Fellowships: After Game

GLOBE STOPPERS

Nancy James Sayers

 

In advance, ask each grade or department who will be participating to select a "team" whom they will support during a performance for this after-game fellowship. Each team may select its own colors and uniforms for the fellowship, and must be prepared to present a "Globestopper" act using both musical talent and basketball skills in combination. All should be encouraged to ham it up sufficiently to provide a great time for the audience. Serve ball game food after show time. The following fill-in-the-blanks game may be used as guests arrive. Each blank should be filled in with a basketball term. The person who fills in the most blanks and adds the most imaginative ending is declared winner.

Bad Day for Black Walnut

All I wanted was ice cream but I got more. I had driven my car to the spot nearest the door and stepped into my favorite 37 - flavor store. I stood for a long time reading and rereading the heavenly list, trying to reach a (decision) on three delicious dips for my cone. All of a sudden I was caught completely off (guard). A policeman had come (charging) into the store just as I leaned (forward) to place my order. As the clerk (pass) -ed my cone to me, the officer began to shout that someone was (blocking) the door and not only that, but any idiot should know not to leave a car unattended in a (three-second zone). I realized that I was the one who had run afoul of the law, and suddenly my beautiful three flavors began to
(dribble) together and run down the side of the cone. Honestly, I was a (basket) case.

When that policeman's eyes met mine, he knew he had the culprit. "Stick 'em up," he said as he drew his gun. As my arms went up, the ice cream sailed through the air like a (free throw) and the two of us grabbed for it like a (jump ball). My three melted scoops came down and slid into the barrel of his gun. Not realizing what had happened, he pointed the weapon squarely at me and pulled the trigger ... (Complete the story the way you think it happened.) *

SOUND SCAVENGER HUNT

Charles Goza

 

Here is a different kind of scavenger hunt in which each team searches for sounds rather than objects to bring back. This would make a good after-game fellowship on a night when the youth are excited and don't want to go home early. Serve the refreshments while everyone is arriving.

 

When the group has all assembled, divide them into teams of six with a driver in each team. Arrange to have enough cassette recorders (with fresh batteries and tapes) for as many teams as you expect to be in attendance.

 

Explain to the teams that they are to tape a number of different sounds to bring back and play for the whole group. They are to record as many of the sounds as possible from a list that they will be given, and return to the place of the fellowship within one hour.

 

Stress that it is important that they return within the time period and that one sound will be deducted from their total number for each two minutes they are late. Also, be sure that they understand that the sounds must be authentic and not imitations of sounds that they themselves make!

 

The sounds do not have to be recorded in sequence, but they must each be identified on the tape immediately after the sound.

In your fellowship advertising, let everyone know that they will be hunting sounds to record and that each member of the winning team will receive a free 45 rpm or lp record.

 

If you don't want to purchase six top hits from the local record store, many garage sales have old records that may be purchased for a very low price. Another possibility for
records is the local TV or radio station. Many of them will give you several records from their overstock.

 

Suggested sounds for the fellowshippers to search for include:

1.     car honk,

2.     baby crying,

3.     T. V. theme music,

4.      song
from a Beatle's record,

5.     door slamming,

6.     official's whistle,
siren, dog barking,

7.     water running,

8.     car starting,

9.     alarm clock ringing,

10. radio station,

11. train whistle,

12. train running,

13. a choir singing,

14. saxophone playing,

15. harmonica,

16. Elvis Presley,

17. ocean surf (This may be taken from a record),

18. Doritos being eaten,

19. someone speaking in a foreign language,

20. burp,

21.  telephone ringing,

22. one of the former presidents speaking,

23. balloon popping,

24. waitress giving an order to a cook,

25. rooster crowing,

26. conversation with someone from a different state or country,

27. someone hammering a nail,

28. snore,

29. News report.

 

When all the teams have returned, have each team play the recording. This will only take about 5 minutes each. Let the group decide which team has the most recorded authentic sounds and make the presentations. Conclude with a devotional which includes accounts of
some of the dramatic sounds that accompanied events in the Bible such as Elijah's encounter with God on the mountain after the wind and thunder, or the events of
Pentecost. Talk to them about listening to the voice of God today. *

 

RUN, KICK, PASS AND PUNT

Nancy Sayers

 

Use the largest fellowship area of the church for this' 'big game." Simulate a football stadium as closely as possible by setting up risers on either side of the "field of play." Do
not place chairs on the risers, but use them "as is" for bleachers.

