To the ARM Faithful,
We thought it would be appropriate to let you all know where we are in the scheme of things and our way forward based upon our summer planning and the Lee County tornado recovery in light of Covid-19.
1) We are following guidance from the CDC and the Alabama West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church.
- Our staff team made adjustments to work remotely and make accommodations for employees that have children. We will keep the office to less than 8 people at any given time and use our individual offices. If the recommended number reduces, we will adjust to those standards. This means, if you are trying to contact us, we may not respond as quickly but will get back with you. We are also wiping down the building 2-3 times per day.
- We have access to Zoom and other technologies that allow us to work remotely.
- The tornado staff are working to creatively still do case management via phone and how to have documents signed. We will coordinate with home- owners and contractors to maintain safe standards of work and distance unless this becomes prohibitive.
- This is now a secondary trauma for many. Putting out information regarding resilience and coping will be a way ahead on overall case management.
2) Summer Ministry and Camps: We are looking at summer courses of action and will finalize our decision by April 22 regarding when the summer starts and ends. For incoming summer teams, we are giving lots of flexibility and leeway for what the summer may entail for scheduling and making deposits. This means we will be lenient on our deposit schedule. Although we may not be able to fully refund resources, we will refund a portion depending on the scenario and context. If volunteer groups taper off, we will still hire contractors to complete work for families. If your team must cancel or reschedule, here are some considerations:
a. Donate your registration and first deposit to ARM for use with current projects.
b. If you made a second deposit, we will return 50% to you.
c. Use your registration and deposit and shift your team to a fall date or summer of 2021.
SonShine Kids Day Camp: We are also evaluating hosting our children’s camp and the number of children who might attend. This camp may also not start until mid-June if it can be administered safely.
3) The market volatility and people losing work could and most likely will affect donation rates. We hope our donors will be able to weather the storm with us during this time.
4) Our events through the spring are cancelled/postponed such as Lead Up.
5) ARM is working with both the Lee County and Macon County EMA’s to help with possible food distribution for children and how to help rally and organize volunteers.
6) We are calling our seniors and those with disabilities to check and make sure they have safety nets in place.
7) Lisa’s work in the National Guard could pull her away to help with larger state issues but nothing is on the horizon as of yet. Leadership is in place to run the ministry if this happens.
If you have any questions for us or need help from us, please call us at 334-501-4276 or email info@arm-al.org or whit@arm-al.org
As always, thank you for your love, prayers and support. We are all in this together. We are reminded by a beautiful piece of Scripture where Jesus tells His disciples that trouble will come in the world but to not be dismayed because He has overcome the world! John 16:33.
Lisa Pierce
Director of Alabama Rural Ministry
Comments are closed