When will Madison Heights officially re-open?

Short answer is June 7, 2020, but we will move toward re-opening in three stages:
Small Steps • May 10 — June 6, 2020 (all worship still on-line)
Soft-Opening • June 7 — July 11, 2020 (modified on-site & on-line)
Full Re-Opening • July 12, 2020 (full on-site & on-line)

What happens in the ‘Small Steps’ stage (May 10 — June 6)?

This is basically what we are doing now as we continue to follow the Governor’s lead on group sizing. However, as the Governor relaxes group gathering sizes and venues, instead of opening the main campus in stages we are encouraging Community Groups to meet together for worship. Obviously there will be different tolerances among families for such gatherings. Once group size restrictions allow, if you want to gather your Community Group for worship then please contact your Community Group leader and tell them of your willingness to host! We are leaving it up to each individual group to determine what would be best for them. This plan will cover us from NOW until June 7th. The only incremental gatherings we will do prior to June 7th for worship will be in community groups, not sanctuary gatherings.

When does a ‘Soft Opening’ mean? (June 7 — July 11)

This would be what most will consider to our ‘First Sunday Back Together’! On June 7, 2020 we will gather at 9:30 a.m. with three choices for our members:
1.) SAFER AT HOME- If you have ANY concerns or symptoms we encourage you to continue worshipping via livestream.
2.) SECURE LODGE- Adult only and child-free lodge, deep cleaned prior to Sunday, 6-foot social distance rules encouraged and masks worn by greeters. Parking in the rear of the church is requested to be reserved for Lodge worshippers.
3.) SANCTUARY AND SELF-DIRECTED SAFETY— The main building will be deep cleaned and hand-sanitizer stations will be available, but EVERY OTHER MEASURE (mask/no mask, social distance amounts, etc.) will be SELF-DIRECTED. The Jr. High room will be designated for family worship with tables and coloring for self-monitored child care. We do plan to have some system to allow people to communicate their desire for social distance and a smile rather than a hug or handshake.

There will be NO COFFEE, NO CHILDREN’S CHURCH and NO CHILDCARE provided during this phase of re-opening (June 7 — July 11, 2020). In person offerings will be done by centralized locations in the building to give tithes and offerings instead of passing the plate. People will be encouraged to print their bulletins at home, but copies will be available for those who are comfortable receiving those.

What will happen at the Full Re-Opening (July 12, 2020)

On July 12 we plan to officially re-open with Coffee, Childcare, Communion and Spring Fling. Spring Fling will happen on that Sunday after church. All sensible precautions will be made to prepare the facility and the nursery will receive a deep cleaning prior to Sunday. No Sunday School for any ages will happen on July 12th. Accommodations for the centralized locations to give tithes and offerings will remain in place and the logistics of communion will put safety and health as a top priority— individualized portions that are not passed down the pew is the most likely strategy at this time.

The Jr. High room will become the ‘Social Distance Service’ for anyone still desiring that space and this will continue until August 15, 2020.

When will ‘in-person’ Sunday School and youth activities resume?

The answer to that depends on your class and age. Sunday School for children will resume in the Fall when school resumes. Adult Sunday school classes (Boomers & Vine’s) could presumably resume on 7/19/20 in person. Final determinations about Student Ministry Sunday School have not been made yet, but a separate correspondence about that will go out to parents as soon as those decisions have been made, but NOTHING will occur on-campus for larger groups prior to June 7, 2020.

With regard to Student Ministry activities and weekly meetings we are presently holding the course with what we have been doing. Although the Governor will likely relax meeting sizes to a level that might allow our ‘normal’ meeting to resume we are erring on the side of caution for the health and safety of our children. Parents should keep an eye on their inboxes for correspondence directly from the Student Ministries staff for updates.

Have any events or activities of the church been officially ‘cancelled’?

Unfortunately, yes. We had a mission trip planned to Guatemala which has been cancelled, several of the Youth trips for the summer will likely be adjusted for size (waiting to hear) and Arts & Sports Camp will not be held this year. Making these decisions has been extremely difficult, but we are focusing on what we CAN DO this summer, not simply what we CANNOT DO! Stay tuned for some great ‘Lemonade’ ideas… when life give you lemons you make lemonade, right?

I want to VOLUNTEER to help usher, clean or serve during this process, what do I do?

Send an email to SERVE@MADISONHEIGHTSCHURCH.COM and we will be in contact with you about the needs around the church. In the email please list any physical limitations you might have. We are going to need help setting up tables, sanitizing areas, cleaning and preparing the facility. We want to make sure that we connect you with tasks that are ability-appropriate.

Other FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. Will the water fountains be operational?
Yes, but they will have signs encouraging people to take a sealed bottled water instead.

2. If there is no nursery where am I supposed to change a diaper?
There will be changing stations set up in the restrooms for this purpose.

What about ____(insert your question here)________?

Great Question!!! We knew that we would not be able to answer or address every question or concern at this stage of planning, but we knew we could give you what we did know. Please send your questions to us and we will this webpage each week with germane questions and answers. CLICK HERE to email your questions to us.

Are these plans ‘SET IN STONE’?

These plans represent our firm intentions, but like everything else these days they are subject to change. We are confident that they are conservative enough to be planning toward and ambitious enough to be encouraging. They are all contingent on gathering size limits from the Governor and the discretion of the Session. Any changes to these plans will be announced quickly. It can be said that they are not subject to ‘moving up’ i.e. we will not accelerate these dates, but we might extend the dates out if that seems prudent and wise.