MAY 20th, 2020

Dear Park Royal Family,

The last couple of months have been challenging for so many people. Our world has been impacted in a way that I’m sure none of us ever imagined. We have all done the best that we can to carry on with our lives, hoping that our time of isolation and restricted access to our regular activities will soon change for the better. We know that each person faces their own struggles in this time and as a church we pray that each of you will know God’s love as we journey forward. We hope that in the near future we will be able to gather in again and enjoy the presence of community in worship and fellowship.

In March, we formed an Emergency Response Team at Park Royal. This team took on the responsibility of addressing the challenges facing our congregation in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. This group has met via phone/video conference call every few weeks to keep updated on current situations and make necessary adjustments to our practice of ministry. The main decisions made to this point were:

• To suspend in-person worship in our building indefinitely. Until we receive word from the Health Department that we can resume worship safely we will continue to bring worship to you through recorded services.
• To close our building to the public indefinitely. This included all church groups and renters of our space.

Our team has continued to respond to any queries or requests made of the church. Our aim has always been to make decisions with our faith guiding us to do what we believe is in the best interests of the church. We have also continually examined how we can best minister to our congregants and the community.

Recently, an opportunity to help our wider community was brought to us. For many years Park Royal has provided space for the operation of Headstart Daycare and the before/after school programming of Kids Connection. Both of these groups have been contacted by our government with a request to open their spaces to provide daycare to a limited number of children. The children who would benefit from this opportunity would be children of essential care workers. This request was then passed on to us. Our Emergency Response Team agreed that we want to do what we can to help our community. Therefore, we have approved the request for these spaces to open to a limited number of children and staff. These spaces will open on May 25^th, 2020.

We have been assured that strict protocols will be followed by all involved to minimize any risk of the spread of disease. The Health Department will be making regular checks to make sure that protocols are adhered to. The list below details what spaces will be used:

• The Fellowship Hall will be used for the care of three children. Workers and children will use the door below the covered veranda that is regularly used by Kids Connection.
• The Headstart Daycare will be used for the care of three children.
• A portion of our gymnasium (the stage end) has been sectioned off with large dividers. There will be three children cared for in this area.
• The downstairs entrance between the two groups will only be used by the staff of the Headstart Daycare.
• Staff for the respective groups will be allowed access to two of the bathrooms next to the Fellowship Hall.

It is important to note that these groups will be restricted to the specific areas as mentioned above. There will be no access to any other areas of our church building.

Starting as soon as June 1^st, the number of children and staff allowed to be in each space may be increased by decision of the Health Department. If there are any major changes to the above information we will do our best to inform you.

Congregation members can continue to drop envelopes through the mail slot by the Headstart entrance. The basket that receives the envelopes will now have a locked top on it. Our Office Administrator will be the only one who has a key to open the box. You offering envelopes will be safely secured.

If you have any questions regarding the above information, please do not hesitate to contact Rev. Dave or Rev. Keith.

We continue to pray for all who are deeply affected in these unprecedented times. We wish each and every one of you the grace, love and peace of Christ as you journey through the days ahead.

 

Yours in Christ,

Rev. David Campbell – on behalf of the Park Royal Emergency Response Team

 

Emergency Response Team Members:

 

Ron Gillespie

Bruce Norton

Garth Sanderson

Donald MacLean

Donna Carr

Doug Carr

Andrea Ellis

Lee Drake

Rev. Keith MacPherson

Rev. David Campbell

 

APRIL 1st, 2020

Hi folks,

Our Emergency Response Team met via phone conference yesterday to continue discussion regarding our use of the Park Royal building and the staff’s ongoing attempts to provide ministry to the congregation.

Our team unanimously agreed that we will be suspending public worship and all church related activities in our building up to and including May 10th. I know that this may come as difficult news for many folks in our community. However, in order to be good stewards of our community, our province, our country and the world, we must continue to abide by the recommendations of the PEI Health Office and the Government of Canada.

In addition to the continued suspension of public worship we have decided to completely close down our building as of April 1st. The back door which leads up to the church offices is now closed and locked. Some of you had been using that entrance to drop off offering envelopes in the lighthouse. Instead, we ask that you drop your offering envelopes through the mail slot at the entrance next to the Headstart Daycare (the lower entrance that is on the same level as the gymnasium and the kitchen…the mail slot is on the left). If you are looking for a printed copy of the weekly bulletin, you will find copies in a plastic tote outside the same door.

