| Dear Richmond Hill Friends and Family,
We have been closely monitoring the coronavirus outbreak and recommendations from the CDC and other health experts in our community. We know the critical thing is to slow the rate of the epidemic so medical facilities are not overwhelmed. The most effective way to do that is social distancing, which for us means cancelling gatherings and minimizing visitors to Richmond Hill.
We are cancelling Richmond Hill activities from March 14-25. Between now and then, we will not hold community worship and dinners on Tuesday nights, and are cancelling other activities including committee meetings, the hosting of groups or overnight retreats, and spiritual direction sessions. We will not hold our capital campaign launch event on March 17. Residential and non-residential staff will continue our work from Richmond Hill for now, and we will continue to update our website and Facebook page as plans evolve.
The residential community will continue to open the chapel for prayers three times a day, 7am, noon, and 6pm. We invite you to join us from where you are. You can find our daily prayer cycles here, and our weekly Metro Richmond @ Prayer cycle here.
We are part of a nation and world consumed with fear and worry over this pandemic. As people of faith, we are a community built on the promise of hope and should not to give into fear, but we are also called to love our neighbor and protect the vulnerable. We are our sisters’ and brothers’ keepers and must take seriously that calling and responsibility.
This preventive action is intended to lessen the spread and impact of the virus in our community and to protect the most vulnerable among us. We will re-evaluate opening and any further steps as we approach March 25.
In the meantime, our prayers for healing must extend beyond metropolitan Richmond in recognition of our international kinship this crisis accentuates in spite of the social distancing it requires and as we live through this together.
For more information about Covid-19 and how to keep safe please visit:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html
http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/surveillance-and-investigation/novel-coronavirus/
Peace and Every Good,
Joel
Rev. Joel Blunk
Co-Pastoral Director |
