North Main Street Church prepares children for Easter
BUTLER TWP — Malachi Shaw, 8, got an up close and personal look at the story of Easter on Saturday, April 19, which gave him a better appreciation for the holiday and the story behind it.
The 14 stations of the cross were condensed into “Easter in Five Letters” on Saturday at North Main Street Church Church of God, with each letter in “Jesus” being a different station that told the story of his crucifixion and offered a craft to go with it.
Malachi, a parishioner of the church, would be baptized at the church at its Easter service the next day, and said on Saturday that the station with Jesus’ tomb was his favorite.
“I feel thankful that God died for our sins,” Malachi said.
Melissa Hickman, family life pastor at North Main Street Church, said the church did a similar event last year, using letters in the word “Alive” to have creative stations for elementary school-age children and their families to go through. Hickman said the stations are meant to not only give children an opportunity to engage with the story of Jesus’ crucifixion on their level, but help their parents and families explore the story along with them.
“We do different activities on different years for Easter,” Hickman said. “This is all about the parents walking their kids through this and not us, because parents are the ones who are the true spiritual influences for the kids.”
The first station had palms for children to wave and also papers for children to write messages to Jesus on. The second station was the story of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet, which families could practice if they wanted to. The next station was Jesus praying in the garden, where children had some prompts to ask their parents about the story. The next station had a cross for children to hammer nails into and the final station was the story of Jesus’ resurrection, which had a small model of Jesus’ tomb and pages children could color to mimic the look of stained-glass windows.
A few stations followed the main five, the final one being a chance for children to give their final thoughts on the stations and write down their takeaways with the help of their parents.
Some of the art created Saturday with the help of the many children who passed through the stations were to be placed around the church in preparation for the Sunday service.
“The letters will be displayed on the photo booth and families can see them tomorrow and take their picture with it,” Hickman said.
Samantha Shaw, Malachi’s mother, said she enjoyed the event in part because it was a chance for her whole family to engage with the story of Easter. She was also scheduled to be baptized at the Easter Sunday service, so the event Saturday was a good reminder of her commitment to the faith.
Shaw’s favorite station was the garden, where she could talk her children through some questions about Easter which the church helped prompt.
“This was very nice and I liked how involved it was, and really intimate with the family,” Shaw said.
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North Main Street Church of God held a “Easter in Five Letters” event for families to learn the meaning behind Easter in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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North Main Street Church of God held a “Easter in Five Letters” event for families to learn the meaning behind Easter in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Dan Hempfling puts a crown of thorns on Malachi Shaw's, 8, head during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Dan Hempfling puts a crown of thorns on Malachi Shaw's, 8, head during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Malachi Shaw, 8, puts nails into a cross as Dan Hempfling watches during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Malachi Shaw, 8, left, washes his brother, Isaiah Shaw's, 4, feet during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Malachi Shaw, 8, puts nails into a cross as Dan Hempfling watches during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Malachi Shaw, 8, left, washes his brother, Isaiah Shaw's, 4, feet during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Isaiah Shaw, 4, puts nails into a cross as his brother, Malachi Shaw, 8, watches during a “Easter in Five Letters” event at North Main Street Church of God in Butler Township on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
