COVID-19 Updates

Trinity Baptist Church intends to follow the COVID guidelines and restrictions mandated by government. Though the pandemic has required Trinity Baptist Church to adapt our methods, our God-given mission and ministry freely continues. We pray for, and respect, the God-given authority of governments and their difficult task of guiding society through a global pandemic. We pray for, and respect, the good work of scientists, health care workers, and many others working on the frontlines. We recognise that a timely demonstration of loving our neighbours is through adhering to public health measures. It is our prayer and hope that, in all these things, we would bring honour to the name and reputation of Jesus Christ, our living hope.

February 10, 2022

Join us for live, in-person services here at Trinity. In accordance with AHS guidelines, Sunday Worship Services are socially distanced and masked. Tickets are no longer required and building capacity limits are no longer in place. Please note, however, that socially distanced seating in the sanctuary greatly reduces our seating capacity. Sunday morning seating in the sancutary will be on a first come first seated basis. We will be using the Fireside Room as overflow if required.

October 22, 2021

September 17, 2021

September 10, 2021

In accordance with Strathcona County's Bylaw 53-2021, Trinity Baptist Church requires all attendees, weekly visitors and group participants to wear a mask when in the church building. As many businesses, schools, and other organisations already require masks, we would encourage Trinity's congregation to continue to attend on Sundays while wearing a mask. If you are not feeling well, please feel free to enjoy the service online from home. No tickets are required for in-person attendance at this time. We look forward to seeing you all very soon!! Watch a video update HERE of what is coming at Trinity this fall.

July 2, 2021

Join us for live, in-person services here at Trinity. Sunday Worship Services no longer require tickets, there will not be an attendance cap, and masks will not be required. For the next while, we will be maintaining one section of the sanctuary as a 'socially distanced' section for those who would feel more comfortable maintaining social distancing at this time. In addition, if you would like to continue wearing a mask during services, please feel free to do so. Although mask requirements were lifted on July 1st, we want to invite you to proceed at your own pace and comfort level while at Trinity.

June 10, 2021

The Province of Alberta moved to Stage 2 of its Covid reopening plan on June 10, 2021. This means that Trinity Baptist Church is able to host worship services with 1/3 capacity. In order to maintain social distancing, we are setting our capacity limit at 100 attendees at this time. We have also implemented "Fidget Friendly Seating" in the Fireside Room for those who would like to have more space to move around. We invite you to register for your tickets and join us this Sunday! Tickets may be reserved through the events' page of our website. As a reminder, at this time, all attendees, including babes in arms, require a ticket. If you need any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact the church office. Administration is currently open, by appointment, Monday - Friday from 9 a.m. - 12 noon.

May 26, 2021

Starting this Sunday, May 30, we are able to have in-person worship services at 15% capacity. This is the capacity that we were running at for many months until recently. Want to attend in person? Visit the events' page of our website for tickets. Also, our youth ministry is able to resume in person this coming June 1 as well! Below is a short video from Pastor Jeff regarding these updates.

May 5, 2021

As we continue to navigate through these times together, we want to assure the Trinity Baptist Church congregation that your church leaders remain committed to walking alongside you and providing spiritual leadership through this third wave. Although our physical building continues to be by appointment only, we continue to provide ways for people to connect through virtual means. Our Sunday services will be online only up to, and including, May 23, 2021. If you are struggling with the current situation, please be sure to reach out to a church friend, your small group leader, other church leaders, or the church office.

