Bishop's Lenten Series
Difficulties logging in to our streaming provider last evening during high internet traffic caused us to quickly change the livestream of the bishop's Lenten presentation to a different platform, making the presentation difficult to find for some who were trying to participate. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Moving forward, here's what we can tell you. There is a link on the homepage of the diocesan website that says Livestream Bishop's Lenten Series. While links will be shared out in our communications and that of other congregations, please know that this particular link will be the first one that we will update in the event that we have to make a last-minute change. We will make sure that this link will take you to wherever we are streaming - or at least to a page that says we are experiencing technical difficulties.
Using Facebook Live
Some have expressed concern that they will not be able to view our streaming if it is done on Facebook and they do not have a Facebook account. You do NOT need a Facebook account to view anything on a public Facebook page. You may see an annoying little pop-up ( see photo, right) that tries to get you to sign up, but you can decline by clicking on Not Now and still be able to view anything on the page. Scroll down on the page until you see the video. It will have a little red marker in the corner that says live.

If you are still having problems, rest assured that the video is being saved and we will have it available for later viewing. We realize that this is not the same as viewing it live, and appreciate your patience as we try to make the presentations available for everyone to view.

Here is the link to last evening's presentation in case you missed it: https://www.facebook.com/DioceseSouthernOhio/videos/201825341084368/
Congregations streaming services
Congregations are continuing to send in information about streaming their services. We are curating this list on our Doing church during COVID-19 resource page and updating it as information is received.

If your church is not streaming services, encourage parishioners to "attend" another church during this time by watching another church's service. #DSOConnectTheDots!
Using Zoom to virtually connect
Due to heavy usage of the diocesan Zoom account, we are encouraging congregations to set up their own Zoom accounts. We have several resources related to creating a Zoom account on our COVID-19 Resources page, including a video tutorial on using Zoom, best practices for Zoom meetings, and a step-by-step guide on how to join a Zoom meeting.

Congregations are still free to use the diocesan account, but in the long run signing up for and learning to use your own account will be better for connecting with your congregants.  If you are trying to do it on your own and having difficulty, call or email us and we’ll help talk you through it.

Zoom has both free and paid plans, the biggest difference between the two is the length of time for the meetings. Free plans are limited to 40-minute meetings. If your congregation absolutely needs to be on a paid plan and can't afford it, contact Communications Director David Dreisbach and he will see if we can help.
COVID-19 Resources
Communications teams from around the Episcopal Church have been diligently curating lists of resources to support and inform the church during this time of crisis. Here are just a few new ones we have found:

JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Social distancing and quarantine are life-saving measures that reduce the impacts of the new coronavirus, COVID-19, however; they also can be challenging for many people.

Join with the US Disaster Program, the Rev. Dr. Pamela Cooper-White and Bishop Chilton Knudsen in a conversation around family/partner violence, substance use and mental health as they relate to the current pandemic.
March 20, 2020
3 PM EDT/ 2 CDT/1 MDT/12 PDT

Tell us your stories!
One bright spot in this gloomy time of fear and uncertainty is hearing the many stories of how faith communities are coming up with creative and innovative ways to stay connected. What has your church been doing that's fun or unique? Tell us about it - we would love to share all your creative ideas! Send your stories (along with pictures or screen shots) to communication@diosohio.org and we will share them in future newsletters.
Keep checking our COVID-19 resource page . New information is being posted daily!
Connecting with staff
We are doing all we can to make it easy to continue to connect with the bishop's staff as we work remotely for the next two weeks. The easiest way to reach all staff members is via email or by calling their direct dial numbers  listed on our  website or at this link .