Easter 2021 in person: March 19, 2021

 Dear FPC Members and Friends,

We are so excited about the opportunity to begin to worship together in person, beginning on Easter Sunday, April 4, at 8:45 and 11:15 am. The pandemic has been a hardship for us, as individuals and as a community, but God is bringing us through it! We look forward to seeing everyone in person, as soon as possible, and renewing our relationships.

So that we can get a sense of your plans, please respond to the Survey Monkey at the end of this letter.

To be as covid cautious as possible, the session has rented a 40’ x 60’ tent to be set up in the parking lot near the Fellowship Hall for our worship gatherings for the month of April. Since we know that some members will  not feel comfortable gathering in April, the services will continue to appear online, with audio and video, using the same link that we have been using throughout the pandemic: https://fairfaxpresbyterian.org/fpc/sermons

In these April services, the focus will be on gathering as a congregation and reconnecting. The services will include music and other traditional elements of worship, but they will be quite simple. We will be able to restore our services to their fullness and complexity over time. For now, let us simply enjoy one another!

To prepare you for these services, we want to let you know about some adjustments made for your safety:

• There will be no hugging, hand-shaking or passing of the peace.
• Bulletins will be printed but will be left on a table to be picked up, not handed out by the ushers. You can also use the QR code on the FPC homepage to pull up the bulletin and read from your phone.
• There will be no hymnals, but all hymns will be printed in the bulletin.
• Choir and brass will provide music from a distance.
• No communion will also be conducted in person. Please plan to have communion at home during the live-streamed service on Maundy Thursday, April 1.
• Prayer requests will be submitted online, using the prayer portal on the website.
• Everyone will wear masks and remain socially distanced.
• Please arrive early, if possible, and move chairs into covid-cautious pods (six feet between family groups). Also, please put a folding chair in your car trunk, in case we run out of chairs. That will be a good problem to have!
• Please stay home if you are feeling ill (especially if you have fever or symptoms of covid-19), and worship online.
• We will not be passing plates for the offering, but we will have an offering box. Please make your offering online if you are able.
• Feel free to worship from your car in the FPC parking lot, using a smartphone, if you want to come to church but maintain a distance.
• April may be chilly, so dress for the out-of-doors!

We will need many hands to make this outdoor worship a success. If you have not already done so, please volunteer your support for setting up and putting away A/V equipment, chairs, and choir items through this SignUpGenius: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30e0e4ca5af29a46-tent

Also, we want to hear from all of you about your plans for likely attendance at Easter and other worship services outside, and also for worship in May, when we hope to be back in the Sanctuary. Please reply using this Survey Monkey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6T7LV63

We have missed seeing you, and we know that you have missed being together as a congregation. With God’s help, we will be together soon!

In hope, health and peace,

Henry G. Brinton & Yena K. Hwang