<h2 style="text-align: left;"> </h2> <h2 style="text-align: left;">January 22, 2021</h2> As was mentioned in our last update, Trinity Baptist Church reverted to another ‘online only’ format for our Sunday worship services from December 13, 2020 until January 3, 2021. This voluntary action was taken in an effort to assist our community in reducing interactions and bending the curve downwards. Trinity Baptist Church has since returned to a hybrid format as of January 10, 2021. Our services continue to be livestreamed via Facebook and YouTube. The majority of congregants are taking advantage of Trinity’s virtual services, however, we are welcoming a limited number of worshippers to attend in-person under current AHS guidelines. As of today’s date, the provincial government currently allows worship services to run at 15% capacity. For Trinity Baptist Church, this results in a cap of 68 individuals. After accounting for the staff and volunteers needed to run the service, we are presently welcoming 50 guests each Sunday via an RSVP system. Masks are mandatory in accordance with AHS guidelines. If you wish to attend one of Trinity Baptist Church’s services in person, go to the events’ page of our website, click on Sunday Worship Services, and follow the instructions to reserve your FREE tickets through Eventbrite. Tickets for any particular Sunday are always available at least one week in advance. When the government grants permission to increase capacity, we will do so until such a time that we have reached our threshold to maintain the required physical distancing. Besides Sunday worship services, we have developed a good range of small group opportunities, most of which are online. Please check out the events’ page of our website for specific details about our small groups. Trinity’s church office continues to be closed, and staff are primarily working from home, as per current provincial restrictions. To reach a staff member, please use email or leave a voice mail on a staff person’s phone. Current staff contact information may be found on the ‘Our Team’ page (under the ‘About’ tab) on our website. Our staff and volunteers are eager to serve our congregation and our community, so please reach out to us with your needs! Website: www.tbcsherwoodpark.ca Social Media: @tbcsherwoodpark.ca <h2 style="text-align: left;">December 12, 2020</h2> We at Trinity have been closely monitoring the new Covid regulations as they have been announced. With the most recent regulations, our lead pastor, Jeff Gullacher, and our council chair, Randy, have prepared the following video to update you on Trinity's plans over the next several weeks. <a href="https://youtu.be/GteTJQWWOv8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Please view their video HERE. </a> Items to note are as follows: 1) Starting this Sunday, December 13th, we are moving our Sunday services back to an online only format. This means that, for the Sundays of December 13, 20, 27, and January 3, we ask that you please watch the service from the comfort of your home. We will not be having in-person services for those Sundays. Services will be live-streamed exclusively. 2) Foyer Zoom Chat - We will be having a pre-service social time via Zoom. Watch for the meeting information in our next e-newsletter. 3) Christmas Eve Services - We know how important this service is to our congregation and we have heard your wishes through the recent Christmas Poll. At this time, it is our desire to continue with the live, in-person Christmas Eve Service. In order to accomplish this, we have reduced the number of tickets available for each service as well as added a third service time. Please note, ALL individuals require tickets in order to attend. Each service will be 30 minutes in length. Please sign up for your free ticket no later than December 20th to allow staff time to prepare. You may sign up for your tickets <a href="https://www.tbcsherwoodpark.ca/events/christmas-eve-2020/2020-11-22" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HERE</a>. 4) In accordance with AHS guidelines, staff are working from home. That said, all staff are able to be reached via telephone and email. You can find contact information for staff <a href="https://www.tbcsherwoodpark.ca/staff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HERE</a>. Please be sure to leave staff voicemails or send an email should you require anything. 5) Once in-person services resume, we are looking at changing to an RSVP format for each Sunday. More details to follow at a later date. We know there are many of you who are struggling during this time. Please be sure to reach out if you are in need of somebody to talk to - whether that be to a Trinity staff member, a family member, or a help line offered by the community. We would ask that you continue to keep your community, our leaders, our neighbours, and your church leadership in prayer. <h2 style="text-align: left;">November 14, 2020</h2> <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9D4XqwDfw7c?rel=0" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture">

October 9, 2020

June 17, 2020

The Alberta Government moved to Phase 2 on Friday, June 12, 2020, and we have new parameters for places of worship. In short, we are now able to host in-person, live services with as many people as possible with social distancing maintained. In considering whether or not you should attend, in person, a live service here at Trinity Baptist Church, please carefully read our June 17, 2020 GUIDELINES FOR ATTENDING A LIVE SERVICE.

