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A Plan for Resuming Children’s Ministries and Sunday School Classes at Barry Christian Church

It is our joy to once again offer Children’s Ministries at Barry Christian Church!

 The updated COVID-19 Guidelines conveyed by Mayor Lucas, on Friday, April 30, 2021 have relaxed some of the restrictions that will now permit us to resume our Children’s Ministries and Sunday School classes.  So long as persons five years of age and older continue to wear masks indoors, we are now permitted to assemble indoors with no capacity restriction and the previous six-foot distance between persons no longer applies.  This change is a result of the lowering of COVID-19 cases and increasing vaccinations of residents in Clay County.  The changes we will make are based on the assumption that COVID-19 cases will continue to decline, but if cases spike in the future, we understand that the county and city may require us to revert to our previous restrictions.

Based on the relaxed COVID-19 restrictions, our staff, the executive committee, and several of our Christian Education volunteers met this week with medical professionals, who are also members of our congregation.  Based upon the advice of our own medical professionals, everyone is in agreement that we can now resume our nursery care, children’s ministries, and all of our Sunday School classes, so long as everyone five years of age and older continues to wear masks indoors. 

Thus, we are offering the following progressive changes during the remaining Sundays in May, as we strive to return to some of our familiar ministries:

Mother’s Day Sunday, May 9^th

We will continue to offer the three forty-five minute worship services at 8:30 a.m., 9:45 a.m. and 11:00 a.m., but the cords separating the pews will be removed allowing participants to sit wherever they may feel comfortable.  Sanitation protocols between services will be maintained.

Persons five years of age and older are required to wear masks indoors.  Participation in the Lord’s Supper and the use of hymnbooks will not resume until we are completely free of the mask mandate.

Sunday, May 16^th

This will be the final Sunday in which we will have the three, forty-five minute worship services at 8:30 a.m., 9:45 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.  Again, participants may sit wherever they feel comfortable, with masks required indoors for persons five years of age and older. 

On this Sunday though, the Children’s Sermon at the front of the sanctuary will resume by Kathie Connell; and also at the 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. services, Kathie, Jim Frentrop and other leaders will welcome the children of the church to once again join them for Children’s Church in the Education Building immediately after the Children’s Sermon for the duration of the services.

Pentecost Sunday, May 23^rd

Nursery Care will resume this Sunday for infants and children up to age three during all Worship Services and Sunday School.  Sanitation protocols will be observed and all Nursery Attendants will be wearing face shields and face masks.  Contact and medical information from parents/guardians for all children will be required.

We will resume our previous schedule of the first Worship Service at 8:30 a.m., Sunday School Classes at 9:45 a.m. and the second Worship Service at 11:00 a.m.

The Children’s Sermon and Children’s Church will be offered at both services.  All of our adult Sunday School classes will be offered at 9:45 a.m. in their previous classrooms.  Sanitation protocols will be observed by the leadership of each class. 

During the Sunday School hour, all the children will assemble in the Fellowship Hall for a meet and greet with teachers of their new classes as some of our children will be transitioning to new classes as the children’s ages have increased since pre-pandemic attendance.

Contact and medical information from parents/guardians for all children will be required, and Kathie Connell will use telephone calls, paper and digital resources to acquire this information before the children’s Sunday School classes resume.  Kathie will also be communicating to parents and guardians a full disclosure of the risks associated with attending our events during these remaining months of the Coronavirus.   

No refreshments such as coffee or donuts for adults or snacks for the children will be offered while the mask mandate remains intact.   

Sunday, May 30^th

Two Worship Services at 8:45 a.m. and 11:00 a.m., with Children’s Sermons and Children’s Church; Nursery Care, and all Sunday School classes at 9:45 a.m. will become the norm for all Sundays until further notice. 

All children and youth will begin attending their respective Sunday School classes in their own rooms and all contact and medical information for each child will be completed prior to attendance. 

Please note that the church van will not be used for transportation as it constitutes an enclosed environment that can concentrate the airborne virus that we are striving to avoid.

Conclusion

It will be our joy to once again offer ministries for the youngest among us, and to especially have Kathie Connell fully engage with our children and youth as our congregation’s full-time children’s and youth director.  For Jim’s guidance and also for all our volunteers willing to re-engage in these ministries, we are also grateful!  We know our adults are also equally ready to re-engage in study of God’s word in Sunday School classes.

As we embark upon these renewed ministries, may we all please understand that full compliance to the wearing of masks indoors by everyone five years of age and older and the continuation of sanitation protocols is absolutely essential and helps us strive to maintain the safest environment possible as the Coronavirus is still among us. 

If you have any questions about these steps in resuming several of our ministries, please call any of our staff or volunteer leadership.  We look forward to seeing you in worship and Sunday School in the weeks to come!

Rev. Dr. Dennis Patience, Pastor 

Lana Whitton, Board Chair