Almost as soon as I finished the prayer on the page before page 627 I felt something bad leave me and something good come in me. I knew it was God instantly.
Sincerely, Dontae

If you are a KBC volunteer, financial supporter, prayer warrior, or a combination of any of those, know that your efforts don't go unnoticed and you are making a difference for the Kingdom!