While the reality of COVID-19 continues to spread, impacting South Elkhorn families, we continue to remain confident in the safety of outdoor worship. With options to stay in your car or stream online from home each week, those with concerns and risks are still able to stay engaged and share in worship (and have done so). Though nothing is free of risk, with mask wearing, physical distancing, and the unparalleled ventilation of the great outdoors, we believe worshiping on the lawn is very safe, and designed our protocols to promote best practices.

We have learned of several South Elkhorn members who have family members that tested positive, or who tested positive themselves, or who were presumptive positive dating as far back as March and April. Thankfully, these members and family members have recovered, and because of quarantining and practicing safe health measures (or utilizing online streaming), posed no risk to the wider church community.

Still, this reality, and the spread of COVID-19, even if plateauing for now, means we need to stay vigilant, keep practicing “healthy at church” protocols, and lean into that deeper way of love which seeks the well-being of all God’s children.

So we ask your continued prayers for all those impacted by COVID-19. We also ask your help with the following:

• • • If you test positive for COVID-19, we would like to know so we can pray for you, support you, and help share important information in a timely way with the congregation to help keep everyone safe. We will respect privacy and trust the health department to do the important work of contact tracing. We also want to inform the church of positive tests in our church family so that everyone can make their own decisions about safety (like getting tested, driving in instead of sitting out, or staying home for a while and watching online). We want to be as transparent and as safe as possible.
    • If you have traveled to a “hot spot” according to the Commonwealth of Kentucky, please do not worship on the lawn (find hot spot list in “Travel Advisory” here). We encourage you to follow self-quarantine guidelines as provided by the Commonwealth. You can still share in worship by live stream.

• • • Please abide by the other Healthy at Church Guidelines, including:

• • • • Wearing a mask when worshiping on the lawn.  If you do not have a mask, they are available at the sanitation station each week.

      • Keeping at least six (6) feet of distance from other family groups.  If you stop to chat before or after worship, please maintain this distance for everyone’s protection.

      • Refraining from restroom use to the extent possible.  Restrooms are available for emergencies.

      • Considering alternative forms of worship, like worshiping from your vehicle or watching the live stream, if you are in an at-risk group.

      • Bringing any needed items from home, including communion supplies.

      • Making use of sanitation items as needed.  Sanitizer and sanitizing wipes are available at the sanitation station each week.

Again, we remain confident in the safety and pandemic-resilience of our outdoor worship services. We believe we have set up meaningful, adaptive, and creative ways to safely share in lifting our hearts to God, and we are grateful for the ways you have leaned into the deeper way of love by following those guidelines.  As always, if you have any questions regarding our protocols, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Healthy at Church Task Force.