It’s time to retire the Green Weenie. I’m not talking about the New York mayoral
campaign, but about the use of old and dangerous church vans and buses.
I was in the balcony yesterday when the minister
reminded the congregation to pray for the associate pastor for youth and the
senior class youth who were on a trip.
This morning I heard of a Church van accident
in Indiana which claimed the lives of several people. Such news seems to happen more frequently
these days, or perhaps my years in church work have taught me to be more
attentive when such accidents occur.
As a youth minister decades ago, I drove a
church bus called the Green Weenie. It
was old, badly maintained, yet we would pack on thirty teens for a trip of two
hundred miles to the youth camp at the beach.
Traffic was not as bad then, still the old bus did not need lots of
traffic or speed to pose a danger. With
a youth minister (me) who had hurriedly studied for a chauffeur’s license, we
would take off with a prayer and few worries about the dangers involved in
driving a bus badly maintained and with an inexperienced driver.
As pastor over many years since driving the
Green Weenie, I have encouraged churches to get rid of old vans and buses, even
new ones, which usually sit in a church parking lot for months at a time. Some are used for local trips, but the long
trips on interstate highways once or twice a year test the limits of a church
committee’s ability to adequately maintain a safe vehicle.
Many churches think it is a bargain when Aunt
Lucille gives the Church money designated for a van, or when another Church
hands over their Green Weenie to a smaller church. Fact is, these are not bargains. A reliable rental agency can provide the
buses or vans with insurance and safety features which could save lives. In
most cases rentals save money in the long run.
Yes, I’ll pray for the church youth who go on
trips on the church vans emblazoned with the name of the Church and often with
a message like “Go with God.” Too often, that’s exactly what can happen. Just like our bodies that we can tattoo with “Jesus
loves me,” we must realize we are not immune to illness or accidents because of
our faith. What we can do is sell the
Green Weenie and be responsible in how we send our kids to summer camps and
retreats. It’s just the right thing to
do.