Over the past weeks we asked parishioners to fill out the Pulse of OLA Survey to see how we’re fairing during this time of pandemic.
Dear OLA families,
Thank you for taking the time to fill out the parish pulse survey. We received over 140 responses, which is amazing! We greatly appreciate your feedback. We depend on your input and suggestions to help guide our decisions during this extraordinary time.
Our goal is to offer as many opportunities as possible to safely and conveniently attend mass, receive the eucharist, and begin to responsibly open up parish activities to those who are comfortable. For those who prefer, live streamed mass will continue to be an option.
Key areas we plan to address immediately are:
Open up in-person masses to more parishioners.
We heard your thoughts about the in-person masses.While safety continues to be a top priority, we want to accommodate as many parishioners as possible. To highlight some of the recent changes, we opened up more pews at each mass, and eliminated the requirement to wait three weeks to attend the next mass. Children of all ages are now welcome too!
Streamline the in-person experience to make it less restrictive.
As for upcoming mass changes, we plan to test new procedures for parishioners that will streamline the in-mass experience and ease some of the restrictions around parking, entering the building, etc.
Evaluate the feasibility of an outdoor mass and/or drive-in option to receive communion.
We also realize many of you who aren’t comfortable attending the in-person mass yet do miss receiving the Eucharist. This is why we are looking at a drive-in option to receive communion at 10am mass. Stay tuned on this!
Consider moving the livestream mass earlier or offering more livestream/online options.
Many of you commented that the livestream mass has been wonderful, and that Father Ed and Father Jim have been fantastic. We received suggestions to move the livestream mass earlier and/or potentially livestream the in-person masses. We will look at all of these options to better serve our parish families. For parents, we heard you as well! We will explore creative ways to provide online content for kids to keep them engaged during the liturgy.
Offer opportunities for ministries to engage in person when feasible.
Outside of mass, we recently sent Covid-19 meeting space guidelines to all the ministry leads. It’s wonderful to see ministries starting to meet in-person again. Ministries are vital in keeping the church together and we encourage them to do so by following the guidelines.
Lastly, I want to say thank you to all the volunteers and parish staff for working extra hard to make OLA a safe place to worship. You have kept us engaged and connected to both our spiritual life and our parish community.
Please stay safe during this time, keep trusting in God, and continue to pray for our church family and our communities.
Thank you again and God bless!
Lawrence Lee
Ministry Commission Chairperson
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