For updates on our operating status, please visit this page regularly, or follow us on the church’s Facebook, Realm or Twitter accounts.

A Word from Pastor Donalson:

“Right now, we find ourselves in unprecedented times and unchartered territory. To say that the last 5 months have been difficult would be an understatement. The spread of COVID-19 has affected our lives in ways that none of us could foresee to include how we fellowship and worship together as a family in Christ.  Our last in person fellowship was in March and being out of the Sanctuary has been especially challenging. But know that every decision that has been made has been made in love, saturated in prayer, and in the best interest of your families. 

Because Northern Virginia continues to be a hot spot for COVID-19, I put together a team whose purpose would be to assess the recommendations of our State Government and put together a strategic plan on how we could re-enter the Sanctuary for in-person worship services. This team has laid out a comprehensive, sensible, and thoughtful plan that we pray will keep you protected from any danger of contracting or unknowingly spreading the virus. As I have been saying every Sunday following the sermons, we must understand that CHURCH WILL NOT BE THE SAME for the foreseeable future. We will all need to be patient and pragmatic and work together in these unchartered waters. I know all of you will help us rise to the occasion and I want to thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Please understand that the health and safety of the membership of our Mount Pleasant is our number one goal and as such, we will follow the directions of the CDC and the State of Virginia. You can check their websites to see what we used as our primary guides for our decisions.”

Your Servant in Christ -

Dr. Kevin E. Donalson Sr.

Senior Pastor

Updated: October 13, 2020

 

OPERATING STATUS

Current Operating Status: All services and Word Fuel classes are online. Church is only open to essential personnel required to support online services and church maintenance  facilities.

MPBC RE-ENTRY PLAN

The following procedures will be used when the church opens for physical attendance.

SAFETY PLAN

1. Pre-Arrival Checklist

There will be a checklist sent out via email to the membership and posted on the Realm and MPBC website. We are asking that each member would review the checklist weekly and assess the health status of yourself and your household prior to attending service at Mount Pleasant.

If you answer yes to any of the questions on the checklist, we are asking that you avoid in-person worship service and stay home and take advantage of the live streaming services on Facebook Live and YouTube Live.

If you have a fever or symptoms of COVID-19, or if you have known exposure to a COVID-19 case in the prior 14 days, you are asked to not attend in person worship services and take advantage of the live streaming services on Facebook Live or YouTube Live.

For those Church Family members who may have had close contact with a person with COVID-19 we are asking you to stay home and take advantage of the live streaming services on Facebook Live and YouTube Live. Close contact is defined by the CDC as "Being within approximately 6 feet of a person with COVID-19 for about 10 minutes, living with someone who has COVID-19, taking care of someone with COVID-19, and having direct contact with infectious secretions from a person with COVID-19.”

We will continue to offer Online Worship Services for any Church Family who do not feel comfortable coming to Worship Service for any reason.

 

2. Proper Hygiene Practices

When you arrive at the church, there will be a health check in the Parking Lot. This will consist of a temperature check and brief health survey.

We encourage you to continue to maintain good hand hygiene, washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. We will have adequate supplies to support healthy hygiene behaviors, including soap and hand sanitizer.

 MASKS MUST BE WORN AT ALL TIMES. Masks are meant to protect other people in case the wearer is unknowingly infected but does not have symptoms. If you do not have a mask, one will be provided for you. If you cannot wear a mast for a sustained period, you will not be able to attend in person Worship Services.

Water Fountains WILL NOT be available for use. Bottled water will be available if needed.

3. Physical Distancing

Following the guidelines of the CDC we will social distance while on the campus. We will provide physical guides, such as tape on pews, floors or walkways and signs on walls to ensure that congregants always remain at least 6 feet apart to the best of their ability.

Family members may be seated together but everyone else will be seated in six-foot increments.

4. Cleaning and Sanitizing the building

The church building will be cleaned in between each Service.

We are asking that once church is over, you exit the building immediately so that the cleaning may start.

Industrial cleaning supplies will be used. If these products types are a known irritant for you and or family members you may want to consider staying at home and participating in the streaming services on Face Book Live or YouTube Live.

ALL activities at the Church during the week will remain cancelled unless approved by the Senior Pastor. (We will continue to live stream Wednesday Bible Study!)

5. In case someone becomes sick during in- person Worship Services

If anyone begins to show symptoms during Service, they will be taken to the Crying Room until they can be transported home.

We will notify local health officials if a person diagnosed with COVID-19 has been in the facility and communicate with staff about potential exposure while maintaining confidentiality as required by HIPPA, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or other applicable laws and in accordance with religious practices.

Our protocol will be to close off areas used by the sick person (s) and to not use the area until cleaning and disinfection has been completed. We will ensure safe and correct application of disinfectants.

We advise congregants with symptoms of COVID-19 or who have tested positive for COVID-19 not to return to the facility until they have met CDC’s criteria to discontinue home isolation and or been properly cleared by authorized medical staff.

Service Attendance and Participation Guidelines

1. Worship Service

Following the CDC guidelines stating that occupancy shall be limited to no more than 50% of the lowest occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy of the room or facility in which the religious services are conducted, we will have no more than 180 for each Service (this includes members attending and support staff). We will have Service at 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM and will continue to offer Online Service at 10:30 AM each Sunday.

Members will be asked to RSVP for a specific Worship Service on The REALM. Once we reach our maximum capacity, we will shut the RSVP mode down, which will be an indication to either search for another Service or participate in our online Service. We are asking that you come to the Worship Service that you sign up for.

We will have an abbreviated worship service at both services.

2. Our Best Practices are as followed:

The choir will be limited to 6 people  (not including musicians)

We will walk to receive the offering. Offering will be held at the end of service. We will use best social distancing practices to receive the offering.

For the Lord’s Supper on the 4th Sunday. We will populate the pews with the elements using the cup holders in the back of the pews and will also utilize the empty bible holders for additional space. Used containers will be left in holders behind the pews and the Ushers will collect them between services.

We will have one Men’s and one Women’s bathroom open during services. We are asking you to limit it to three persons in a bathroom at a time.

Baptisms will be suspended until further notice.

Baby Blessings will be scheduled through the Senior Pastor’s office and may be done on an alternate date.

 3. Church Activities

Due to CDC and the State of Virginia Guidelines it is best that we continue to follow Social Distancing Guidelines. Thus, Sunday Service is all that will be offered in the MPBC building until further notice.

Wednesday Night Bible Study will continue to be offered online.

There will be NO CHILDREN’S CHURCH.

All Meetings will continue to be virtual.

Download the Complete MPBC Ministry Continuity Plan Amid COVID-19

Use this link to download a PDF of the MPBC Ministry Continuity Plan Amid COVID-19

RE-ENTRY SCHEDULE

PHASE I                    DAILY OPERATION WITH MINIMUM STAFFING (see pages 2 through 9 of the MPBC Ministry Continuity Plan)                         July 7th

PHASE II                   REOPEN WORSHIP SERVICE  (see pages 10 through 30 of the MPBC Ministry Continuity Plan)                                                        TBD

PHASE III                  MPBC CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (see pages 30 and 31of the MPBC Ministry Continuity Plan)                                                                 TBD

PHASE IV                 Full Operation (within Federal, State, and Local Guidelines, see pages 32 and 33 of the MPBC Ministry Continuity Plan)            TBD

 
CDC and State of Virginia Guidance

Please see the below sites for the guidance used to develop the MPBC Re-Entry Plan:

CDC’s main COVID-19 Web page: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Virginia Department of Health COVID-19 Web page: http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/
Virginia Governor’s COVID-19 Web page: https://www.virginia.gov/coronavirus/