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Happening ... in the Local Church
 “God
kept inspiring me — he really molded and shaped this game. Time and time
again, he kept giving me what I needed,” says Michelle Newcomb, a
parishioner of St. Boniface, Lafayette. (Photo by Caroline Mooney) |
 Ken
Newcomb |
Lafayette mom develops new board game to teach young children about the Church.
By
Caroline B. Mooney
The
Catholic Moment
LAFAYETTE — When Michelle Newcomb looked for a way to teach her 3-year-old son his colors through the vestments a priest wears, she never envisioned that it would become “The Priest Game,” her new board game which teaches young children about the Catholic Church.
“The whole project has just kind of evolved,” said Newcomb, mother of six children and one foster baby and parishioner of St. Boniface Church here. “God kept inspiring me — he really molded and shaped this game. Time and time again, he kept giving me what I needed.”
Newcomb’s 3-year-old, J.J., told his family he wants to be a priest. So, it seemed natural that Newcomb incorporate items from churches in her quest to teach him colors.
““My pastor, Father Timothy Alkire, agreed to let me take his picture and items in the sacristy,” Newcomb said. “My original intent was to have something only showing him and a few other items. The focus would be the colors of the chasubles, not the Mass. It would be something simple, homemade and only for our family.
“As it evolved, I was thinking of asking Father (Ambrose) Ziegler if I could take his picture for a green board,” she said. “He was very helpful and gave me a 1957 version of My Catholic Faith which explained a lot of things I needed help with.”
“With
all of our technology today, we really need to get back to basic board
games,” Father Ziegler said. “The timing of this game is great — as summer
starts, the kids will have it to play instead of watching reruns. We need
more devices like this to get young people talking about religion.
“I really want to promote this because we need to get back to family values,” he said. “This can help bring religious beliefs into family discussions. And as a big promoter of vocations, I love that parts of the game can be used to pretend to say Mass.”
Things kept falling into place throughout the game’s creation.
There was the day that a woman stopped by Newcombs’ house, and for “some reason, I felt compelled to show her the game,” Newcomb said. “She said her husband, a graphic artist (who is not Catholic), might be able to help me in designing the game pieces. And he did — for free.”
One of Newcomb’s old high school friends, John Smith, is the president of Package Right Corporation in Tipton, and he offered to help get the game printed.
Newcomb also enlisted the help of several priests in the Local Church for photos that are in the game — including Bishop William L. Higi.
Included is a three-part DVD of the Mass in slow motion, as explained by Father Alkire.
While developing the game, Newcomb had questions about some parts of the Mass and wanted to ask Father Alkire for his help.
“That night, I came home and my husband was watching Father Tim on TV (on a Lafayette cable station), explaining the Mass,” Newcomb said. “He let me copy the program to use along with the game.”
“I hired a place to copy the DVDs, but they did an unsatisfactory job,” said her husband, Ken. “Michelle and I bought some editing software, added credits, and put it all on a single DVD.”
“I think it’s wonderful,” said Kim Overmyer, principal of St. Mary Cathedral School in Lafayette. She helped proofread the game during its production. “It’s great catechesis for the whole family. Younger children can play with the pieces, and as they grow older they can learn more with the DVD. It would also be a great tool for someone coming into the Church.
“It is a good opportunity for families to spend quality time together, and talk about the faith,” she said. “Hopefully, it will cause people to pray more and encourage vocations. It’s fun, too, for children to see our bishop and priests that they know in the game. There’s something for everyone.”
The
game, which is for up to six players, has 96 pieces with photos from inside
St. Boniface and the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception, and
six, two-sided game boards. The “bishop board” shows Bishop Higi and a
bishop’s adornments, Deacon Ron Nevinger is on the “deacon board,” and the
seven sacraments are on another board.
Other game boards have color titles and feature priests of the Local Church: Father William Vath, Father Alkire, Father David Hasser, Father Ziegler, Father Dan Duff, Father Brian Doerr, Father Gustavo Lopez, Father Jim Barnett, OP, and Father Richard Miller.
There are many ways to use the game. Players can spin a dial and match their spin with a game piece that is then placed on their board. Upon finding each match, they tell other players which piece they are putting down. For instance, a chalice is on one piece, and its definition is printed on the back.
Along with the matching pieces, the game includes “Did you know?” points that are interesting facts about the Catholic Church.
There are also “Can you find?” questions that players can use to search for things on the game boards. Extra pieces include cardboard “hosts” that can be used in a pretend play Mass kit, as well as shape and color pieces for additional learning.
“This has been totally Michelle’s idea,” Ken said. “She tries to come up with ways to teach our kids. We would love for our son to be a priest, but there was no way to nurse that on his level. We couldn’t find any Catholic games to help teach traditional Catholic teaching. We saw a hole and this fits quite nicely.”
“The Priest Game” sells for $25. For more information, go to www.catholickidsgames.com.