​RE-Launching Guidelines for Worship in the Sanctuary

Our Re-Launch Team has been meeting for the past several weeks discussing when and how we will reopen the church building for worship and then other activities.  
We first want to thank you for continuing to be the church with us during this difficult time.  You have been flexible as we have tried new things.  You have been patient as we have wrestled with the complicated issue of being together and keep everyone safe.  We are asked by the WV annual conference task team to follow the CDC guidelines as we reopen.  We have also considered the guidelines shared by our insurance carrier, Brotherhood Mutual and our State Health Department.  
We are going to add another option to our worship options on June 14th.  We will be making so changes to the current worship time to make this addition.  
On June 14th, our worship options will be:

9:00 am Parking Lot Worship/Facebook Live (bring your lawn chair or sit in your vehicle)

10:45 am Worship in the Sanctuary/Facebook Live

​Sunday School Material will be prerecorded so that you can participate in that class at your convenience.  The videos will be available on Facebook and YouTube.  The printed material will be available on our website.  

​The two services will look different because an indoor space has different guidelines than an outdoor space.   
The Parking Lot service will be the same as we have been having, apart from the time.  We have decided that the earlier time will work better during the summer months to be outdoors.   We will try to mark places for chairs better so it will be easier to see where to place your chair and maintain social distancing.  We have decided it is easier to have the chairs in the circle area so that it is easier for cars to pass through the parking area, so please look for a marked space within the circle.  
The indoor service will have to follow the CDC, State, Insurance, and Annual Conference guidelines for groups that gather in an enclosed space.  These guidelines may seem too strenuous for some– the guidelines may not seem strenuous enough for some.  That is why we are continuing to offer multiple options for worship.  

FACEMASKS

1. All people (over 2 years old) attending the indoor service will be required to wear a mask.  We realize different people have differing opinions of the use of masks, but please think beyond self and consider what we must do to be in community.  Our priority is community as the body of Christ.            a. CDC says we should provide protections for staff and congregants at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19.  To be consistent with federal and State Laws and regulations, we must have in place policies that protect the privacy and confidentiality of people at higher risk regarding underlying medical conditions.  Thus, everyone in this service will need to wear a mask.  We will all be the same, protecting those who are most vulnerable from germs while protecting their right to have their medical condition private.  
2.  Health experts are recommending NO singing in public settings (especially enclosed settings) due to the high risk of virus droplets in the air.  Some ask why this must be followed if we are wearing face masks, a face mask covers your nose and mouth and it can restrict the flow of air into your lungs during strenuous activity.  Thus, this service will not have congregational singing or responsive readings.  We want to make sure persons attending are not putting more stress on their lungs by doing something that requires more oxygen than normal speaking.  We will have music in this service.  Special Music will be prerecorded.  We will have meditative music at different times in the service.
3. We encourage you to wear your own masks, but we will have some masks available if you forget to bring one.  

SEATING

1. Seating will be limited to every other pew.  One couple on each end of a pew or one family per pew.  Thus, our seating capacity will be limited, and we will need to have people register ahead each week so that we can ensure adequate seating is available for everyone wishing to attend.  First come first serve sign-ups.  Our limit is 70 people in the sanctuary.  We will reserve the chapel seating for people who might be attending for the first time and not have access to this information.  The upstairs classroom will also be available if we have a large group of first-time attendees.  
2. The doors will be open at 10:30. This is to limit the amount of time spent in the sanctuary.
3. We encourage you to enter by the aisle closest to your seat.  We will dismiss the congregation by asking the back room to leave first with each row then leaving in succession.  
4. We will not be able to move around the church hugging or shaking hands as we must always maintain the 6 ft. social distance.  Please feel free to greet one another from a distance.

OTHER CHANGES

1. ]There will be no bulletins passed out.  We will continue to send those to everyone in the newsletter.  If you forget to bring yours or do not get your they are also available on our website and on the screens in the front of the sanctuary.  
2. We will not pass offering plates during the service.  We encourage you to continue using the online giving, your banking bill pay, mail, or the churches outside drop box.  We will have an offering plate in the back of the sanctuary on each side that can be used to drop your offering.  
3. The outside doors will be propped open from 10:30 to 10:50 so those entering will not need to touch the door handles.  
4. Ushers will be available in the gathering space to help answer questions.  This give the ushers more room to keep social distancing.
5. The hymnals, bible, offering envelopes will be removed from the pews.  This is to reduce the number of surfaces on which germs can be shared.  Please feel free to bring your own.
6. The nursery will not be open.  The tablets will not be available for the children.  Please come prepared to have your children with you in the sanctuary.  
7. The sanctuary will be the only area of the church open.  Please do not use the other areas of the church.
8. We will not have coffee or donuts available.  No food or drink should be consumed.
9. Bathrooms will be open.  We ask you to follow the same guidelines you follow for other public restrooms.  Please wash your hands thoroughly.  Please use hand sanitizer available after touching door handles, etc.  
10. The staff will not be in the gathering space after worship but will exit by the choir doors and greet you from a distance. 
11. We will have a thermo head scanner available.  If you get to parking lot and decide you are not feeling well, please do not come in.  If you get into the service and begin to question your health, please ask one of the ushers to check your temperature.  If your temperature is elevated, we will ask that you return home and join the service by live feed. 

Stay Home When You Are Sick! ​

If you are sick with a fever or persistent cough, stay home. Keep your distance from others. If someone in your house is sick, stay home to avoid unknowingly spreading the virus to others. 
Do not attend if you have a fever and persistent cough, do not feel well, or someone in your home is sick. 
If you are not sick, consider your risk of getting COVID-19 before you register to attend. 
The online live services are the best option those who are sick or are at a higher risk of becoming sick.  Please consider continuing to use this option for worship if you fit into either of these categories.  ​