Our Church is Closing for 2 Weeks

In light of the national coronavirus emergency, and the governor closing all Virginia K-12 schools for 2 weeks, we are cancelling all services and activities in our buildings for the next two weeks. This cancellation includes activities of our community partners like the Girl Scouts.

This two week hiatus will give our church leaders a chance to evaluate the situation, and plan for going forward. We have also learned that the Episcopal and Methodists churches in the mid-Atlantic region are also closing for two weeks, including the churches here in Chatham.

Prior to today’s announcements, we had discussed three specific ministry projects. First, establishing formalized networks of telephone calling. The CDC site suggests a buddy system for regular wellness calls within faith communities. We subscribe to an internet-based phone calling system, One Call Now. We can scale this up and add additional names to send out blanket messages. We are going to offer this to the three other congregations in our town, so they can communicate easily and quickly with their membership, too.

Second, we can provide transportation to those who might lose their regular rides during this time. We are not going to transport sick people, but those who need routine trips to the grocery, pharmacy, regular doctor’s appointments, or other necessary trips.

Third, we are planning to help those who have to self-quarantine, with groceries, and other household essentials. We currently have three Chatham residents who are self-quarantining that I know of, but I am sure that will increase.

On the spiritual side of things, we may offer an open sanctuary for prayer, encouraging “social distancing” and we will communicate devotional thoughts and prayer via our phone calling system, email, and mail. Whatever approaches we use will have the purpose of continuing to connect with our members and neighbors, and keep them connected to our faith community.

While our buildings are closed, we will use that time to clean and sanitize, anticipating our return to life as normal eventually. What is your church doing during this crisis?

21 Potential Ministry Partners for Your Church

Last year, after talking about how our church partnered with various groups in our community, someone remarked, “That’s fine for your church, but nobody in our community would work together.” In the interest of challenging that statement, here are 21 groups that I think your church (or any church) might partner with on community transformation:

1. Schools — including the PTA, PTO, and other school organizations.
2. Civic clubs — our Rotary Club gives away over $12,000 per year to local organizations.
3. Local charitable organizations — shared agendas create new partnerships. Join with others to feed the hungry or shelter the homeless. Our church does both working with other groups.
4. Local corporations and businesses — our Boys and Girls Club is supported in part by local business contributions. We get donations from other companies for other projects, too.
5. Other churches — I know this is a stretch, but yes, churches can work together, too. Our community center began as an informal coalition of local churches.
6. Law Enforcement agencies — the local sheriff’s department worked with our Boys and Girls Club on a baseball project last summer.
7. Local fire department — our local fire department was a co-sponsor for the Boys and Girls Christmas Party this year. They bought toys for each of the 86 kids who attended.
8. Hospitals — many hospitals provide programs for clergy. Why not a community project that involves healthcare, such as blood pressure screenings, etc?
9. Transportation companies — some churches provide a “free ride day” with the cooperation of their local transit provider.
10. Hobby clubs — local hobbyists could provide instruction or donate products they made for specific projects. One of our members organizes a blanket project, with all the blankets made by others. Blankets go to children involved in calls made by the Sheriff’s department.
11. Hunting and fishing clubs — In rural areas, local hunters and fishermen provide game or fish for a community wild game dinner or fish fry.
12. Professional partners — doctors, lawyers, and other professionals could partner with churches to provide legal advice for seniors, or health programs for the community.
13. Banks and financial institutions — Banks often look for ways to do good in their communities, and you can tap that civic spirit in the form of sponsorships or volunteers.
14. 12-step programs — Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, and other 12-step type programs depend on church facilities for meeting space. But, there could also be other tie-ins with these groups.
15. Local politicians — we invited local county supervisors to our community center groundbreaking and some came! During an election year especially, local politicians can lend their names to worthwhile projects. Maybe some money, too.
16. Other religious groups — the church we attended in Nashville years ago partnered with other churches, synagogues, and mosques to create an interfaith dialogue group that met for dinner once a year.
17. Colleges and universities — our community music school is a collaboration with Virginia Tech’s Outreach Department. Universities often need to do community outreach as part of their mission in their state.
18. Community Development Corporations — these are groups whose mission and projects aim at community transformation. A lot of variety exists in CDC programs, from low-income housing, to rehabbing old buildings, to targeting specific civic problems.
19. Social service organizations — our church hosts the annual Social Services Volunteer Luncheon each year, sponsored by our local county Social Services Department. We call them to check out folks who request help, and they call us when they have a need with which they need assistance.
20. Scouts — often Scouts need projects to earn merit badges and churches need things done. Check with your local scout leaders.
21. Professional sports teams — our local minor league baseball team sponsors church night and gives church groups discounts. But, this partnership could be expanded to provide visits to children in the local hospital, or to your church after-school program.