Our Building Reopening Team met on May 26, and we have some long-awaited information to share with you. This team consists of the following: Melissa & Scott Brannan, B.J. Crowder, Linda Davidson, Allen Jenkins, Larry Long, Allie Osborne, Mark Parent, and Sharon West. Apologies for the length of this email. Important dates are below and an explanation follows if you read until the end!
Understanding the trajectory of the virus could change these plans, here is the current working plan:
Throughout June - periodic outdoor office hours with me if you would like to drop by or schedule an appointment. Stay tuned for dates and times.
June 15: Church Office Resumes 9am-3pm work schedule
June 17: Blessing of the Garden at 6:30pm outside
June 21: The Fellowship Hall reopens for church and church-sponsored events with the following guidelines:
Face masks required.
Chairs only, no tables.
Building access will be limited to the Fellowship Hall
No food
Maintain 6' of social distance
Reserve dates on the calendar ahead of time and maintain 24 hours between events.
Participants will receive a checklist to make sure they are at least symptom-free before attending
Hand sanitizing stations will be provided
July 5: In-person worship resumes with guidelines we will share as it gets closer but will include expected things like masks and social distancing. Simultaneous Zoom worship will continue. We will not have childcare at this time, but several efforts are being made in conjunction with our intern, Allie, to keep our families connected. The sanctuary and Fellowship Hall will remain the only two areas of the church building open for use.
VBS - VBS will not happen in its traditional form, but we will provide a unique VBS experience this summer. Stay tuned for details.
September - reassess a "normal" schedule going forward
These decisions have been surrounded in prayer and much discernment. Your health - physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental - is a high priority for me. I never imagined when I began vocational ministry in 2004 that I would ever spend hours each week watching webinars, calling colleagues, reading government guidelines and blogs, and staying awake at night trying to figure out when and how to reopen the church building. These are, indeed, strange times.
I know for some of you, this plan may be too aggressive. For others, this may be too cautious. I respect and empathize with your concerns across this broad spectrum.
As much as we would all like church to get back to normal, "normal" is still evolving. The innovation required of us these last two months will have to guide us into the remainder of 2020. Worship, fellowship, and study will all look differently. What your church family needs most from you is your patience, participation (whether in-person or online), and continued prayers as we discern that together. We've grown a lot in our understanding of what it means to be Church outside the building, and I expect we will continue to do so.
Finally, thank you for your faithfulness in these last two months. We prayerfully and with great hopefulness continue to place an uncertain future into the hands of a faithful God.
Journeying Together,
Melissa Fallen