New Guidelines for In-Person Gatherings

This month, the CDC released new guidance relaxing safety recommendations for people who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Full precautionary measures, including masks and distancing, are still recommended for unvaccinated people.

Our congregation is comprised of a mix of vaccinated and unvaccinated people – especially while vaccines remain unavailable to children under 12. Further complicating this guidance is the reality that none of us has a fully reliable way to verify who is vaccinated. Different precautions will be needed at different types of gatherings to promote safety, accessibility, and inclusion for all who hope to participate in our WellSprings community.

For the remainder of the Spring and Summer, we are lifting some of our restrictions, in keeping with the CDC’s recommendations. We expect to adjust these guidelines again later this Summer, as we prepare for the return to in-person weekly worship, this Fall.

• Masks are required for unvaccinated people. Anyone over the age of two who is not vaccinated, or has not yet reached full protection from their vaccine course (2 weeks past a J&J shot, or 2 weeks past the second Pfizer or Moderna shot) is required to wear a mask that covers the nose and mouth, and encouraged to practice social distancing, at WellSprings events.
• Discuss plans in advance, for small gatherings. If you want to gather in-person with a Team, or with a small group of people known to each other, please discuss and agree upon your plans for Covid precautions in advance. Err on the side of inclusion and hospitality, and aim to create a welcoming space for your most cautious group member. This may mean experimenting with using Zoom, FaceTime, etc. to include remote participants. If it is not possible to know in advance who may attend, you are encouraged to follow the guidance below for large gatherings.
• Stay outside and practice “masks on the move,” at large gatherings. Sunday worship at WellSprings is open to the public. Some groups are too large, or participants are too unfamiliar with one another, to make the kind of conversation recommended above practical, possible, or wise. So for now, large gatherings will be held outdoors only, and all WellSpringers over age two must wear a mask covering their nose and mouth while “on the move” – as they arrive at and leave the event, as they move around the event space, and in any situation where social distancing can not be maintained.
• Follow the lead of your host. The host of your event may request that you adopt more precautions than outlined here. This may be for their own comfort (e.g. if they are hosting you in their home), or because they wish to be inclusive of a participant who does not wish to disclose something to the entire group. Please respect the guidelines established by the host of any gathering you attend. Hosts are empowered to ask anyone who refuses to comply with the established guidelines to leave the in-person event.
• Stay home if you feel ill. Please stay home and participate remotely if you are sick, or if anyone in your household has a positive Covid test, is awaiting test results, or has had exposure to a confirmed case.

We look forward to having new opportunities to connect and re-connect – including at our Band’s live reunion concert on June 27th – this summer at WellSprings!