Covid 19 Updates

 

Dear Family and Friends of St A's:

What a blessing to know the promises of God, that He will "never leave us or forsake us," that He will be "with us always, to the end of the age", that he walks with us even "through the valley of the shadow of death," and that we need "fear no evil." And there are so many more -- thank you, Lord!

At this time, a number of decisions have been made to help "flatten the curve" of transmission of Covid-19. None of these decisions are motivated by fear or anxiety, but rather by love and a desire to care for one another responsibly during such a time as this.

Please note that all cancellations are to be considered "until further notice"

  • Worship gatherings cancelled - Following the Government of Ontario's decision to declare a state of emergency and to ask that gatherings be limited to less than 50, we have decided to cancel all worship gatherings until further notice. Worship services online - As long as we are able to do so, the staff and I will continue to plan and conduct worship services, but they will only be available online. Worship services, including prayer, scripture readings, announcements, and sermons will be pre-recorded and posted to our YouTube channel. Services will be made available each week on Sunday mornings at 9:45 am. You can watch them anytime, but they will be posted on Sunday mornings so that you can maintain your Sunday morning habit of attending worship at St A's.

  • Bert and Sylvia are working on sending out material to parents and families for at home Sunday School experiences too, so there will be things for the entire family to connect to.

  • Pastor's hours - Our Pastor is trying to do his part by staying home as much as possible. However, please know that he is still available by email, phone and text. If you would like to call him for any reason, please call the church.

  • Staff hours - Jackie, Bert and Janie have been told to work from home for as much as they possibly can. Jackie will be in the office for a relatively short time Mondays-Thursdays in order to stay on top of necessary tasks, but the building will otherwise be closed. If you NEED to come into the church for some reason, please be sure to connect with Jackie ahead of time to be sure that she will be there to let you in. Of course, if you have any cold/flu symptoms, we would ask you to NOT come into the church at all and to self-isolate as mandated by all levels of government at this time.

  • All small groups and church meetings cancelled - Even though the numbers are much smaller and well within the allowed 50-person minimum, we have heard medical and infectious disease experts state that gatherings of any size are unwise at this time. The Spiritual Formation Team has been in touch with all small group and Alpha group leaders and everyone is in agreement that all in-person small groups should now be on temporary hiatus. If small group and/or ministry team leaders would like to explore meeting via video conferencing software, please contact the church and we will help you make arrangements to do so.

  • Use of the building - As noted above, other than necessary staff tasks and possibly a few other needed things, the church building will be closed for the time being. As such, we have temporarily suspended our rental arrangement with Yulin Church (the Korean congregation meeting at St A's). Please pray for Pastor Mark and the congregation as they deal with this unfortunate news and as they navigate this difficult situation. Food Bank - One exception to all of the cancellations and closures is our weekly food bank. In this time of heightened need, we will continue offering help to the more vulnerable members of our community through our food bank. Staff and food bank volunteers will be implementing new procedures to severely limit contact (e.g. one person at a time, food packages prepared in advance, etc.). Please pray for our regular food bank friends and clients.

  • Staying in touch - The elders have been asked to be as proactive as possible in keeping in touch with the members of their districts. We have also asked staff and ministry team leaders to keep in close contact with the leaders and members of their ministry teams. We would also encourage each one of you to make a point of picking up the phone and connecting with St Andrew's friends on a regular basis through this time, and especially those who might be most vulnerable due to our current situation (e.g. age, health, isolation, mobility, etc.).

  • Summer camp - It sadness that we announce that summer camp must be canceled. It is clear to us that summer day camp as we have come to know it cannot happen this year, as such refund for those whom have already registered will be issued in June. Starting in July we will be posting an online summer camp program. With instalments throughout the week. Please watch for more updates.