 

Provide a gate area for guests to pass through where team colors and placement in the bleachers will be assigned. Paper pom-poms and pennants in appropriate colors may be handed to the spectators.

 

When the two opposing groups have been assembled on their respective sides of the playing field, ask them to choose a team name, two or four players (depending on the size of the group) and cheerleaders to represent them.

 

Roll out in the "field" lengths of butcher paper which have previously been marked into squares with appropriate directions and comments on each. The idea of the game is to move the players from "kickoff" (the first square) to "touchdown" (the finish line) in much the same manner as one plays Pollyanna or Parcheesi with a bit of Monopoly thrown in.

 

 A large poster with a spinner and numbers one to ten is used to indicate the number of squares a player must move. Then, of course, he must follow the directions given on the square in which he lands.

The side whose entire team reaches "touchdown" first wins. Make your own directions and have a great time doing it.

 

Some of the following might be included or serve as examples:

·       Go back 4 spaces for delay of game. (Your shoe came untied.)

·       Advance 3 spaces for having the "smarts" to hide the ball in your helmet and run 32 yards.

·       Go back 2 spaces for forgetting your Gatorade cup.

·       Advance 3 spaces for getting a date with a cheerleader.

·       Advance 4 spaces. That's what you have where your teeth used to be.

 

Pass hot dogs, popcorn, peanuts, and drinks among the spectators. Encourage cheerleaders to keep the team spirit high.

 

Reward the winning team with Pee Wee footballs. *

 

GAME'S END
Mabel King Beeker

 

Though planned especially for students at the end of a big game, this fellowship may include school children through senior adults.

INVITATION

After the game we want you to come to Fellowship Hall at the church For a time of fun and fellowship that won't leave you "in the lurch." (date) Game's End Fellowship (time) For an all-church fellowship, change the first line: First-graders up, we want you to come to Fellowship Hall after church

DECORATIONS

On a platform high enough so that all can see it, set a large chalkboard or bulletin board with the "Game's End-What Next?" message in the center and a scoreboard on each side. Fill in low scores for "You" and high scores for "Opponent" on one side and reverse them
on the other side-or leave both boards blank-to get the message across. Add school pennants and athletic equipment as desired.

 

REFRESHMENTS

After a well-fought game, youth will enjoy hamburgers or other hearty refreshments in keeping with team diets. For all ages, cookies and a fruit drink will be suitable.

 

PLAYING THE GAME (Activities)

First Base. -While the youth cool down from the excitement of the game, provide a variety of fairly inactive games, such as darts and table tennis. Or, have a heel relay race between two teams in which the racers must walk on their heels at all times. If a judge from the other team sees toes touch at any time, the contestant must start again. Some of the youth might enjoy such old games as "Going to Jerusalem" (musical chairs) renamed "Going to the Ball
Park" or "Simon Says" renamed "Coach Says."

 

Second Base. -Send a team of nine youth out of the room with a copy of these instructions: Choose six well known songs which call for action. First let the audience lip read the words while six of you perform the actions and the other three play imaginary instruments. After the audience makes "second base" by guessing the title of the song, lead them in singing it. Continue in the same way with the other songs. If the "team" did not include "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," lead the group in singing it at this base.

 

Third Base. -Provide a choice for this base: crossword or other puzzles, several table games such as Chinese checkers, and others which meet this requirement:

 

Every three minutes or so you will blow a whistle and call, "Walk." This is the signal for each player to walk to another table and start playing the game there at the point where a previous player stopped.

