NOVEMBER PLANS AND GUIDELINES FOR IN-PERSON GATHERINGS

EPMC November Plans for In-Person Gatherings

Thank you for your respectfulness, patience and love for one another as we continue to discern what guidelines are needed for in-person gatherings on a month to month basis. While the following guidelines are our intent for November, we also recognize that things can change quickly depending on how things are going with the viral spread. We will update if needed along the way. We have not made many changes to the plans for November, except to update the group size for indoor gatherings in conjunction with PA state orders that were updated on October 6, 2020. We also will no longer be having the windows open due to colder weather.

The BRIDGE Team

Keith Blank, Josh Buser, Chelsea Delp, Jonathan Kilheffer, Katrina Shenk, Derrick Stoltzfus.

Sunday School Hour, 9am-10am

We will not be offering children’s Sunday School in November. We will offer a socially distanced adult class in the Fellowship Hall from 9:00am – 10am, using MennoMedia’s Adult Bible Study (the Quarterly) for the curriculum. Various persons from the congregation will be teaching. Families with children are welcome to attend. Tables will be available for children to work on quiet activities.

Sunday Morning Worship Gatherings, 10:10am

1st and 3rd Sundays: Nursery care (birth-age 3) will be available during the worship gathering in the library. Children’s Church for Age 4 through Grade 5 will be held in the Fellowship Hall. Children will be dismissed from the worship gathering following our time of worship through song. Lighthouse Youth Group (Grade 6-9) will be held on Sunday evenings November 1 and 14.

• We ask you to wear a face-covering when singing.
• We will continue to use a donation box, rather than passing an offering plate.
• We ask that you sit distanced from non-family members.
• Face coverings are encouraged when entering, exiting, and when social distancing is not possible.
• Our Worship Gatherings are being live-streamed on the East Petersburg Mennonite Church Facebook page. Audio of our messages will also be available on our church website on Mondays.

Smaller group gatherings and programs inside the church building:

• Socially distanced gatherings may meet inside the church building, following the state guidelines of 20% of maximum occupancy for each space. Example: The Fellowship Hall can hold up to 40 people. Face-coverings are to be worn in the building when social distancing is not possible. Please make reservations with the church office if you would like to hold a gathering inside the building to determine availability and appropriate room size for our group.

Most importantly: 

• If you are showing possible COVID-19 symptoms or have been around someone who is showing symptoms, we ask that you do not join us for in-person gatherings.
• If you have been around someone who has tested positive or is being tested for COVID-19, we ask that you make the hard decision to stay home. 
• We ask that you follow the rules of quarantine for travel recommended by our state government.