NEW Church Re-Opening Plans

We are so excited to resume worship gatherings at Plymouth Covenant this weekend on June 6th. We are committed to providing a safe, healthy environment for everyone. The church is essential AND safe practices are essential!
A preparedness plan has been implemented that provides clear direction as we seek to comply with government requirements. In spite of these measures, please be aware that gathering in a large group and prolonged singing together increases a risk of exposure to the virus. We ask that you prayerfully consider how you can best keep your family safe. As we resume worship gatherings in our church, we understand that there will be two general responses.

1) Many households will choose to stay-at-home. You have our full blessing and support! We ask anyone who is sick, feeling sick, exposed to the virus, caring for someone who is sick, or is in a high-risk category to stay at home. We will continue to support you with quality online services, resources for home use, virtual meetings and meaningful congregational care.
2) Many households are ready to come-to-church. We look forward to seeing you and will strive to provide a safe environment. Our services will be about 45 minutes long to reduce exposure and to better serve our families. We will be asking everyone to observe social distancing as we provide a touchless experience. “No hugging, no handshaking and no hanging out (except outside).” Presently, We will not be having a separate children’s program or nursery – as always, your children are welcome to worship with us in the sanctuary. We will not be serving refreshments, but you are welcome to bring your own coffee.

Masks will be recommended, but only required at the Sunday 5:30 gathering. At all services, we will reserve the balcony for those wearing masks and choosing not to sing. The TLC will be set-aside for families to sit and worship together while maintaining a proper social distance.
Our gatherings will have limited seating capacity (50%). Therefore, we have added some additional services in our church sanctuary in order to accommodate as many as possible. Most of the services will be very similar, but some services have unique features: no singing, recorded preaching and a special focus.

For example:

• SATURDAY 6:30 PM
• SUNDAY 9:00 AM
• SUNDAY 10:45 AM
• SUNDAY 1:00 PM    The Extension led by Pastor Aaron
• SUNDAY 7:00 PM
• THURSDAY 6:00 PM    Worship Together led by Pastor Sara
• FRIDAY 7:00 PM    International Focus led by Pastor Sanjeev

Since our seating is limited, we need your help. Would you mind selecting a service that your household will choose to normally attend throughout the summer? We understand that some weeks you might need to attend another service. We cannot guarantee that you will have a seat in the sanctuary since they will be available on a first come-first serve basis (you might want to come early). An overflow area with video/audio will be provided once we have reached full capacity in the sanctuary. As you choose a service that fits your preferences, we encourage you to try something different this summer. We anticipate higher attendance on Saturday evening and Sunday morning, how about coming on Sunday evening or Thursday?

One final request, we are asking everyone who is planning on attending an event at Plymouth Covenant to monitor their own health and limit the risk of exposure by asking the following questions. If they answer “yes” to any questions, then we encourage them to stay home and enjoy the service online:

• Am I or is a member of my family showing any flu-like symptoms
• Have I or a member of my family had a fever of 100.4 or higher in the past 14 days?
• Have I had prolonged exposure to someone who tested COVID-19 positive?
• Is there any medical reason why I believe I shouldn’t be around others?

We are eagerly looking forward to seeing you! Let us know if you have any questions or concerns.