Nicole Henry, 12, was nervous about her first Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes convention in Nashville, Tenn.

But Nicole, who attends the Waverly Church of Christ in Tennessee, said she learned a tremendous amount about God’s word by taking part in events such as Bible Bowl, Know the Books and Songs of Praise.

“I did gain the courage to stand before an audience and lead singing and pray,” said Nicole, who was asked to lead a song the next week at the Ladies’ Day at her church.

She and her 9-year-old sister, Maddie, were among thousands of young people across the nation who participated in Leadership Training for Christ and Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes events over Easter weekend.


VOICES: What did you do for this year’s Lads to Leaders/ Leaderettes or Leadership Training for Christ convention? What was your favorite part? Asked by assistant managing editor Erik Tryggestad


"I participated in seven events in this year’s Central Texas LTC. My favorites were Christian Art and Sign Language. I really enjoyed Bible Bowl as well. It was interesting to learn things about David and his family that I never knew before."

Cole Billingsley, age 12 | Sugar Land, Texas


"This was our youth group’s first time attending the Lads to Leaders convention in Nashville. I participated in Good Samaritan, Know the Books, Bible Bowl, Speech and Songs of Praise. I had so much fun being there and I can’t wait to go back again next year."

Maddie Henry, age 9 | Waverly, Tenn.


"This was my second year in LTC and I did 15 events. We did a skit about building your house on the rock and performed it in front of 1,000 people. There were so many Christian kids at the convention, I was amazed by how many of us there were."

Brooke Engle, age 9 | Chandler, Ariz.


"I did seven things with Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes this year. I did Bible Bowl, Oral Bible Reading, Centurion of Scripture, Good Samaritan, Know the Books, Puppets, and Art Says It. My favorite part was puppets because I was the smallest on my team. Plus, it was my first year and that made it fun."

Anna Sims, age 7 | Huntsville, Ala.


"I’ve been involved with LTC since third grade. I did 11 events this year. This was by far the best year because I was involved with lots of events and got to really know the middle schoolers, an opportunity I hardly ever get. I will miss it so much when I leave for college."

Marissa Hale, age 18 | Flower Mound, Texas


"I got an award (at the Lads to Leaders convention in Nashville, Tenn.) because I did the books of the Bible and did the Good Samaritan. I liked everything. I am going to do a speech about Jesus, paint something and sing 'Faithful Love' next year."

Presley Dishman, age 3 | Waverly, Tenn.