Community Care: COVID Conversations
Our Values Based Conversation About COVID and Next Steps
On October 1, 2024, the Second Unitarian Board convened a values-based conversation about our ongoing congregational response to COVID that Rev. Jason was kind enough to facilitate at the Board’s request. Over the course of an hour and a half on zoom, members of our community responded to questions about what values we should keep in mind, imagining the most effective ways to welcome people to our church, what makes one feel safe at church, how participants are holding grief caused by the COVID pandemic, and what changes participants would make to our current practices to best care for our community going forward.
From communications members shared with the Board and from viewpoints shared during that conversation, it is clear that there are members of the 2U community who do not feel safe and welcome at 2U now that masking is no longer required. Whether members of our community are vulnerable to COVID due to underlying conditions or disabilities, whether they are grappling with the impacts of long COVID, whether they are caring for others who are vulnerable (including very young children who cannot be vaccinated or wear masks yet), whether they feel that protecting our community still requires the use of masks to reduce the risk disease transmission, whether they attend in person, or choose to participate remotely, it is essential to recognize that people in our church community, people that we care about, are feeling isolated from the full support of our church community.
How can we do a better job of supporting and welcoming ALL of our community at 2U? Over the last month, the board has also heard from many members of the 2U community who feel strongly that we should keep our church policies around wearing masks and community health in line with county, state, and national public health guidelines. As a faith that draws as one of its sources humanist teachings which counsel us to heed the guidance of reason and the results of science, staying aligned with public health guidance feels essential to many members of the church. This approach also aligns with the practice of Unitarian Universalist churches across the country and the Unitarian Universalist Association. At this time, we have not been able to find any examples of UU churches locally or nationally who are still implementing mask mandates. Exploring the broader interfaith community in the Chicago area further has only identified one congregation of any faith that has a mask mandate.
To remain aligned with our public health guidelines and guidance from our national association, and given specific concerns that have been raised about decreased church attendance and program participation, the 2U board is not recommending a mask mandate at this time. Masks will continue to be encouraged at 2U, in services and in any 2U space or gathering, and following our public health guidelines, will remain optional. We will continue to remain attentive to public health guidelines around vaccination, ventilation and air quality, staying at home and participating virtually when ill or when exposed to high risk situations, being vigilant about testing, practicing good sanitation and hygiene, respecting personal preferences for contact and space, and combining multiple strategies or layers of protection together. And we will continue this conversation about how to best care for each other so that we can all be in community together.
Many solutions to helping keep our community health centered have been proposed as part of these conversations. Following this conversation, the Board of Trustees will be taking the following steps:
Continuing to encourage vaccination for those able to vaccinate.
Continuing to ask that those who are ill, have recently been ill, or have been exposed to high risk situations and those who cannot attend in person have options for participating in 2U activities.
Investigating our practices for ventilation and air quality to make sure that they are in line with guidelines for reducing the risk of airborne disease
Continuing to make masks and hand sanitizer available at 2U, and increasing their visibility
Continuing to encourage and affirm mask wearing culture for all who are willing to do so. While wearing masks may exceed our public health guidelines, it can be an important part of showing members of our community that we are taking steps to care for their health and safety.
Creating opportunities for our community to learn more about disability justice, beginning with the Board.
Experimenting with different community-created gathering approaches to maximize access for all.
As we take these steps and consider solutions, creating opportunities for input into and feedback on proposed approaches. If you are interested in being part of the safety and public health task force working on creating additional solutions, or if you have information on gathering approaches to maximize access that you’d like to share, please join Board Chair Megan Dunning for a Zoom conversation on Sunday, November 10th, at 4pm, or email bot@secondunitarian.org.
The Board is not, at this time, implementing all of what has been suggested by those who came together for the discussion about COVID precautions. Please know that your voices, your honesty, and vulnerability in being part of this conversation are deeply valued, and we know it takes risk and courage to share. It is with a heavy heart that we make a decision we know feels inadequate to some in our community. We are striving to do our best for our whole community and know that we will fall short at times. Know that we are committed to continue learning, listening, and acting to the best of our ability, even as we recognize that some decisions will feel hurtful. Whether making hard decisions about the budget, staffing, or COVID precautions, the Board is committed to centering our values as we make our decisions.
