Herndon UMC Building and Reopening Plans
Questions about reopening? Please email the Healthy Church Team (HCT) at hct@herndonumc.org.
Questions about stewardship of our building and properties? Email trustees@herndonumc.org.
Please Wear Your Mask Inside the Building Regardless of Immunization Status
701 Bennett Street is OPEN.
We continue to offer worship and activities outside, inside and digitally. Here is what you should remember:
- The building and grounds are OPEN for church functions.
- Masks are required inside the church building. Please use the hand sanitizer at the door entrance when entering. (Masks are also available at most entrances if you forget one.)
- We continue to social distance and individuals are asked to follow posted room capacities to help maintain social distancing in smaller rooms.
- A bottle fill water fountain is available, but food should not be consumed inside the building.
During this period, the Trustees continue to to work tirelessly to promote safety and security. Learn more about their work below.
Trustees Corner
As we face this pandemic, the building may be closed, but our church remains active in Christian ministry. Our Trustees continue to work tirelessly to promote safety and security.
Questions? You may always contact the Trustees at trustees@herndonumc.org.
You will also find helpful resources here like:
A building map showing new room numbers. (Click the image to enlarge it.)
Learn more about the ministry of our Trustees here in the Trustees Tidbits blog below. These are also available weekly in the Tuesday e-News.
Improving Outside Site #1
With the weather changing, small groups will again meet outdoors to fellowship and see God in nature. Having wet feet should not be part of the experience. Through the Trustees, improvements were made to access the area outside the kitchen. Paving stones were added and the gate repaired.
Outdoor Open Phase
Outdoor Open Phase began September 13.
Some key facets of this phase include:
- OUTDOOR small group gatherings at church are allowed in the four distinct HCT/Trustee designated areas only. See diagrams below/right. There are specific entry, exit and parking spaces for each area as well. Gatherings are permitted off-site but should follow the same protocols.
- Gatherings are limited to a maximum of 12 attendees (including the group leader) and must have a group leader identified who has completed training for this phase.
- Every participant will be required to complete an acknowledgement form before every gathering that participant attends.
- The potential for occasional outdoor in-person worship will be considered, focused on celebrating the sacraments.
- Digital worship will continue and small groups are still encouraged to hold virtual meetings to maintain and create new connections.
- Max telework for church Staff continues.
- Healthy Church Team and Trustees will continue to work to define what groups are appropriate for indoor gatherings once in small indoor phase (i.e. church-affiliated only, or a broader scope).
- The Herndon UMC building remains CLOSED for in-person group activities. There is NO ACCESS to bathroom facilities for these OUTDOOR gatherings. (See the above section for information and policies regarding limited building entry.)
Outdoor Gathering Site and Drive Thru Communion Diagrams
These plans show specific entry, exit, and parking (if for a gathering site) for each of the four sites and for the Drive Thru Communion service. Please scroll through the images to see the different locations. Please note that parking is every other spot.
Town Hall – March 7, 2021
A Town Hall meeting was held over Zoom on Sunday, March 7. This offered a chance to share with the whole church community about our process to get to this point, clarification on what is in this document, and where we go from here. Additionally, there was time for questions from the church community to be shared. A video recording of the session is available on YouTube.