Dear UUCA community,
The current COVID wave, driven by the Omicron variant, is disrupting our lives once again. Many of our plans have been canceled or changed. Many of us are getting notifications about having been in close contact with someone COVID-positive, are hearing that a loved one has COVID, or are learning of organizations or businesses that are shutting down. Whether you are feeling overwhelmed, fearful, concerned, or even resilient, please know that we – Rev. John, members of this congregation, and I – care about you and are available.
Considering these new COVID realities, we are pivoting. Please read this entire article for important information.
We are grateful for how effective our COVID mitigation strategies have proved to be, and our continuing them since hospitals continue to be hit hard and COVID rates are still high, though falling. Below are our current policies and practices, each of which will be re-evaluated on February 7 and may or may not be necessary after that point. We thank you for working with us to gather more safely in person:
- We will now require high-quality masks (KN95 or equivalent) when entering UUCA. (93 percent of respondents to our survey agreed!) A high-quality mask is available for you if you do not have one. These are reusable again and again until they become wet or grimy. Consider keeping one in your car for use at church every week.
- We will be keeping doors and windows open on Sundays. (60 percent of respondents to our survey agreed.) Please bundle up, and even bring a throw blanket if needed.
- We will require everyone who is attending to be vaccinated (if age eligible).
While not protocols that we can monitor, we also ask that:
- If you receive a positive test result OR are experiencing symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, headaches, or even very mild cold or sore throat symptoms — please stay at home and isolate yourself from others in your household. If you were COVID-positive while at UUCA, please notify me, Rev. John, or a staff member.
- Regardless of your vaccination status, if you are waiting for a COVID-19 test result that was taken after symptoms or close contact, please stay at home until you receive a negative test result. Our staff and volunteers are following this for the safety of all.
- We highly encourage our people to get the COVID-19 vaccine, and the “booster shot” if available. Visit vaccinate.dc.gov or https://coronavirus.maryland.gov/pages/vaccine to get started.
We expect and hope that these steps will help flatten the rising curve of COVID-infections and allow us to return to more typical practices.
I appreciated the several thoughtful emails I received with additional information regarding our community during this pandemic. It was good to hear from many that though they will attend online only, they are still very much part of our church. Please know that I read and consider each email with care.
May you (and we) have safe and happy days ahead.
With you in my thoughts and heart,
Rev. Anastassia