 

 "On base" is the signal to return to the starting "base" for this game.

Over the Plate. -Ask a Christian athlete or former athlete to talk briefly about "What Next in the Game of Life?"

 

Close with "Over the Plate" by Grantland Rice. Bill Jones had the speed of a cannon ball; He could loosen a brick from a three-foot wall. When he shot one across, it would hurtle by too swiftly for even the surest eye. No one could hit him when he was right, as no eye could follow the ball's quick flight. Bill should have starred in a big league role, But he stuck to the "minors" -he lacked control Jack Smith had a curve like a loop-the-loop It would start for your head with a sudden swoop And break to your knees with a zigzag wave, And the league's best batters would roar and rave At the jump it took and the sudden swerve. Shades of the Boomerang! What a curve! But Jack's still doomed to a "bush league" Fate- He could not "get it across" the plate. Tom Brown had the speed and the curves, a combination which jarred the nerves. He would steam ' em by till they looked like peas, and they'd take a jump from your neck to your knees, from the best to the worst in the league-by Jing! He had them all in the Phantom Swing. But he missed the mark of the Truly Great- Poor Tom, he couldn't locate the plate. How is it with you, if I may ask? Have you "got control" of your daily task? Have you "got control" of your appetite? Of your temper and tongue in the bitter fight? Have you "got control" of your brawn and brain? Or are you laboring all in vain?

It matters not what your daily role- Have you GOT CONTROL? HAVE YOU GOT CONTROL? It counts not what you may "have," my friend, when the story is told at the game's far end; the greatest brawn and the greatest brain the world has known may be yours in vain. The man "with control" is the one who mounts, And it's "how you use what you've got" that counts. Have you got "the bead"? Are you aiming straight? How much of your effort "goes over the plate"?' Alternate or Additional Base. -Divide youth into two

teams, facing each other. Give each person in one line a string two yards long and his opposite a ball cut from lightweight cardboard attached to a large paper clip. Instruct each "pitcher" to hang his ball on the string and try to blow it to the "batter," who will try to blow it back. The player who is farther from the ball when you blow the whistle wins that "inning." Ask "pitchers" to "pitch some curves" by tangling their strings with other strings. Then

instruct "batters" to "unwind" by untangling the strings and starting to "bat" again. *

 

 

BLUEGRASS MUSIC FESTIVAL
Don Mattingly

When evenings begin to get cool in late September or early October, plan a time of "picking and grinning" out- side on the church parking lot. Decorate by putting bales of hay around for seating, throw a saddle or two over a sawhorse, and put red and white checkered tablecloths over the tables where refreshments are served. Hot dogs and cold cider really will hit the spot after a game, too. Invite local and church musicians to play and lead group
singing of some of the old country ballads. Almost every church or high school has a fledgling group of guitar and banjo pickers who would be excited about the chance to
perform before a group. Look for a "fiddler" or a banjo picker to headline the program. Some "old salt" who can spin yarns and plays violin very well could be the highlight of your bluegrass after-game fellowship. *

HALLOWEEN MADNESS
Don Mattingly

 

Not all after-game fellowships have to start after the game. In fact, a little variety in time and location really adds to the excitement of getting together after the final gun. 'Grantland Rice, Baseball Ballads (Nashville: The Tennessean, 1910). Used by permission. On the Friday night closest to Halloween, rent a horror movie and invite young people to the church fellowship hall. Practically all of the major motion picture horror films with big name stars are available now in 16mm and can be rented for from $50.00 to $100.00. Since this fellowship features a movie, charge a fee like $1.00 or $2.00 for the film and a bag of popcorn and a drink. Swank Motion Pictures has a good supply of these films and they have offices throughout the United States. Three of their regional addresses are: 2101 South Jefferson Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri 63166; 4111 Director's Row, Houston, Texas 77092; 5200 West Kennedy Boulevard, Tampa, Florida 33609. Write one of these for a free
catalog. *