June 10, 2020

In accordance with the Alberta relaunch strategy, Trinity Baptist Church will be opening its doors for public, in-person services, on Sunday, June 21, 2020. We will be providing complete guidelines for attendees next week. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns please contact the church office at: info@tbchserwoodpark.ca

May 22, 2020

Our leadership met this week to discuss church plans in light of Alberta’s Stage 1 of the COVID relaunch. We reaffirmed our desire to adhere to the prudent guidelines set out by our provincial government. The current regulations allow for religious gatherings up to 50 people, which in our context will allow for funerals or weddings, but not for in-person public worship services. We will continue to livestream our Sunday worship services, and will do so ‘live’ from the sanctuary. Those involved in leading the services will adhere to current provincial guidelines for places of worship. Besides our Sunday services, we still strongly encourage various groups of the church to meet via online platforms, and not at the church building. We are currently working on creating summer camps for kids and teens that will adhere to the distinct provincial guidelines given for them. Lastly, in tandem with Strathcona County’s actions regarding playgrounds, we are opening our outdoor playground today.

May 14, 2020

As the province of Alberta enters its Phase 1 launch, staff and council at Trinity Baptist Church are keeping a close eye on the ever changing situation. We will be taking our time as we walk through the new guidelines and we will be following the government's regulations as we proceed. At this time, the church building will remain closed and we will continue with the worship service live stream format for our congregation to watch from home. What will be changing, in the near future, is that the service being streamed to those watching will be done live from the church building. Be sure to continue to check out our current, and past, Trinity T.V. episodes through our website, Facebook page or YouTube channel. As always, if you are struggling and would like to connect, please reach out to us: info@tbcsherwoodpark.ca.

April 23, 2020

As we continue to navigate through these times together, we want to assure the Trinity Baptist Church congregation that staff remain committed to walking alongside you and providing spiritual leadership through these difficult times. Although our physical building and playground remain closed for the foreseeable future, we strive to provide ways for people to connect through virtual means. If you are struggling with the current situation, please be sure to reach out to pastoral staff.

April 1, 2020

Welcome to Trinity! As we have embarked on a new, online format, be sure to stay tuned to our website, Facebook page, YouTube channel, or Instagram feed for the latest in devotionals, worship services, Bible studies, children's moments, and more. Our Sunday worship services are live streamed every Sunday at 10:30 a.m.

Trinity's council will be meeting on Aprils 21st to discuss next steps in our COVID-19 journey. Until then, you can contact the church office by calling: 780-464-4040 or emailing: info@tbcsherwoodpark.ca.

March 24, 2020

In the week since our previous Trinity Baptist Church COVID-19 update, a new rhythm of life has begun to settle in. Staff are working hard from home to bring you daily video devotionals, children's moments, Bible studies, worship, and services. A schedule of events can be found through the events page of our website under "Trinity T.V.". These video resources can be found through our Facebook page. Take the opportunity to watch them as they happen and to interact with both the presenter as well as others. Past issues are available to be re-watched through our Facebook page as well as through the sermons' page of our website.

Don't forget, we also have a great resource available to the congregation, RightNow Media. It has a multitude of amazing resources from kids material to Bible studies to Apologetics and more! Not sure where to start? Check out the Trinity Baptist Church library within RightNow Media for some Trinity pastor suggested material. Contact us if you need help getting signed on.

As always, the staff here at Trinity Baptist Church are here for you. We are available via email and phone to serve you.

Email: info@tbcsherwoodpark.ca

Phone: 780-464-4040 (ext 301)

March 18, 2020

With the growing local concern regarding COVID19, we know that the uncertainty running through our Trinity families and surrounding community is significant. Please know that we are here to walk alongside you during this difficult time. We share in your concerns and we would like to underline our commitment to the safety and well-being of our church family, renters, volunteers, and employees. In an effort to convey where Trinity Baptist Church stands right now, we wanted to provide you will the following update:

1) To promote social distancing as per the Government of Alberta’s recommendation, and to keep you and your family healthy, and the community safer - ALL groups, facility rentals, and events scheduled between March 18th and April 21st, 2020 are cancelled effective immediately. We will be updating you the best way we can as things are announced by the province and city.

2) The Trinity Baptist Church building will be closed for the foreseeable future effective immediately. Please know that our pastoral and administrative staff are still available throughout this time to connect with you and will be providing you with continual ministry connections and spiritual guidance throughout the weeks to come. You can contact them through their work email or voicemail and they will be able to respond to you.