Traditionally, during Holy Week, we alternate hosting a service on Maundy Thursday with St. Mark’s Presbyterian and also Good Friday with Spring Park United. This year we were due to worship at St. Mark’s on the Thursday and to host Spring Park on the Friday. I’ve been in touch with the ministers at both congregations and we were all in agreement that each church would provide their own ministry for these services. We will do our best to put out some content for you next week to stay engaged with the story of Holy Week.

Donna will only be in the office once a week to take care of any administrative matters that are necessary. She will check the voicemail at the church regularly.

If there is an emergency please don’t hesitate to call or email myself or Keith:

Rev. Dave: (902) 394 0734 – davidparkroyal@eastlink.ca or rev.davecampbell@gmail.com

Rev. Keith: (902) 969 6784 – kr_macpherson@hotmail.com or keithparkroyal@eastlink.ca

 

Make sure you press the “like” button on our facebook page and also press the subscribe button on our YouTube Channel: “Park Royal United Church”. This will alert you to anything new that we are posting.

While the doors of our church remain closed it is important to remember that the church is so much more than just a building. While the physical building of Park Royal brings comfort to many so does the outreach of our people. This is an excellent time to embrace new ways of staying in touch and ministering to one another. Ask yourself, “What might God do in this impossible situation?”

 

March 26th, 2020

Our emergency response team agreed that we would suspend worship through April 5th.
Our group will meet to discuss further steps later next week.

Park Royal Emergency Plan

March 15^th, 2020

Hi folks,

In the midst of the current pandemic we at Park Royal are committed to continue ministering to our community. Making decisions in this time is challenging and we ask that you continue to bear with us as we work to find the best possible solutions.

We encourage everyone to take note of the guidelines from the Chief Medical Health Office of PEI. If you have been traveling outside the country or been in contact with someone who has been traveling outside the country please adhere to the 14 day self-isolation rule. Please also continue good handwashing procedures.

On Sunday March 15^th, at 2:00pm a meeting was held at the church to work on a plan in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Present at this meeting were:

Rev. David Campbell, Rev. Keith MacPherson, Andrea Ellis (Music Director), Ron Gillespie (Chair of Session), Doug Carr (Treasurer), Bruce Norton (Chair of Ministry & Personnel), Donald MacLean (Past Chair of the Board of Stewards) & Donna Carr (Church Administrative Assistant).

Together we tried to address as many situations as possible that the church is responsible for.

The following are decisions made by the above group with regards to activities, ministry and the roles of Church staff members. These decisions will be in effect for the period of March 15^th through March 29^th.

Scheduled Activities:

• Worship Services on March 22^nd and March 29^th are cancelled. This includes all church related activities scheduled for those days: Worship, Park Royal KIDS Program, Junior Choir etc.
  • The Worship Leaders will be working on a plan to produce a worship service each Sunday that will be accessible to folks from their homes. We will also be looking at other ways to stay connected as a faith community during this period. We will update you as soon as possible on this matter.
  • Please pay attention to email, the church website (www.parkroyalunited.org) and the church facebook page (make sure you hit the “like” button on our page) for updates.

• All church related activities including UCW meetings (on church premises), Guitar Group, Park Royal Choir, Among Friends, Junior Choir, Thursday Lenten Study, Tuesday Coffee at Tim Horton’s and all Committee meetings (Stewards, Worship, Official Board, Fundraising) are cancelled.
• Funeral Services will be handled on a case-by-case basis. We are awaiting word from the Province and funeral homes on how these events will proceed.
• Rental groups will be contacted by the church office to speak to each situation.

Staff:

• Office Hours will resume as normal.
• If you intend to come into the office, we ask that you please call ahead of time.
• Dave and Rev. Keith will not be doing pastoral visits to the hospital, to nursing homes or to private homes unless it is an emergency. We are available to do pastoral work over the phone. You can reach Rev. Dave at (902) 394-0734 or Rev. Keith at (902) 969-6784.

Church Finances:

• We have placed the lighthouse (formerly used in the foyer for charitable donations) just inside the back door that leads to the church offices. Please place your offering envelopes through the slot on the lighthouse. The lighthouse will be emptied at the end of each day.
• If you wish to give your offering through another means you can donate via the Canada Helps website by clicking on this link: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/park-royal-united-church/

Outreach:

• If you are among the population at the greatest risk (Seniors and those with compromised immune systems) and you are in need of groceries or other items to be delivered please contact Andrea Ellis – andreaparkroyal@eastlink.ca or call the church office at (902) 894 9656.
• If you are willing to help with delivering items please contact Andrea or call the church office.

Please keep the Park Royal Staff, our faith community, our country and our world in your prayers. Our Emergency group will gather again in the near future to provide more updates.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call or email us.

Yours in Christ,

The Staff and Leadership Team of Park Royal