Children love to come to La Croix United Methodist Church. They learn to worship in a children's church setting, and no grown-ups tell them to be quiet and not fidget.

The church plans to dedicate its new two-story, 20,000-square-foot children's ministry building addition by this time next year.

Construction is going on now in an area just west of the church's new worship center. It will accommodate weekend programs for children from infancy through fourth grade, said the Rev. Ron Watts, pastor of La Croix since its founding 18 years ago.

Matt Uhrhan worked on the footings of the La Croix United Methodist Church's new children's center Thursday in Cape Gir~ardeau. The two-story addition will be at the northwest corner of the worship center.KIT DOYLE kdoyle@semissourian.~com

Middle school, junior high and high school programs will continue in the older part of the church, which will be renovated when the younger age groups move into the new building.

"Every space we have on Sunday morning is currently being used by children," Watts said.

Every weekend, in the church's Saturday service and two Sunday services, 300 to 400 children come to worship.

La Croix does not offer a traditional Sunday school program for its children, Watts said. Children's church gives the youngsters an opportunity to learn what Watts calls "age-appropriate" worship in different group settings.

"The new building is really designed around worship and ministry," Watts said. "We are creating a worship environment that is fun and exciting. I hear from a lot of folks who come to our church that one of the main reasons they chose La Croix is the children's ministry."

Children are so energized by what they learn at La Croix, he said, that they beg their parents to come back the next week.

Six part-time staff members and a crew of about 100 volunteers provide the leadership that keep the children -- and their parents -- coming back for more.

The new building will follow the church's practice of themed classes. In the present area, one room features the bow of a boat and animals painted on the wall to represent Noah's ark. Another room is designed to look like a castle, inviting children to enter God's kingdom.

The new building will feature a "reign forest" incorporating an environmental concern for rain forests along with teaching that Christ's reign in their lives is everlasting.

"When children first come they're often reluctant to separate from Mom and Dad," Watts said. "We find the themes break that hesitancy down. A setting like this is more interactive and we feel is more kid-friendly."

The $3.3 million building will have a plain exterior.

"Everything that is happening is on the inside," Watts said.

The congregation has been planning for the expansion for the past two years, and expects to have the project paid off in four years, Watts said.

Over the past 18 years La Croix has grown from a small church that met in a space at West Park Mall because its mission is to reach the unchurched. Many of its programs and services are untraditional.

La Croix now has a large presence on Lexington Avenue. Its growth has been astounding.

"I thought we had a chance of becoming as big as the biggest churches in the district, and the biggest churches have about 400 members," Watts said. "I thought we might get that big, but today we have 1,600. I'd like to say we saw that coming, but we didn't."

Over the years, La Croix has grown and expanded to accommodate its membership, but this fourth addition will most likely be its last, Watts said. What the church will do now is renovate existing space to meet its membership's needs.

There's only one reason, Watts said, why La Croix is as popular as it is among children and their parents.

"It's a God thing," he said. "God has something in mind bigger than any of us ever dreamed or imagined. It's been a beautiful thing to behold. I'm honored and grateful that God helped us experience this."

lredeffer@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 160