COVID 19 UPDATE
All Services available in person and livestream. COVID best practices will be followed.
I just wanted to give you an update on our current situation and what Tifton First is doing in response to it. The latest numbers are not good. The Delta variant is very active in our area and affecting children and younger adults. My numbers are a few days old, but the latest we have. The hospital is full, with 51 Covid positive patients. They shut down elective surgeries on Tuesday, and had 20+ patients in ER who didn’t have rooms to go to. We are on full diversion. South GA Medical in Valdosta has 72 Covid positive patients and is in about the same boat, as are most of the surrounding hospitals.
Our leadership team met on Tuesday evening, and discussed our different options. We did remarkably well with not having spreader events from Fathers’ Day of 2020 until now. After hitting the pause button, the last time in December of 2020, we decided we wouldn’t do that again, if at all possible, unless directed to by our denominational or governmental authorities. After much discussion, Tuesday, we decided that we were not going to pull the hymnals or put down tape at this point.
We do want to strongly recommend the safety precautions we’ve followed since the beginning:
- Wear a mask.
- Wash your hands frequently.
- Keep your hands away from your face.
- Practice social distancing.
We are practicing those in all ministry areas of the church. We are hitting the pause button on serving refreshments in the contemporary service (the refreshment area is a natural gathering area, and people pull their masks down to eat and drink). We’re asking you to go back to using the outermost doors to the front of the sanctuary, and use the outside aisles for entry and exit.
Our preschool is basically following the same protocols we used last year. Our Children and Youth ministries will be doing the same.
We do not have any agenda. We only hope to keep the doors open and insure the safest worship experience we can. We are following the criteria set forth from the beginning by the Centers for Disease Control.
As we have shared throughout this pandemic – you have to do what is right for you. Our doors are open, but we are continuing to livestream our services, Zoom specific Sunday School classes, and provide Zoom options for our meetings. If there is anything we can do for you, do not hesitate to let us know.
In Christ,
Chip
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