Rector’s Update: get ready to sign up
Dear Restoration,
We begin by taking a moment to pray for the people of Boulder, CO and for our nation that has been unsettled by another story of tragic gun violence and the murder of 10 people who bear the image of God. “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” (Psalm 50:15)
Lord, you know the deep places through which our lives must go: Help us, when we enter them, to lift our hearts to you; help us to be patient when we are afflicted, to be humble when we are in distress; and grant that the hope of your mercy may never fail us, and the awareness of your lovingkindness may never be clouded or hidden from our eyes; through Jesus Christ, your Son our Lord. Amen. (a prayer in time of affliction by Harold Senkbeil)
Phase Gamma: 3 Big Changes Coming To Sundays, starting April 11
Last night, the Vestry unanimously approved Phase Gamma of Reopening Restoration. I will explain the pertinent changes below. You can read the whole plan, here. I know that many of you are looking for links so that you can sign up to attend everything that is happening in the next few weeks, so I will put them first. Please come back and read through my whole letter!
EVERYONE must sign up to attend in-person, in-sanctuary Worship, Kids’ Small Groups, or Apex at Restoration.
- If you would like to attend Palm Sunday, March 28 at 10am, please sign up here. (This is the last Sunday for Phase Beta)
- If you would like to attend our Holy Week services, (including Easter), April 1, 2, 3, and 4, please sign up, here. (This is a special SignUp Genius JUST for Holy Week and Easter.)
- If you would like to attend Sunday worship and in-person Kids’ Small Groups from April 11 forward, please sign up, here.
- If you would like to attend in-person Apex, please sign-up here.
- If you would like to help the Stephens’ family unload their truck on March 29, please sign-up here.
And now… explanations of what all of this means!
The 3 primary changes in Phase Gamma of Reopening Restoration will be multiple inside, in-sanctuary Sunday services at 9 and 11; outside, in-person gatherings for Apex on Sunday nights at 6:30pm; and outside, in-person, Kids’ Small Groups for sixteen kids on Sunday mornings at 9 and 11.
Multiple Services in the sanctuary on Sundays at 9am and 11am
Our consistently filled Sign-Up Genius is indicating that demand is growing for in-person, in-sanctuary worship and we are delighted to offer a second Sunday worship service. In Phase Gamma, we will keep the following key features of Phase Beta Corporate Worship while adding a brief cleaning of doorknobs and fixtures by volunteers before each service.
- Face-Coverings for everyone over the age of 2.
- Sanctuary windows opened to increase air circulation.
- Sanctuary capacity at 23 quarantined pods with a cap of 75 total people.
- Congregation may sing.
- Playground is open.
- Baptisms will continue to happen outside.
- We will not provide a shuttle from the parking lot at 15th and Quincy.
- All the bathrooms are available in the building and should be used by one family at a time.
- Every person who attends should administer a self-given medical screening:
Have you had a fever or other symptoms of COVID-19?
Have you been exposed to someone with a positive COVID-19 diagnosis?
Are you waiting on a COVID test?
Have you traveled internationally or out of state in the previous 10 days?
If you answered yes to any of these, please do not attend in-person.
Kids’ In-Person Small Groups for 16 kids on Sunday mornings at 9 and 11.
We will continue to offer Kids’ Small Groups over Zoom at 9am with Ms. Louise. We are adding an in-person option for sixteen kids from preschool-5th grade at both the 9 and 11. We will not have a nursery in Phase Gamma. Parents will need to sign up for one of the 23 quarantined pods and sign their child(ren) up for one (or more) of the 16 KSG spots. When the sixteen spots are full, we cannot take anymore kids in KSGs on that Sunday. If your children are not participating in a Kids’ Small Group, they are very welcome to stay in the sanctuary for the whole service. Kids will be required to wear masks both inside the building and outside the building. If children do not have a face covering, Restoration will provide an individually wrapped one for them.
Here’s the flow for the kids:
Kids will start in worship with their families, then be dismissed to the upper narthex before the readings where they will meet their leaders, walk out the front doors and around to the tent.
Kids will meet socially distanced with their leaders under the tent. We will have individual supplies for use under the tent. There will be one set of supplies for the 9 and a different set of supplies for the 11. Kids, supervised by their leaders, may also use the playground or walk as a whole group to Cherry Valley Park— the green space near church— for observation, reflection, and journaling that aligns with the teaching.
Kids will be met by their parents in the tent for Eucharist. They will not return to the sanctuary.
In-Person Gatherings for Apex on Sunday nights
As Restoration begins widening the options for opening the building for in-person worship, we will begin hosting APEX for students in 6th-12th grade on Sunday evenings from 6:30-8pm. Given the need for social distancing, our APEX Gatherings will include primarily outdoor elements of games, testimonies, and talks shared by leaders, then transitioning to small groups around the church property. We will also have the flexibility to be inside in the sanctuary in the event of inclement weather.
Starting April 11, our new Sunday schedule will look like this:
9:00am
- Kid Small Groups over Zoom with Ms. Louise for an unlimited number of children
- Inside, in-person, in-sanctuary worship service for 23 pods of people
- Live-streamed service on our YouTube Channel for unlimited number of people: live at 9, available anytime thereafter
- Outside, in-person, Kids’ Small Groups for 16 children between the ages of 3 and 5th grade
10:05 Big Transition from inside the sanctuary to outside under the tent for Eucharist
10:15 Outdoor Eucharist that is open to both those who have been watching the YouTube livestream and those who have been worshiping in the sanctuary.
10:30 Outdoor Eucharist ends.
11:00am
- Inside, in-person, in-sanctuary worship service for 23 pods of people
- Outside, in-person, Kids’ Small Groups for 16 children between the ages of 3 and 5th grade
12:05 Big Transition from inside the sanctuary to outside under the tent for Eucharist
12:15 Outdoor Eucharist under the tent that is open to all baptized followers of Christ
12:30 Eucharist ends.
6:30pm Apex begins outside under the tent
Holy Week
All of the information that you need for Holy Week can be found, here. I hope that you can use this link to invite friends and loved ones to join you in following Jesus through Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, the Great Vigil, and His glorious resurrection. As a reminder, you must sign up for all of the Holy Week services, and you can do that, here.
The Stephens’ Family will be here on Monday!
Our new director of worship arts, Chris Stephens, arrives with his family on Monday, March 29 sometime after 3pm. We are looking for a top notch team of kind-hearted servants who will help them unload their truck into a storage unit. All of the info you need to sign-up is right here. Thanks for helping us welcome them!
“I will sing of your strength. I will sing aloud of your steadfast love… For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of distress.” (Psalm 59:16)
God has been so good and so present to us. He is our refuge and we move into this new phase with faith and thanksgiving.
-David
