An announcement from Procter Summer Camp
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It is with great sadness and abundance of caution that Bishop Breidenthal and the Procter Board have decided to cancel all camp sessions for the summer of 2020. This was a difficult decision and one that was not taken lightly.
We know that camp is just what children and families will need when this is over. However, the safety of all our participants is of paramount importance and the seriousness of this virus can’t be overlooked. With the proximity of campers to one another in the cabins, dining hall and activities, we didn’t see how it was possible to conduct a safe, quality program with such restrictions in place.
We will all look forward to the time when we can come together safely in community at Procter. As soon as it is possible for the staff to do that safely we will offer programming and retreats once again.
To stay up to date with what’s happening at Procter, please join our First Friday Newsletter mailing list by emailing
dvogel@proctercenter.org
to be added to the mailing list.
We will be issuing full refunds for camp this summer. There are 3 options for you to choose from:
- Full refund, which will be refunded in the method in which you paid, CC or check.
- Donate your camp fee to the Procter Center campership fund. Thank you very much!
- Roll over your payment to Summer 2021.
Please email
rkimbler@proctercenter.org
if you would like to select option 2 or 3. Otherwise refunds will be processed the week of May 11.
Thank you for your understanding and we look forward to serving you and your family again soon.
Blessings and peace,
Amy R. Boyd
Procter Center Executive Director
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Tracking online attendance
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No doubt, church leaders are trying to figure out how they will record the number of people attending their “virtual” services through the coronavirus pandemic for their 2020 Parochial Reports. The Rev. Canon Michael Barlowe, Executive Officer of the General Convention, writes in a
letter sent to dioceses
,
“Senior church leadership is aware that there may be some anxiety about how to document attendance at such digital worship services, but our message is “Do not worry about this.” Most congregations and dioceses will record the number and kind of worship (Morning Prayer, streamed Eucharist, etc.); and list the virtual attendance separately as “virtual attendance” or a similar designation, using whatever counting their digital media allows.”
But trying to figure out which “number” you should use is confusing. In Facebook, there are “People Reached”, “Engagements”, “Views” and other statistics, all of which may not seem like “normal” attendance for your services. Here is a brief summary of statistics offered from Facebook, which can be found in the Insights section of your Facebook page:
- One-minute views: People who stopped on the video and watched at least one minute.
- Three second views: People who scrolled past the video, and stopped briefly (long enough for the Facebook algorithm to recognize they stopped).
- People Reached: The number of people who had the video show up in their feed (i.e. the mysterious algorithm showed them the video, but they likely didn’t stop long enough to view).
- Engagements: The number of people who liked/commented/shared the video.
After discussion with leaders from churches (Episcopal and others) that livestream often, Canon Alan Bentrup from the Diocese of Upper South Carolina recommends congregations use the One-Minute Views as the baseline measure for online attendance. It eliminates people who stumbled on a video for a second and left. Those who watched a minute or longer did it on purpose. They meant to watch you, if only for a minute, and that should count for something.
One suggestion is to count 1.4 persons per view, assuming more than one person is watching from the same computer, etc.). There are various “multipliers” that different people recommend, but 1.4 seems to be appropriately conservatice. The Diocese of Upper South Carolina has also offered this
Digital Parish Register
as a way to keep records of your virtual attendance throughout the pandemic.
All this information, plus a quick tutorial on how to find the statistics for videos on your Facebook page is posted on our
Doing Church During COVID-19
resource page, under
Tracking Online Attendance.
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Finding Peace in a Time of Anxiety
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During this historic time of overwhelming uncertainty and worldwide crisis, EquaSion, the planning group for the Cincinnati Festival of Faiths, continues the momentum of our community's interfaith collaboration through a series of short webinars, called "Turning to Faith." The second in our series will be held this Sunday, April 26, beginning at 4 p.m. To join our community's faith leaders for spiritual sharing, prayer and interactive conversation, please register
HERE to receive your passcode to participate.
This week's panel:
- The Rt. Rev. Thomas E. Breidenthal, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio
- Deborah Vance, Ph.D., Member, Baha'i Community of Cincinnati
- The Rev. Jim Newby, Pastor, Cincinnati Friends Meeting
- Aruni Marapane, Member, Cincinnati Buddhist Community
- The Rev. Connie Simon, Pastor, First Unitarian Church
- James P. Buchanan, Ph.D., Executive Director, XU Brueggeman Center for Dialogue, Moderator
Mark Your Calendar:
Sunday, May 3 - Finding Courage in a time of Overwhelming Fear
Sunday, May 10 - Finding Community in a time of Social Isolation
All programs will air from 4:00 - 4:30 pm and require separate registrations.
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Emergency Grant program for deacons
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The Fund for the Diaconate of the Episcopal Church has created a special Emergency Grant Program, to aid deacons affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Grants will cover the time-period of March 1, 2020 - Sept. 30, 2020, with applications being accepted until Oct. 15, 2020. Grants of $525 per month will be made for a three month time-period, with each grant being reviewed monthly.
