GALLIPOLIS — Wednesday evenings are busy at Christ United Methodist Church in Gallipolis.

The Rev. Kandy Nuce, pastor of Christ UMC, said her congregation “flies into action” each midweek to serve the needs of local school children during the church’s Wednesday Night Kids program. The church operates the program from 3:30 to 6 p.m. each Wednesday from October through May.

Rev. Nuce said church members currently provide meals for kids from Hannan Trace and Washington elementary schools and also help them with their homework before holding a Bible study. She said that students from any elementary school are welcome to attend.

Volunteers Beverly Jeffers, Sue Vollborn, Lesa Lemley and Francoise Johnson prepare the meals, while Rev. Nuce and Johnny Johnson drive the church bus to Hannan Trace Elementary to pick up kids there. Students from Washington Elementary are dropped off by buses from the Gallipolis City School District.

According to Rev. Nuce, Wednesday Night Kids was the bainchild of Tracey Burnette, a teacher at Hannan Trace Elementary and member at Christ UMC. Burnette and her mother, Mary Jenkins, taught children’s church while Rev. Nuce taught the adult Bible study, which both ran from 6 to 8 p.m. each Wednesday.

Burnette thought that since the kids were getting home so late on a school night that the church should go ahead and host an after-school program to let the children do their homework, enjoy a good meal and then have Bible study.

Burnette, fellow Hannan Trace teacher Alicia Stutes and other volunteers assist the students with their homework. Reportedly, the students from Hannan Trace who are involved in the Wednesday Night Kids program at Christ UMC are showing improvement in the classroom, both academically and behaviorally. One student in particular has experienced an academic revival of sorts, becoming an “A” student after failing most of her classes two years ago.

Rev. Nuce, Burnette, Stutes and Jenkins teach the Bible studies to the children, who are divided up according to grade level. Rev. Nuce said it’s important for the children to “learn about God and how God wants us to treat each other.”

She said that church members Wilbert and Marie Church and Carla Wamsley also help with the program, and that the entire congregation has stepped up to support Wednesday Night Kids. Rev. Nuce said it costs about $60 a week for the meals.

(For information about Wednesday Night Kids, call Christ United Methodist Church at 446-0733 or 446-7374. The church is located at 9688 Ohio 7, south of Gallipolis.)