Action-Impact, a nonprofit Christian youth organization located at 80 Vickery Lane, Elverson, will present a belated Easter egg hunt on Saturday, June 27, at 10 a.m. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade will be invited to search the property for plastic colored eggs, which will be filled with candy. There will also be an opportunity to win prizes.
According to Ron Pershall, who leads the all-volunteer Action-Impact staff, the popular annual egg hunt had to be rescheduled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Since the eggs and prizes were ready for the event, organizers decided to hold the hunt a bit later this year.
"There will be approximately 5,000 eggs hidden in the fields and woods," Pershall said, noting that children should bring their own baskets or containers for the eggs.
There will also be an egg hunt for parents. Select eggs will contain prizes, including gift cards for two lunches and a dinner at Olive Garden.
The Easter egg hunt will be held rain or shine. In the event of inclement weather, the hunt will be held indoors.
Also on June 27, Action-Impact will hold an open house of the site's new Junior Action clubhouse for youths in third through fifth grades. "The new building is for them," Pershall said. "The things inside (include) an ark at one end and swinging ropes and ladders they can climb on."
Action-Impact offers weekly meetings for youths year-round. Meetings are held on Friday nights during the school year and on Thursday nights during the summer. In addition to the Junior Action group, Action-Impact offers a Senior High group for students in grades nine to 12 and a Junior High group for students in grades six to eight.
"(Currently) we meet on Thursday nights from 6 to 10 p.m. It starts out with a dinner, and then we have sports and swimming and Bible study," Pershall said. "We are working on building spiritual leadership." Meetings are free, but youths are encouraged to make a donation to help pay for food.
"On a typical (summer) night, we get between 30 and 50 kids depending on vacations and what is going on," noted Pershall. "Hopefully, with the new Junior Action building, we'll have a lot more young kids."
He said that Action-Impact attracts youths from the Owen J. Roberts, Twin Valley, Elanco and Governor Mifflin school districts, including students from public and private schools, as well as homeschoolers.
In addition to meetings, students are invited to participate in a variety of outreach programs throughout the year. "We take part in mission trips. In July, we will visit the (Ark Encounter) and Creation Museum in Kentucky," Pershall noted. "We've taken the kids to Morocco, China, Russia and Spain. We want to train the kids to be the best spiritual leaders they can be and to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That's our goal."
Pershall, who is also pastor of East Nantmeal Christian Fellowship Church, founded Action-Impact in 1968 along with his wife, Marcia. As leaders for their senior high youth group, Ron and Marcia began holding Bible studies for youths in their Malvern home. When they moved to Elverson in 1974, the meetings continued.
The Action-Impact campus, which is situated on 17 acres, was opened in 1997. The main building features an open multipurpose room with a large fireplace and glass windows. The lower level of the building, decorated with photos of the students, includes a game room, meeting rooms and restrooms.
The newest building was recently completed. "The new Junior Action building was done all by donations," Pershall said, adding, "There are no paid employees. Our son, Dave Pershall, and his wife, Lisa, are also involved. We have 11 or 12 staff members who are here faithfully every week."
Action-Impact is marked by a stone entrance on Vickery Lane, just off Hopewell Road. For more information, readers may visit http://www.action-impact.org.
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