We’ve been given the GREEN light by Governor Holcomb to reopen the Forward Church building for gathering.
As of now, there are 5 phases for the state wide plan:
Phase 1 – COMPLETE.
Phase 2 – We are currently in this phase. May 4 – May 23, limit of 25 people gathering
Phase 3 – May 24 – June 13, limit of 100 people gathering
Phase 4 – June 14 – July 3, limit of 250 people gathering
Phase 5 – July 4 and beyond, fully open
Churches have been given approval to gather immediately, as long as we practice social distancing. However, Forward Church has decided to follow the gathering guidelines from each phase shown above.
With the phases that are planned, and with everyones health and safety in mind, we are launching the following plan for reopening the Forward Church building for gathering.
Forward Church plans to reopen for Worship Service beginning Sunday, June 14th!
This will give us time to prepare our teams and building for meeting the CDC guidelines, as well as time for everyone to mentally prepare for gathering once again in a larger setting. This also gives time to observe how the phasing is progressing and hopefully prevent us from needing to close again should a setback occur in the Governors plan.
To say we are excited to worship together with you once again is a huge understatement.
We also want to be as prayerful and careful as possible so we can open the right way, and the safe way, for all of our people and our guests.
So what does this mean for our Forward family?
We’ve created this information to help you have detailed information about our efforts to provide a safe on campus worship experience for you and your family. We will have a limited opening Sunday, June 14th, with a Worship Service at 10:30 am. Doors will open at 10 am. Please follow social distancing as you enter and exit the building.
We are asking people to PRE-REGISTER through our website for the service in order to limit crowd size based on our seating capacity and social distancing requirements.
All seating can be reserved on our website on a first-come, firstserved basis. It is imperative that everyone pre-register so that no one has to be turned away due to over capacity or un-safe social distancing.
Once the 10:30 am service is full, we will begin a waiting list and consider adding a second service. If there are enough preregistered reservation requests that would meet a minimum of 25% capacity, then the second service will begin at 2 pm. A second service will be decided on a week by week basis depending on pre-registrations and capacity.
We are excited to let you know that we will be spending the next month expanding the Worship Center into the back warehouse space so that we can utilize another 2,000 square feet to spread out and social distance during the service!
During the service, we will give important information and help people maintain a safe six-foot distance as they worship.
Families can and should sit together, but there must be at least three seats between you and the next family or individual sitting on your particular row.
We encourage you to bring your own mask, and hand sanitizer. (Even though we will have hand sanitizer on campus, we encourage you to bring some as well. If you would like to donate some to help us have more than enough, that would be great, too!)
On the second Sunday of each month, we will use pre-packaged communion only. You can pick that up on your way in. There will be no bulletins handed out.
Giving
Parking Lot
- Parking lot volunteers will direct you to a lot.
- Once there, you are allowed to park wherever you want.
- Please remember to follow social distancing guidelines as you walk in the parking lot.
Greeters
- Will wear gloves, and masks.
- Only one person per set of doors. No handshakes, fist bumps or hugs.
- We’ll do our best to ensure no one will have to open a door.
Atrium
- We will clearly identify and specify “entrance” and “exit” doors.
- We will keep areas as clear and open as possible.
- We will have tape marks on the floor to assist in social distancing.
- There will be flow arrows on the floor to help guide you through the building.
Services
- We will start with the 10:30 service only, and if registration makes it necessary, add a service at 2:00.
- We will only use pre-packaged communion set out on tables for people to pick up on their way in.
- Coffee will not be available until Phase 5 when things are fully opened back up.
- We will have ushers in the Worship Center helping people find their seats and follow the flow patterns.
Baptisms
- Baptisms will be done on an individual basis. There will be no multiple baptisms in one day, unless it is members of the same family.
- We will also be available to do private baptisms later if people are more comfortable with that.
Nursery and School Aged Children
- There will be no nursery or childcare provided.
- We are encouraging families to worship and sit together.
- The Governor has suggested no nursery or childcare until school resumes in the fall.
Ministries
- There will be no forKids, Propel Middle, Propel High, Homegroups, or Bible Studies gathering in person at this time.
- We do have options available online, please check our website www.forwardchurchfamily.com
Housekeeping
- We are adding cleaning teams to clean before, between and after all services.
- We will wipe down all tables, chairs, door knobs/handles, all equipment, etc.
- We will encourage and gladly accept donations of hand sanitizer, wipes, Lysol, etc.
Water Fountains
- All water fountains will be shut off and tables placed in front of them with bottled water.
- We will have hand sanitizer there as well.
Hand Sanitizer
- We will have hand sanitizer everywhere, especially in the Atrium and restrooms
Giving Envelopes
- Giving envelopes will be on tables along with pre-packaged communion.
Rest Rooms
- Two people allowed in the restrooms at a time.
- One sink will be closed off to allow for social distancing.
- The restrooms will be cleaned before and after each service.
Classrooms
- The Propel Classroom, forKids classrooms, and all other rooms and hallways will be closed.
IMPORTANT – If you are over 65 or have any concerns or health issues, we strongly recommend you remain at home and watch our online service which will continue at the normal time.
