Keeley Smith Brings an Infectious Energy to Children’s Ministry

By Lauren Rose Correa, October 6, 2025

Children's Ministry Director Keeley Smith

Keeley Smith has been serving as the Children’s Ministry Director at Immanuel Baptist Church for the past two years. She volunteered in this capacity for about a year before she was brought on staff full-time. She is in charge of the children’s programs from infancy until 6^th grade. This includes children’s church and all of the community outreach that the church does for local children.

Keeley’s love for her job is evident, and the energy that she brings to the children she works with is infectious. I had the opportunity to chat with Keeley to learn what a typical day in children’s ministry looks like for her, how she tackles challenges, and what she loves most about her work and ministry. I hope you enjoy learning more about Keeley and her chosen vocation!

Q: Walk me through a typical day with you on the job.

My days are all different! Most mornings, I am either at the church or the church office by 9am. I have recently taken on teaching the ladies Bible study on Thursday morning, so then there’s also a little bit of prep time for that. Monday and Wednesday mornings are set aside for prep work and for doing Bible study. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Sundays are set aside for children’s ministries. Tuesdays I’m here from 10am to 11am doing story hour. On Wednesday I’m usually at the church from 9am until 8:30pm.

Q: What is the biggest challenge that comes along with your job and how do you tackle this challenge?

The biggest challenge that I have encountered doing this job is trying to connect technology. It has been a learning curve for me to figure out how to utilize technology to help support the face to face [interactions with children]. Often technology fails, and then you have to think on your toes. I would say technology is the biggest hurdle for me.

Q: What is your favorite aspect of your job?

Working with the kids! I’ve been in this church since I was 15. [Because of this], I know so many of the parents who now have children that I get to work with. I have seen, for the past 4 or 5 years, each of these little ones go from infancy up to 5 or 6 years old or even older than that. [I get to see a] relationship developed with them. That has been one of the most enjoyable and rewarding aspects [of the job], building those relationships with the kids. It’s such a unique gift to be able to pour into a child’s life. [You get to see them] be excited by something and know that there’s another trusted adult who’s going to share in their joys and their grief and their struggles. I’m really blessed that I get to do that.

Q: What advice would you give to someone else looking to step into the same vocation as you?

My advice would be this: don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Kids are very forgiving, and I think that they really appreciate authenticity. [Sometimes as adults we need to be able to say] I’m going to try this and it might go wrong, but it’s not wrong for me to try it. When kids see you fail, and then they see how you recover from that, it’s really significant to them. So anyone who is thinking of working with children or working in children’s ministry at church, don’t be afraid to fail. Don’t be afraid to just try things and make mistakes, because you can always change it the next time. But I think that it’s also a really great platform for kids to see how to recover from things like that.

Q: What qualities about you do you believe help you do your job well?

I’m not afraid to make fun of myself. On Wednesday nights, we have a theme, and every Wednesday night, I am either dressed up with clown hair or I’m wearing olives or I’m dressed up as peanut butter and jelly or just something silly to engage kids. [I am not afraid] to be fun, because church is meant to be fun. Having a relationship with God is a fun thing. If I’m not displaying that to [the kids], they might never get that message from someone else.

I also think that I’m very administrative in the sense that I really like to organize things. That really helps me keep track of where kids are supposed to be, where adults are supposed to be, and just keeping things flowing in a good way.

Q: How has your walk with the Lord influenced your career choices?

Growing up, I didn’t think that working with kids was something that I enjoyed, but it was something that I was always very good at. I kind of resisted working with children for a really long time. But when I went to Australia, one of the things that led me to go to there was reading Romans 10:13-15. It says, “How are they to know unless someone goes and tells them?” I think that just really made me aware that while our walk with God is meant to be personal, it is not meant to be hidden away. It’s meant to be shared with others. That really started challenging me, because children are our future. They’re the ones who we are meant to invest in.

Q: How do you balance your career with your personal life?

I don’t! My career and personal life, they’re so intermeshed. All of my friends are pretty much from church. All of the activities I do stem from church activities or relationships that I’ve built here. On one hand, it can be a little bit overwhelming, because I feel like I’m constantly ministering. But it’s also so encouraging and refreshing to me that I get to have those fruitful conversations. I get to have that support from my church family that I’m doing life with. So, I don’t feel like there is a good balance between work and life, because they’re just so integrated with each other.

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