Service is the theme for this year's National Lutheran Schools Week.

Every year, starting on the first Sunday in March, Lutheran schools celebrate the week with activities and projects. This year's theme is "Securing Each Child's Future: For a Life of Service," based on a 1 Corinthians verse. The theme for this year involves preparing and encouraging children to participate in a life of service.

"The idea behind that is to help ensure our students recognize who they are as children of God," said Kim Violette, administrative assistant at the Irvine-based Pacific Southwest District office of the national Lutheran Church Missouri Synod school system.

"Service can take in different forms, as there are all kinds of service. We want to help the children see how important it is to serve the community."

There are nearly 3,000 Lutheran schools nationwide, ranging from pre-school through high school, with around 274,000 students enrolled. In the Pacific Southwest District, covering much of Southern California, Arizona and Nevada, there are 176 schools with 23,000 students. San Diego and southwest Riverside counties have 25 schools in cities including Vista, Oceanside, Escondido, Encinitas, Carlsbad, Fallbrook, Ramona, Poway and Temecula.

Each school devises its own daily programs for the week.

"Many of the schools take on a mission project that is ongoing through the entire year," Violette said. "This can be a local community project, or a project involving a global need."

Projects include food drives, such as those held recently to help victims of the earthquake in Haiti. A program called Backpacks for Hope brings school supplies to children who need them most around the world. Soles for Souls collects shoes for children in orphanages. More localized programs are also part of the week's activities, as are more personalized programs designed for family bonding.

"Many schools have a Grandparents Day or a special person's day, and celebrate the lives of their grandparents and other older family members," Violette said.

Fun is also part of the week, as many schools enjoy a Wacky Hat Day or other similar activity. Less formal celebrations mix in with more serious efforts.

"We give the schools the theme, and they can design activities based on that theme," Violette said. "They do what will work best for their particular school. The week begins on a Sunday so that the congregation that supports the school can celebrate and start the week with the students."

The first Lutheran schools were operating in the late 1700s, Violette said, and the Lutheran Schools Week activities have been happening for as long as the past 50 years.

"The future, and what out students can make of it, is the ongoing theme," she said.

At Faith Lutheran School in Vista, students will take part in numerous activities during the week. After an opening service Sunday, students will wear backwards and clashing clothing on Monday, and participate in a "Heart for Jesus" day on Tuesday, where the annual school photo will be taken in the shape of a red heart. On Wednesday, School Spirit Day is scheduled, followed by a dinner benefiting the school's science lab, and on Thursday students will participate in a track meet and other sports events.

"Each class has a different service project they will work on," said school secretary Jaime Helmick. "It's a great week for school and community service and spirit."