Response to COVID-19

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

In compliance with the City of Milwaukee's recent mask mandate, masks are required for those in attendance at all worship services at Grace. The only exceptions are children younger than three and those with certain health conditions as outlined by the CDC. The 7:45 a.m. service will remain a non-singing service, with singing included as usual in the other services. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter as we express love to our community and those at risk! 

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

Under the current guidelines, we are able to have 120 people sign-up for each Grace Downtown service (for a total of 480 slots per weekend). We are also offering Grace in the Ward again, with 30 spots available. In kindness and out of consideration for your fellow members and our guests,you need to sign-up online in order to reserve your spot. Please also note that new this week, the 7:45 a.m. service will require masks and have no singing. It will differ from the 9, 10:30 a.m., and Monday night service. Questions as to this change, please read the following email from Pastor Hackmann:

CLICK HERE TO READ PASTOR HACKMANN'S EMAIL ABOUT THE CHANGE

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Dear Grace Members:We’re open! Yes, Sunday, June 14, we will be offering in-person worship services!

While it is exciting that we are re-opening after all this time apart, there are some guidelines and protocols we wish to share with members so they know what to expect for worship services in the near future:

1. Please read this link, which will outline the guidelines Grace will be following for restarting in-person worship on-site.

2. Under the current guidelines, we are able to have 85 people sign-up for each service (for a total of 340 slots per weekend). In kindness and out of consideration for your fellow members and our guests, you will need to sign-up online in order to reserve your spot. We will be using the church sign-up website, reopen.church, for handling all sign-ups for worship in the near future. The sign-up will go live Wednesdays at 7 p.m.--watch for an email tomorrow at 7 p.m. with the link for the sign-up! It will also go live on the Grace website, under the Connect tab. You will need to sign up for the specific service you will be attending as well as the number of people joining you. Please note: one slot = one individual, it does not equal a slot per family. For example, if three people wish to join for in-person worship at 9 a.m., you will need to select three slots for worship at the 9 a.m. service. 

3. Finally, for those who are not yet ready and feel safer worshiping at home, we will continue to offer worship via live-stream at 9 a.m. each Sunday.

Again, these guidelines and protocols are in an effort to make you as comfortable as possible--whether that's in-person with us or at home. We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible soon!

God keep you in his care,

The Grace Pastors

Friday, June 5, 2020

Mayor Barrett just announced yesterday, June 4, 2020, that Milwaukee will be entering Phase 3 of reopening today, June 5. Public and private gatherings will be allowed at 25 percent capacity of a business or place of worship. That means we will be able to accommodate 85 people per service.

To take the proper precautions and make arrangements, the decision has been made to return to in-person worship on Sunday, June 14, 2020, while continuing to offer a live-stream of the 9 a.m. Sunday worship service for those who are not yet ready to return. More details for what worship will look like and how to sign up to attend services will be shared next week. 

We thank and praise God that he has kept you safe through this unusual time and that he has used his mighty hand to stem the tide of the virus and allow us once again to gather to worship him!

We also thank you, dear Grace members, for your patience in waiting until June 14, 2020, and for making use of the soon-to-be-shared online sign-up!

In Christ’s Service:

The Church Council and Called Workers

Tuesday, April 22, 2020

By now you've likely heard that Safer at Home is extended to May 26, 2020. Were you a little disappointed when you heard this? If you are anything like me, you were probably disappointed to think it will be longer to spend time in person with family, friends, and your fellow members at Grace. Although we don't know what will happen over the coming months, we know that God is control and will lead us through this trying time. The extension of Safer at Home is one again a reminder for us to not put our trust in ourselves or in this world, but in God. As Solomon wrote in Proverbs 3:5-6:

I want to let you know that we are continually evaluating and planning for the return of worship and Bible study as it was prior to COVID-19. As you likely have heard with the economy or your place of employment, there may be a phased return to various parts of programming at Grace. This means that we won't be able to just flip a switch and everything will go back to normal. What is more likely is that some opportunities will be available sooner, and some will take longer based on when group meeting sizes and social distancing requirements relax. This includes worship, Holy Communion, and Bible study opportunities. We continue to plan for a number of different scenarios so that we can restore programming as quickly as possible when it is prudent and safe. 

If you have any questions or would like to discuss anything further, please do not hesitate to contact me.

-Congregational President Josh Schermerhorn

Wednesday, March 25, 2020