 

A LISTENING PARTY

Don Mattingly

 

Perhaps the local high school will play an out-of-town game and there is a conflict so that the church bus or a chartered bus trip cannot be planned. Plan a listening party. Put team pennants around the fellowship hall or game room and decorate with crepe paper streamers of the local school colors. If the room is large, amplify the radio broadcast over the speakers. Have Ping-Pong tables and other table game activities ready. Remember, halftime, too. Have a few of the groups stage a marching performance with intricate turns and geometric designs performed right there in the fellowship hall. The band could be a kazoo band or just a pantomime of music from a marching band record. *

 

SPOOKARAMA

Don Mattingly

 

All young people like to attend a haunted house or go out to an old barn for a special program near Halloween. Try decorating an old building next October and invite the young people to come by and go through after the football game. Black lights, ropes, fish netting, and old nylon stockings are great ways to add imaginary things to dark hallways. Create a maze out of large cardboard refrigerator boxes that feature dead ends and many turns to the right and to the left. For a real challenge, take the maze up a flight of stairs and in and out of rooms. Let the imagination of your young people create special rooms that feature fortune tellers, strobe lights, and wild sounds. A good way to end such an evening is to have a devotion period discussing the powers of Satan that are working in our world today and how Jesus Christ has conquered sin and gives a release from sin's control. Halloween can then become a positive time of teaching the power of Christ to give each of us a changed life. *

 

RAINBOW RIOT
Don Mattingly

 

As the young people arrive for the time of fellowship, divide the group evenly into four teams and let them choose a color and a team name. Examples might be the red hots, the mean green, cool blues, and the white knights, etc. Plan an indoor Olympics type of program with each team rotating through the following four events. Devise a scoring system and let every team member participate in each location for team points. The four team events could be:

·       Ring Bottle Toss-Set two cases of empty soft-drink bottles at least 10 feet from a line and give each person 3 Mason jar ring lids to throw for points.

·       Penny Throw-Set aluminum pie plates at a distance and give points for each penny that stays in a pan. Give a larger number of points for smaller pans.

·       Flaming Torch-Light several candles and give each person 5 squirts with a water gun to put out the flame. Award a higher point total for success on the first shot (25 points) and a smaller total for a success on the second, third, fourth, and fifth try.

·       Ball Bounce-Give each person 3 tennis balls and award appropriate numbers of points for bouncing the balls into large and small cans or baskets. At the conclusion of this first segment of events, total the points and announce the leaders and challenge each group to greater heights in the following rainbow riot events:

·       Thumb Bottle Relay-Fill identical soft drink bottles to the top and ask equal teams from each color group to pass the bottle upside down. The winning team is the group with the most water in their bottle at the conclusion of the relay, not the team that passes it the fastest. Award appropriate points for the first, second, third, and even fourth team.

·       Javelin Throw-Pick two girls from each group to see who can throw a plastic straw the greatest distance. Make a line on the floor with tape and award points to the team of the best participants.

·       Shot Put-Let each team now pick two boys to try and throw balloons the greatest distance. Award points as in the javelin throw.

·       The Great Potato Sweep-The final event is a team relay for double the amount of points as the previous three events. Give each team a broom and a regular Idaho
potato. Instruct each team member to sweep the potato to a prescribed distance, around a stationary object (chair), and sweep it back across the starting line. At this time, the next team member repeats the process.

 

Make sure the teams have an equal number of players. Rather than asking some players to sit out to make the teams equal, just ask one member of the team with the smaller number to go twice. Total the points, announce the winning color, and close with a devotional thought on Joseph's coat of many colors. Make the application that the real message of this story is jealousy, envy, and favoritism. Apply the coat of many colors story to the present life needs of your young people. Refreshments should be colorful snacks, cookies, and
punch that has been colored with a bright type of food coloring. A rainbow riot can be a colorful and delightful event. *