Reopening Letter from Pastor Kevin (6-8-2020)

June 8, 2020

To the Raymond Baptist Church Family:

After much prayer, discussion and research the leadership and staff are excited to announce that following the guidance of both Governor Sununu’s recent order, and desiring to be in compliance with the CDC guidelines, Raymond Baptist Church will again be opening our doors for our worship gathering starting Sunday, Sunday July 5th, 2020 at 9:00am.

The leadership team believes that this startup date best fits us as a church. This date will be a disappointment to some. Some will believe this is too late, some too early. We chose this date, not based on other church’s decisions, nor pressure, but because we felt it gave us the time that the team needed to best clean and prepare our facility, and put into place the necessary teams of people to ensure the safety of all who may choose to attend at this time. This decision is not based upon any one person’s, or group’s preferences, but because it best cares for the church as a whole.

Because our priority is to ensure a safe and reliable return to Sunday Morning Worship, please note, until further notice all church buildings will remain closed to any group meetings regardless of size. This will help to ensure any cleaning processes that will be in place during the week will not be compromised and potentially inhibit our gathering on Sunday. We will continue to monitor this throughout the summer.

Sunday Worship Requirements Phase 1.

Regarding Sundays, for those who are not feeling well, have a temperature, or are not ready at this time, or are unable to attend for any reason, we will continue serving you through our Facebook Live broadcast, and the local Raymond Town Channel 13 from which you can watch and worship at home or wherever you may be during the week.

For those who would like to attend in person, please know that we will be following safety guidelines designed to keep us all well while helping ensure the good health of all during this challenging time. These guidelines are not about fear or control and are everything to do with simply following Jesus’ teaching of considering others before yourself, serving one another, and uniting in worship regardless of our individual preferences.

Gov. Sununu’s guidelines on the surface seem too short, but read it in their entirety, there is more than is being reported in the media. They also include compliance with approved CDC guidelines and best practices, which, to the best of our ability will honor to protect the vulnerable amongst us.

If you choose to come in person on Sunday, the following safety guidelines will be in effect. You may agree or disagree with the plan in place, that is your prerogative. You may voice your thoughts to the elders, names are listed below. Please do not plan on attending if you are unwilling to abide with the policies we will have in place. Sunday at the door is not the time to have that discussion, or make a point, but do so now. Again, we feel this plan is in the best interest of our entire community- regardless of personal opinion. We all pray that these guidelines will be short-term and can be relaxed as the pandemic eases locally and worldwide, however we reserve the right to reset guidelines if community conditions change. This will be a process of return for all of us.

Sunday Morning Guidelines for Attendance Starting Sunday July 5th 9:00am.

  • You will be asked at the door if you are feeling ill in anyway or are in a high-risk health category. If so, please stay home and continue to worship with us from there.
  • Masks will be required for all. If you do not have a mask, we will be glad to provide one for you at the door.
  • Wearing of masks at this juncture will be mandatory for all who are physically able to do so. Masks protect others. Masks help our vulnerable who may attend. Masks are a way of saying we care about others and are willing to place their interest above my personal preferences. At this time, we will reserve the right to ask you not to enter the building if you are unwilling to abide by this.
  • Attendance will be taken of every person entering the building so that if a possible exposure occurs on a Sunday morning you may be contacted.
  • Seating will be greatly reduced according to guidelines. We will be setting up according to the six-foot social distancing guidelines from the CDC. This number will be different than the 40% capacity number that has been advertised. Our capacity cannot exceed the space required to provide six feet among attendees.
  • Family units may sit together. All others will be required to have a six-foot separation from the nearest person. Ushers will ask you to move if your seat is too close to a non-family member.
  • You will be ushered to a seat, and dismissal will be regulated by the ushers.
  • We may or may not need reserved seating but we reserve the right to ask for reserved seating if needed.
  • While we will continue to worship with music, there will be no congregational singing at this time. It has been demonstrated and documented the rapidity of the spread of disease via singing over normal speech.
  • IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT ENTERING THE BUILDING: Entrance doors to the church will not open until 8:45 a.m. Please remain in your car, or at a safe distance of six feet while standing outside.
  • During this phase of limited re-opening, there will be no child care or children’s church. Children must remain with the appropriate adult during Sunday mornings at all times.
  • During this phase of limited re-opening there will be no Youth Group.
  • To help eliminate handling of common objects, the ushers will not collect your tithes and offerings—please place them in the designated basket located at the back of the worship center, or continue online giving. Please bring your own Bibles if you have one.
  • Hand sanitizer stations will be located throughout the building—please use them often, especially after you have touched an object (such as a door or a pen). All hard surfaces will be disinfected throughout the morning by a sanitizing team.
  • Please love each other from a distance. No hugging, fist-bumping or hand-shaking (unless they’re members of your own family).
  • Restrooms are limited to no more than 2 at a time. Please clean all surfaces when done and minimize trips during service is possible.
  • During this phase of limited re-opening, coffee and other beverages and food will not be served.
  • Please do not congregate in the Foyer before, during or after the service. You will be directed outside immediately after service. You are welcomed to social-distance visit outdoors after service (weather permitting).
  • MOST IMPORTANT: Please PRAY for all of our Raymond Baptist Church family, whether in attendance or worshiping from home during these difficult times.

Continue to Stay Connected to Raymond Baptist Church: Facebook Live (every Sunday at 10:30am); Raymond Baptist Church App – Download for Free; Channel 13 – Raymond TV; Raymond Baptist Church Website: www.raymondbaptistchurch.com or via email at marion@raymondbaptistchurch.com

If you would like to discuss any of this, you are asked to contact one of the church elders. Please do not deluge the office with comments.

Thanks to all and looking forward to beginning this journey back.

Pastor Kevin

Contact Information of Elders

Jim Belknap
(H) 603-608-1095
(C) 207-751-7286

Scott Osterhuber
603-812-1600
sgoms03795@gmail.com

Mark Hassenpflug
markhassenpflug25@gmail.com
603-686-4651

Ted Whitten
(H) 603-895-0650
(C) 603-490-1693
tedwhitten@comcast.net

Mark Baldwin
603-734-4677
m1b16@comcast.net


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