Greetings, brothers and sisters!

We are thankful that in the past few weeks, Los Angeles County has seen marked improvements slowing down the Covid19 transmissions. But we would like to remind you that this is the time we need to be extra vigilant, as we’ve seen how the virus can quickly roar back having been through the past few waves. Having said so, our hearts remain hopeful that we are heading in the right direction of getting back normal.

You probably have heard about talks of our reopening plan for a while now. We in fact, have gone back last year for a few weeks, trying to get ready for our congregation to return. But as the pandemic got worse, we chose to continue streaming from homes for the safety of the team. For this reopening, just like before, we won’t try to get ahead of ourselves, and will take gradual but sure steps toward the goal.

Preparation for the Reopening 

Before we share the plan for reopening of our church building, here are a few things for your considerations:

• Get vaccinated as early as possible (please consult with your doctor if you have medical conditions before getting the vaccine)

• Continue to be vigilant about infection prevention

• Do some mental exercise to think of the time it takes to get ready and come to church before the pandemic

  • Although the pandemic caught a lot of us by surprise, we were able to make quick and good decisions to respond, and have slowly gotten used to the new meeting format. Imagine if you were to come back to church today, will you be able to get yourself ready, and show up on time? The time it takes before the pandemic, in addition to dealing with all the new safety measures that are now in place, how much more time would you need? Please start assessing these situations and be prepared ahead of our actual return!

• Whether you are meeting online or in person, be reminded why we meet, and come before the Lord and worship with the right mindset.

• Pray for our returning to the church building, and support the process patiently, even if there may be inconveniences. Please know that all the new guidelines are there to help safeguard our brothers and sisters

Reopening Plan

Here are what the church has planned for the reopening of our church building:

May (Test Period)

We will have a trial run in May. This will be a transition period, not the official reopening. During this time a group of volunteers will be allowed to enter our church building for worship services. Similar to the virtual “EC Gather” meeting, this group of volunteers will be asked to watch the live stream worship service from the screens, without any ministry team being on the stage. After the worship service, the pastor/coworkers can leave the livestream room to visit the volunteers and the volunteers will be able to greet each other in person. During the trial run, we will test the logistics for check-in, traffic flow, disinfection, internet capacity, as well as setting up our equipment for the official reopening. If you are willing to participate in this trial run, please note the requirements below:

• We strongly encourage you to get vaccinated before returning

• Sign up for your attendance on a weekly basis; must arrive early at the check-in location

• If traffic is permitted, consider to attend worship service at the church building, but join Sunday school from your home (or you may use your phone’s mobile data network to join the Sunday school). This is to prevent anyone from occupying the bandwidth required for live streaming during worship service.

• If you are a Sunday School teacher and are willing to join the trial run, please contact me. We will calculate the use of bandwidth before making any arrangements.

Volunteering for the May Trial Run

If you are interested in volunteering for the trial run in the month of May, please contact Alight Tsai via this form

Church Cleanup

Our annual church cleanup event is scheduled for the end of May and each of our fellowships will be assigned to clean up different areas. It is our hope that brothers and sisters can participate in our church building to prepare for the official return in June. Our worship ministry team is anticipated to be successfully vaccinated by then. When the ventilation of the stage area and the  air filtration system for the entire sanctuary and the fellowship hall are all set to our satisfaction, we will be ready to return!

Reopening Workshop

There will be an all-hands workshop for the church reopening plan on Sunday afternoon, May 30th. Please plan to attend for more details regarding our return.

June (Official Reopening)

If God willing and the Covid disease is under control, our Church is expected to begin our official return to the church building on the first Sunday in June. The ministry team will also return and lead the worship services in person. Based on the current government’s and Los Angeles County Department of Public Health’s guidelines for coronavirus prevention, there will be a cap on the number of people that would be allowed to return to the building at this time. It also means the Sunday worship service will be made available to those on site and through livestream to all simultaneously. For those who sign up for joining the Sunday service in person, please note the following instructions:

• RSVP for your attendance weekly to receive a ticket number (registration remains open until the list is full; those who are vaccinated are encouraged to sign up)

• Come knowing your assigned number, arrive early to check in, wear your masks, follow the instructions and take your body temperature as needed

• Continue good habits to prevent spread of virus

Online Worship:

• The EC Gather Zoom meeting will continue to be available

• Breakout rooms may be used after the service for small groups

• We hope your faces with you turning on the cameras/webcams and worship together

• Youtube streaming will also be available, but using the EC Gather Zoom meeting is strongly encouraged

Other Church Activities on Sundays

Sunday School:

• Sunday school (including children’s programs) will not be available on site until the safety concerns for people gathering in small classrooms are resolved. Sunday School will remain virtual. During the trial period, volunteers are expected to: attend the worship service live at church but return to their homes to participate in Sunday School classes.

• To ensure that network bandwidth does not affect the quality of worship live broadcasts, the Church will exercise its discretion to allow a small number of teachers or students  who are unable to return home in time for joining Sunday school on site

• Pending the safety measures for in-person classes and the availability of the internet bandwidth to support the streaming demand, we look forward to gradually opening the site for Sunday School in the future.

Other Post-Worship Activities:

• Lunch service will remain closed

• Choir practices and other meetings will continue to be online (e.g., church ministry sharing/coworkers’ meetings, Joy & Evergreen Fellowship gathering, Church Council meeting)

The Church Council will make timely adjustments in accordance with the state of the pandemic and the extent to which the church building can safely accommodate the return of the  congregation. Any updates will be communicated through various platforms. We ask brothers and sisters for your support and cooperation and your prayers for the reopening. Looking forward to seeing you all!

CBCWLA Church Council