The church continues to take the coronavirus pandemic very seriously, especially as the number of Covid cases continues to rise. The Health & Safety Team met this week to assess the church's guidelines and strategy. If Buncombe County's new cases reach a Critical level, the church will go back to online worship only. ("Critical" is when the new Covid cases per day is 25 for every 100,000 people. As of Friday morning, Buncombe County has 18.4 new cases a day for every 100,000 people, while the state of North Carolina is at 29.6.)
At present we continue to offer an in-person worship option, but we encourage every person to make decisions that you are comfortable with. If you are hesitant to travel or be inside right now, that is safe and understandable. Everyone can make use of worship online, the telephone service to listen, or worshiping in the Fellowship Hall where there are less people and closer ventilation. We will continue all of the safety measures we have put in place, to lower the risk for folks who choose the in-person option. And if we hear that someone who has attended worship in person tests positive for Covid-19, we will switch to only virtual worship for at least two weeks.
As we enter into the big holiday season and more people might get together with family or friends, it is likely that Covid cases will continue to rise, so be stubborn about making good health decisions for your sake and others--maintain distance, wear a mask, etc. Stay tuned to the church's news outlets (e-mail, website, Facebook) if and when things change for our weekly schedule.