June 30, 2020
Please note that this plan is meant to provide information to our congregation and community about our hopes for reopening. However, this plan may be changed at any time based upon new information from our local municipalities regarding safety and public gatherings.

JULY
During the month of July we will continue to record our services on Saturdays (Friday instead of Saturday this week), making the recording available on Sunday morning for at-home viewing. We are now permitted by Montgomery County to have a small number of persons in the congregation for a worship service. If you would like to join us as we record our services, you are invited to do so, but please RSVP to Pastor Mike via email or phone before attending. This will help us know who to expect in attendance. Masks will be required by all, except those playing an instrument or leading worship.

During the month of July I also plan to offer one opportunity for drive-up communion in which participants remain in vehicles and are given communion via no-touch safe practices.

AUGUST
We will tentatively plan to move the weekend worship service to 10am on Sunday mornings, continuing with a small number of worship leaders, and inviting a limited number of the Calvary membership to worship as a congregation. These services will be live-streamed, so that viewers from home can also “tune-in” to the service and participate remotely. A recording will automatically be generated from this live stream that could be viewed at any time after the service begins. Depending upon County restrictions, we may ask for RSVP’s in advance of these services to manage overall attendance numbers.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
As we return to these worship services, I fully expect we will have a much smaller than usual congregation size. This will be likely the case until a vaccine is discovered, or until the virus threat has been reduced by other means. Additionally, as we return to worship I will be taking every precaution to manage our services safely, enlisting hygiene volunteers to ensure everyone is masked and that surfaces are clean. Communion distribution will be handled differently than in the past, with no-touch options adopted, and gathering at the altar will not be part of the worship service. I would like to continue making a communion option available to all of our membership as well, whether by home-visit, drive-by communion, or some other option upon request.

We will continue doing all we can to care for the health and well-being of our worshiping community. I am also considering my own safety and well-being as we make these decisions, and please know I will do all I can to stay safe, and care for the spiritual nourishment of our congregation.        ~Pastor Mike Middaugh