We are so blessed to continue to use technology for great online worship AND to see so many of our friends coming back in-person! Thank you Lord for both!

As vaccines become widely available and risks are reduced, the Leadership Team and Church Staff are monitoring the Ohio Department of Health and CDC recommendations regularly to continue to provide a safe and healthy opportunity for all to worship together. As promised, as the recommendations change, our protocols are also changing. Here are the current changes and guidelines, and thank you for helping us to care for one another!

CHANGES:

• Temperature checks for worship are discontinued.
• Seating in worship will now include both regular and socially distanced options. The center pews in the sanctuary will be ‘un-roped’ and people may sit in the configurations they choose, while the balcony and overflow seating will be completely socially distanced. In the Family Life Center, the center rows will be returned closer to normal configurations, while the side rows will be completely socially distanced.

CONTINUED:

• Mask wearing and Social Distancing is still expected indoors, with some exceptions (based on the Ohio Health Director’s and CDC’s directions) such as leaders of worship, active participants in a physical activity, groups that meet the CDC’s guidelines for fully vaccinated individuals, people who are of the same household, etc. Outdoors, if these exceptions do not apply and social distancing is difficult, then mask wearing is expected.
• Hand washing is still expected, washing frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds (or use hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol)
• Self-monitoring for symptoms of COVID-19 is still expected, especially if you’ve been around someone who is sick. If you have symptoms, please stay home and worship online, attend a meeting via Zoom, etc.

For further explanation or help with these guidelines, contact the Church office to speak to Business Administrator Lisa Nichols or Senior Pastor Nathan Custer, 937-642-4712.

Additional Guidelines to be given to Staff and Ministry / Event Leaders:

Van Usage: When people who are not of the same household are sitting beside one another in the same row, the center seat(s) should be left empty. Thus, in our 15 passenger vans, the total capacity for a group that includes entirely separate households would be 10 (driver, front passenger, then two per row).

Singers: No more than two unmasked singers grouped together at any one time (so for instance, two married couples must be significantly socially distanced if singing unmasked simultaneously, not gathered together as a quartet), distanced approximately 18 feet or more from the congregation.

Overnight sleeping in the building: Prohibited for now unless given permission by the leadership team.

Food: Only food that is prepared in individual, non-shared ways following the basic food preparation guidelines from the State Health Director for these COVID times shall be provided (for instance: boxed lunches; canned beverages; individually packaged pizza slices, etc.)

Paper & things given out: Distribution shall be limited and provided in ways as safely as possible (such as placing cards on seats rather than handing them out, placing devotionals out such that only one is touched if one is taken, etc.)

Youth Group Activities: The indoor mask policy listed above shall be followed, and for the various outdoor activities Pastor Mark may use his discretion to determine whether masks need to be worn or not. To the extent he can do so (and recognizing that sometimes last-minute changes have to be made), Pastor Mark will notify the youth and their families of such mask expectations ahead of time.

Updated on 4/23/2021

UPDATED_COVID-19_POLICIES_4_23_2021.PDF