Complete details, including FAQs and the Application, are on their website -
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Church Financial Management in Challenging Times
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Free webinar
April 23, 11 am CST
Special guest and CPA Michael Batts will join
Church Law&Tax
this Thursday for a conversation on the financial management challenges that pastors and church leaders are currently facing as a result of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak.
During this one-hour webinar, Batts will present on church giving methods, communication approaches with the congregation, and the financial fundamentals necessary to reduce costs, shore up cash reserves, create operational efficiencies, and maintain sound internal controls.
Additionally, the webinar will cover any new
CARES Act
updates and guidance—including any new legislation passed in connection with it—released leading up to the webinar date.
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New podcast: Liturgy and Longing: How to Sing God's Song in a Strange Land
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The liturgy of the church has been shaped by our sacred stories and rituals. Worship forms community and reflects our human experience and longings. We hope to explore the nature of our longing and how to respond as we adapt to a new and unexpected social and liturgical context brought on by social distancing in the midst of a pandemic. We find ourselves in unfamiliar territory and seeking the wisdom of others as we are forced to ask new questions and respond to the emerging context and liturgical realities.
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Race, Inequality, and COVID-19: How Churches and Faith Communities Can Respond
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The Institute for Advanced Pastoral Studies, Christ Church, Cranbrook, and Hartford Memorial Baptist Church, in partnership with the CEEP Network present
Race, Inequality, and COVID-19: How Churches and Faith Communities Can Respond
A webinar featuring The New York Times columnist, Charles M. Blow and University of Michigan Professor Angela Dillard
Wednesday, April 29
7 p.m. EDT
On Wednesday, April 29 at 7 p.m., the Institute for Advanced Pastoral Studies hosts the webinar “Race, Inequality, and COVID-19” on Zoom with Charles M. Blow, columnist for The New York Times, and Angela Dillard, a professor at the University of Michigan. Joining them as panelists will be the Rev. Charles Christian Adams (Hartford Memorial Baptist Church) and the Rev. Dr. William J. Danaher Jr. (Christ Church Cranbrook), who is also moderating the event.
"The COVID-19 pandemic will require pastors and other religious leaders in Metro Detroit from every social sector to rethink how they exercise their leadership,” said The Rev. Dr. William J. Danaher, Jr., Rector of Christ Church Cranbrook. “Given the high level of infection in Metro Detroit, and the disproportionate burden of the pandemic being borne by African Americans here, it will be impossible for pastoral leaders to move forward with our work unless we address this urgent issue in a timely way.”
Participants Include:
- Charles Christian Adams - Senior Pastor, Hartford Memorial Baptist Church; Detroit, Michigan
- Charles M. Blow - Op-Ed Columnist, The New York Times; New York, New York
- William J. Danaher, Jr. - Rector, Christ Church Cranbrook; Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
- Angela D. Dillard - The Richard A. Meisler Collegiate Professor of Afroamerican & African Studies, The University of Michigan; Ann Arbor, Michigan
This webinar is free and open to the public; however, registration is required
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Saturday, April 25
9 a.m. to noon
Join Transfiguration Spirituality Center on Saturday, April 25 for a virtual Quiet Half-Day with retreat leader Westina Matthews that will help you live into hope, inspired by Fred Rogers’ simple faith
.
Nurture the body, mind and heart by co-creating a space that enables you to search for God and draw nearer to the Holy. We will explore Rogers’ wisdom and spiritual insights though prayer, journaling, reflection, music, and interactive sharing.
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Connecting with The Episcopal Church
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Free and discounted COVID-19 resources
In the face of the COVID crisis faith leaders need data and strategies to help them rapidly and effectively adapt their ministries and programs to the realities of the novel Coronavirus pandemic.
FaithX
and their affiliates at
Datastory
have developed several COVID-specific resources that will be offered on a free or discounted basis for the duration of the crisis.
MapDash for COVID-19 is available FREE upon request. This powerful, interactive, online tool allows congregations and judicatories to identify socially and economically vulnerable neighborhoods and at-risk populations in the communities they serve, monitor deaths, recoveries, and recoveries in their areas, and map COVID-related neighborhood resources.
FaithX is a 501(c)3 nonprofit faith-based consulting, coaching, resource development, and research dissemination practice. For more information, contact the Rev. Ken Howard, executive director, at
ken@faithx.net
.
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Connecting with job opportunities
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Ascension & Holy Trinity, Wyoming
Ascension & Holy Trinity, Wyoming
St. Andrew's, Pickerington
Holy Trinity, Oxford
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All Saints, Cincinnati
Calvary, Cincinnati
St. Simon of Cyrene, Lincoln Heights and/or Transfiguration Spirituality Center
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