COVID Update (Effective 5/20/2021)

We’ve been looking forward to the time when we can remove the Covid-19 restrictions that were put in place last year at IVFF. With the recent CDC and PA state guidelines relaxing, and with the vaccine widely available, we can now do that.

Beginning this Sunday, we will no longer require masks in the building and sanctuary seating will return to normal.  If you feel more comfortable wearing a mask, please feel free to do so.  Please continue to keep informed on official guidelines and use caution when it comes to close contact with others.  We ask that if you are ever experiencing symptoms of sickness, you would join us online via the live stream.  For your convenience you can find this information at: Wolf Administration to Lift Mitigation Orders and When You’ve Been Fully Vaccinated (CDC)

We recognize that there is a range of circumstances and personal comfort levels within our church body, so we want to be respectful and gracious as we all navigate these changes together.  We’re thankful for this step toward normalcy and look forward to the time when we’ll all be able to gather together in-person in the near future.

Previous Guidelines for IVFF

Indian Valley Faith Fellowship will be reopening and holding live services starting June 7th, 2020

Guidelines for gathering together:

• We expect people to self-regulate in terms of social distancing. We will not be measuring the distance between people, but we will limit seating to every other pew.
• We will provide additional spaced out seating in the Fellowship Hall for viewing the service on the large TV monitor. We ask that this space be used by those who exit the sanctuary with kids or for those who prefer not going into the sanctuary.
• There is no Sunday School during the summer months. There will be no nursery care or Children’s Church during the month of June.
• We will reassess as we go into July whether to resume nursery or Children’s Church.
• There will be no greeters at the sanctuary door. There will be no bulletins in the short term.
• We ask that you wear a mask as you enter the building. As you move into the sanctuary to find your seat, it is your choice to keep it on or take it off. Please view this, not as a means to restrict anyone’s freedom, we realize that not everyone even agrees on the effectiveness of using masks. This simply is requested to allay fear and anxiety so more people feel they can attend.
• In terms of seating in the sanctuary, we ask that the back half be set aside for families with small kids who may need to make a quick exit or anyone else who prefers to maintain more distance.
• At least for the month of June, we ask that everyone sits with their family. This means there will be no Junior High or Senior High bench in the front, and no college-age bench in the back. Stick with the people you’ve been breathing on for the past 2 months.
• We will try to have plenty of hand-sanitizer on hand.  Feel free to bring your own and share.
• We will not pass the offering plates. There will be a receptacle on the side wall of the sound booth where you can deposit your offering.
• We will continue to livestream our services so everyone will have access to our worship service which can be viewed from the video link on the main home page.
• Restroom doors will be propped open part-way so no-one has to touch any handles. Let’s try to limit use to two people maximum at any one time. We encourage you to also use the bathrooms in the New Friends wing and the old restrooms in the office wing.
• We are discouraging use of the drinking fountains. Please feel free to bring along a water bottle.
• Coffee will not be prepared; the kitchen will be closed. Bring your own but make sure you have a lid if taking it into the sanctuary.
• All of these measures will be regularly assessed to determine if there is a continued need for them.

This restart also has implications for other groups within the church. Life Groups, committees, and youth groups should use their discretion in planning gatherings. In all our gatherings, please put others before yourself. Let your first instinct be “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up…” (1 Thessalonians 5:11). This is a time where we should apply the seasoning of grace in great measure as we come back together.

We give thanks to God for His faithfulness to us during this time. We give thanks to God for your faithfulness as we have weathered this season together. We ask that He guide us as we move forward.