To Our River Road Community,
In the lifetime of our congregation – over 60 years shared ministry – we’ve never known a time quite like this one. We’ve never had our long-held strategies challenged quite so deeply by circumstances beyond our control nor been asked to adapt so quickly to a changing reality.
This is a season of ministry in motion – always finding new strategies for our core mission when the ones that have brought us this far are not currently safe or accessible.
I know you have questions about what it might mean to re-open our buildings and grounds safely given the various risk factors that face our community. Believe me, I do too. Which is why I and River Road’s board-appointed Covid-19 Advisory Team want to hear from you.
This month we invite congregants to participate in an easy, anonymous survey
to
give us a sense of how their spiritual and personal needs have been met since the lockdown and can best be met in the fall and beyond.
We also invite congregants to attend an Information Session in late August, where leaders from the congregation including myself, will be hosting a moderated online Information Session about the various adaptations to Covid-19 we anticipate in 2020-21.
In the meantime, there are a few things we can state with certainty about this ministry-in-motion we share:
1) Reopening a Congregation requires grounding in our values and theology.
It’s not the same as reopening a gym or restaurant. It’s a statement of what we believe, who we value, and how we connect. As Universalists, we believe that each and every person is important. As such, none of us is expendable. Every one of us matters and access to our core ministries can and must be available for everyone. Functionally, this means that
online and distance-learning models for
our core ministries will continue to be made available for the foreseeable future.
2) We continue to operate under Montgomery County Guidelines,
which mandate 200 square feet of space per individual or family for in-person worship. This is a deeply considered restriction which nonetheless makes onsite Sunday services difficult to achieve. We do not have a firm sense of when Phase II guidelines may be lifted in Montgomery County, but all indications point to a continuation of similar or more stringent restrictions well into the Fall and Winter.
3)
For many years, we have tied our building closures to the schedule of Montgomery County Public Schools
. In this devastating summer of rising case numbers, MCPS has made the difficult but necessary decision to offer online-only learning through January, 2021. While we are not making a concrete statement about opening dates for the interior of the building until after our survey and information session,
following this guidance would preclude large-scale indoor gatherings at least through the holiday season of 2020.
4) There is a significant financial impact
, especially in regard to our projected rental income for 2020-21. Our board and finance leaders are reviewing our budget on a quarterly basis and adapting as we go, working with our longstanding and occasional renters to develop strategies that keep everyone safe and allow us to be good stewards of our resources. At this time, we are not accepting new rental contracts through the entirety of this calendar year.
5)
We are likely to face a roller-coaster rather than a steady climb
. Whatever we encounter in the coming months, it is unlikely to take place on one clearly delineated trajectory. We will have to remain flexible, adaptive, and ready to respond to changing circumstances. These are adaptations I know that we can make together.
With great love, and on behalf of your leadership team,
