The House Of Peace church Reopening info

WHAT IS THE HOUSE OF PEACE PATH FORWARD AMIDST COVID-19

Dear Members and Constituents of the House of Peace,

We are living in times of a new reality, a “new normalcy” and although you are undoubtedly continuing to practice your faith and joining our online services, at some point we should be eager to return to normalcy and join our fellow congregants in practicing our faith together at The House of Peace.

As a Shepard being led by the Holy Spirit and with a common sense, our Pastor is starting to prepare our church for where we are headed next and for a better future. He has put together a ReEntry Team made up of a diverse representation of our church members. This representation includes: Staff members, Mature Adult, Young Adult, Church Leader, High-Risk person, Usher/Greeter Team member, Music Team member, member who is a Corporate Leader, and finally a member employed outside as an Administrator.

With new precautions and continued uncertainty, we want to assure you and your family that just as the state of your soul and your spiritual growth is a priority, your physical wellbeing is a great concern as well. Also, we as a church must be positioned to provide support to the community in unique ways. However, what’s for sure is that the life that we get back to will be significantly different from the one we had before this pandemic.

Moving forward, we are prayerfully creating contingency plans for the reopening of our church on Sunday, June 21st, 2020. When church events are occurring, precautionary measures to assure that our church will maintain a healthy environment through consistently disinfecting as well as having other mandates in place to insure that strict wellness precautions are practiced, such as “lovingly distancing” and encouraging At-Risk individuals and those with symptoms of illness to stay at home. Using guidelines from the CDC, listed below is our preliminary plans:

1. Provide two services: 8:30am-10:00am and 10:30am-12 noon.
2. Children Church, including the Nursery will be closed for now. Access to the second floor will be limited to those assigned.
3. Cafe Peace will be closed for the foreseeable future.
4. Make adjustments in seating to foster wise distancing. Chairs will be spaced out, limiting seating to alternate rows. Seating for attendees who do not live in the same household will be at least six feet apart.
5. Limit the size of gatherings to no more than 37 congregants. Attendees, including visitors, will be preassigned to a service of choice, if available. Please make note that we must be notifiedof your choice no later than 3 days prior to the service. Contact the church if your plan to attend changes. Livestream will still be available for those who may be symptomatic or cannot attend our church for some other reason.
6. Require that Ushers and Greeters wear gloves.
7. Discourage hand shaking or hugging. Congregants will be encouraged to wave or bump elbows, for the foreseeable future.
8. Provide Disinfection Stations, and require that everyone use them upon entering the building.
9. Use non-touch temperature scanners, on a voluntary basis.
10. Encourage the use of face masks at all gatherings. Mask (each stored individually in a ziplock bag) will be provided on an as needed basis, to those not having one available. Remind attendees to cover their coughs and sneezes with a tissue or their arm, if a tissue isn’t readily available.
11. Clean and disinfect high traffic areas, including restroom facilities and frequently touched surfaces at least daily and shared objects between use. Avoid the use of items that are not easily cleaned, sanitized, or disinfected.
12. Restrict the use of restroom facilities to one person or one family. Encourage attendees to wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
13. During the initial phases, the use of pew Bibles, fans, etc. will be removed
14. Take steps to ensure that our water fountain is safe to use.
15. When the Communion is administered, elements will be provided individually, communal bowls will not be passed around. The goal of these practices is to ensure that multiple people do not come into contact with the same surfaces and objects.
16. The number of Music Team members will be limited to 3 members and require that they stand at least six feet apart.
17. Modify the method used to receive financial contributions. There will be stationary collection boxes, as well as the Squares. Offering envelopes will be passed out by an Usher. We are encouraging the use of the church’s electronic methods of online giving, through Cash App or through PayPal.
18. Encourage staff or congregants who have symptoms or are not feeling well (headache, fever, cough), to stay at home.
19. Dismissal will be done in an orderly way to ensure that there is safe distancing.

We rely on our church leaders and other people of our congregation as well as members of the larger body of Christ to plan for how to protect our church and fortunately, we are up to the task. As Paul says in Ephesians, when Jesus ascended on high, He “gave gifts to His people” (4:8). We can trust that the Lord has gifted His people with the wisdom and skills necessary to prepare for what comes next. Doing so, however, may require that we set aside our need to maintain control and our aversion to input from outsiders. Our decisions must be based on the wisdom of fellow believers. Can we come together for the good of God’s people? If we can, we may find that church in the time of COVID-19 may be a time of both social distancing and also gospel-centered unity. You are in our thoughts and prayers and we only want what’s best for us.

Michael Nelson, Pastor

Lynda Williams, Secretary/Treasurer

ReEntry Team Members,

C S Allen (Church Leader); Erica Brown (Corporate Leader); Sarah Parrish-Jones (Staff); Penelope Lockwood (Staff + Usher/Greeter); Alice Mickles (outside Administrator); Sandra Outing (Mature Adult); Donesha Weatherspoon (Young Adult + Music Team); Ryan Wood (High-Risk person)

P.S. You will be receiving a link by text or email for you to click on and to fill out the form, indicating which service you want to attend.