3) For your information, staff and council members have each claimed a portion of Trinity Baptist Church’s database. You will likely be checked upon by a caring church leader every few weeks. If you feel that your contact information on file is not up to date, please be sure to let us know.

4) We are working on creating and implementing tools and resources for everyone to utilize in this time of social distancing, by coming together as a community via online resources. We will be having daily online programming so be sure to check our Facebook page daily starting next week. Though we acknowledge that not everybody is a Facebook user, we would encourage you to consider signing up so that staff can focus on creating quality and engaging content rather than concentrating on cross formatting.

5) Our Sunday bulletin will go out once a week via our weekly newsletter. Be sure to sign up for our weekly newsletter on the homepage of our website.

Although our church community will look and feel different in the coming days, the staff here at Trinity Baptist Church are looking forward to having the opportunity to connect with you in new and unique ways over the coming weeks.

March 16, 2020

In light of the Alberta Government’s press conference yesterday, leadership at Trinity Baptist Church connected with each other to discuss the evolving COVID19 situation. The decision has been made that all events at Trinity Baptist Church between Monday, March 16, 2020 and Sunday, March 22, 2020 have been cancelled. This includes, but is not limited to, preschool, Bible study, Youth Bible study, Youth events, Good Soil, Men’s Breakfast, Membership Class, and Mission’s Committee. For the foreseeable future, our Sunday Morning Worship Services will ONLY be available via livestream. We are thankful that our recently completed BOOST campaign has given us the opportunity to stay connected as a church family online. In the coming days, we will be announcing some unique ways for you to connect with your Trinity family between Sundays. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

March 13, 2020

In response to the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading around the globe, we first want to ask you to pray for all who are affected by this disease. God be with those who are ill, isolated, afraid, or grieving the loss of a loved one. We offer our prayers of thanksgiving and protection for those involved in medical and emergency care who put at risk their personal health to serve and support others.

As Christ followers, we are not to be shaped by fear. We take Christ at His word when He repeatedly said, “Do not be afraid.” We are called to reassure others in this promise as they face the realities of sickness and death. This is a time to live wisely and with great compassion in our neighbourhood and church.

A few weeks ago, Trinity Baptist Church developed its own action proposal for COVID19 as the possibility of having to enact greater measures drew closer. The time for increased measures has come. We wish to be responsible citizens and be informed of the risks and precautions associated with this pandemic. We will continue to gather for weekend services, ensuring alignment with Alberta Health Services guidelines and requirements for gatherings.

We request that you self-assess and refrain from attending weekend services if any of the following is true for you:

you have recently travelled outside of Canada,
you or someone you live with or care for is a part of the high-risk population (as defined by AHS)
you, a member of your household, or your children have any signs of illness

Everyone is welcome to connect with us through our live stream online through our Facebook page.

We have implemented additional measures to increase your safety:

We have increased the breadth and frequency on our cleaning protocols, with focus on high traffic and high contact areas. The cleaning products we use are industrial grade and food service approved.
We have increased access to hand sanitizer stations throughout the building, including our Children and Family Ministries’ department.
We recommend that you give your tithe and offering online. Offering plates will be available at the conclusion of the service as you exit the sanctuary.
At this time, we are considering not serving communion on March 29th.
We have instructed volunteers to follow proper hand washing procedures, to be mindful of social distance, and to stay home if feeling unwell.

If you are in a low risk category, please consider ways that you can help those at risk by:

picking up groceries, medicine prescriptions, laundry
visit via phone to help prevent social isolation
think creatively on how to combat social isolation of the elderly, those who may have compromised immune systems, those who are self-isolating and those who suffer from anxiety

Because this is a fluid situation, please know that our church leadership is continually evaluating our procedures that affect our daily and weekly programming, including Bible studies, youth, and Sunday Morning Children’s Ministry. We will provide updates via our website and social media as the situation develops.

Please continue to pray for church leadership, all levels of government, and health care workers.