News

Urgent News for This Sunday: October 31st, 2021 This Sunday we will be worshipping at the St. Francis Centre Sunday Worship Services @ the St. Francis Centre For our 10:00 am Sunday morning worship, we are meeting at the St. Francis Centre, Originally constructed in 1871 by Henry Langley, the former St. Francis de Sales Church gives meaning to the name of the street on which it is situated (Church Street), and is an important symbol of the Irish immigrants that settled in the Pickering Village area in the 1800’s. The building is an excellent example of High Victorian Gothic Church Architecture and is representative of the Picturesque Eclecticism of architectural design in the 1870’s and 1880’s.  The building shares our parking lot at 82 Church St. South in Ajax. The ability to worship at the St. Francis Centre is a tremendous benefit for the people of Safe Haven. Not only is this a beautiful facility, reaching a rental agreement to rent out this facility has cleared what seems to be the last remaining obstacle for our building permit (parking). Meeting at St. Francis for Sunday is substantially less expensive than West Shore. It also gives us the ability to use our 82 Church St. property for Sunday school. Before we toured the facility yesterday, we were told of only being allowed to have 15 seated. We were in the process of beginning a discussion on regulations for capacity usage. The facilities manager however said that they just opened the building for full capacity (occupancy of 150). The major difficulty in meeting at the St. Francis Centre, is that this this is a Town of Ajax facility, where proof of vaccination is required for entry. Those without sufficient electronic or paper proof are required by the town to complete a Patron Screening Survey. The intake process to the building takes time. Please arrive at least 15-30 minutes early to avoid a late entry. With theatre seating, late entry is highly visible. Children's ministry will take place at 82 Church St. on the 2nd floor. For those unable to complete this, we will livestream the worship services to our church building at 82 Church St. S. in Ajax. ​ Although we would love to have you physically worship with us this Sunday, we understand because of physical inability or distance that it is not always possible for everyone. If you are unable to come, please join us online. When watching our services on YouTube make sure to subscribe to our channel for ease of finding future services, and click on the LIKE and SHARE button so more people can find our services.

Immediate Re-Gathering Notice   Worship and Mid-Week Prayer and Bible Study will immediately recommence in our main building. Be advised, due to our recent efforts to find a new worship location, there are extensive modifications to procedure in meeting. Read important re-opening guidelines below. Services will continue to be broadcast on YouTube. To watch, click here or on the banner on the Safe Haven webpage.   Government of ON: Effective Friday, June 12, 2020 at 12:01 a.m… all places of worship in Ontario will also be permitted to open with physical distancing in place and attendance limited to no more than 30 per cent of the building capacity to ensure the safety of worshippers.   GENERAL GUIDELINES If you or anyone you have close contact with has any signs or symptoms associated with COVID-19, or are not feeling 100%, you should stay home and join our broadcast service instead. All others are welcome, but none should feel obligated to attend in-person if for any reason you do not feel it is safe or wise. Temperature checks will be performed at the main entrance (Units 10 & 11). The service will continue to be broadcast for all who cannot attend.   Symptoms associated with COVID-19 include cold/flu symptoms: ·        - fever/chills/body aches ·        - shortness of breath ·        - runny nose/congestion ·        - sore throat ·        - change in sense of smell or taste ·        - nausea, vomiting, diarrhea ·        - abdominal pain     PHYSICAL-DISTANCING AND SERVICE ETIQUETTE -Before arrival, please complete the health questionnaire available online (see link & pdf attached at the bottom of this email) or at the door. This ensures that people understand the nature of coming to worship during a pandemic, and should, heaven forbid, someone discover that they are COVID-19 positive, those who have attended will be advised to test themselves. -With an occupancy rating of 450 for the main building, government restrictions (30% occupancy) mean that a maximum of 126 people be allowed in the building. Admission to the building up to a maximum of 126 will be based on a first come first seated basis. 1. 10 a.m. Service: We will have one service at 10:00 am. There will be no Sunday School or Children’s Church available. 2. Arrival: Plan to arrive at least 30 minutes early. 3. Screening: At the main entrance (Units 10 & 11), you will be greeted by an usher, and a screening station where there will be a temperature check, screen for symptoms, and offer you any personal protective equipment you may want or need. It is requested that you bring a lawn chair and mask, however, a limited number of chairs and masks will be available. These procedures will need to be done each time upon arrival. 4. Ushers will be wearing personal protective equipment and will direct you to an usher inside the building, who will direct you to your seat. Beyond members of a household, please remain 2 metres apart, and avoid physical contact beyond members of your household. 5. Singing: only those who are masked (besides those on the platform) are permitted to sing. 6. Nursery: With the removal of all nursery services, parents, please have your children stay with you during the service. 7. Washrooms: Only one bathroom for men and one for women (one person at a time) is available in the two classrooms. Disinfectant materials will be provided for you to clean all surfaces used (toilets, handles, taps) before and after your visit. 9. After the service: When the service is over, you may exit through all doors, you may mingle in the main auditorium so long as physical distancing guidelines are maintained: members of different households must stay 6 feet apart minimum; we encourage you to exit the building and mingle outside. 10. No food: There will be no food line, tea, or coffee after the service. 11. Hand shaking: We ask you not to shake each other's hands or hug or kiss, in order to respect the physical distancing guidelines and the health of others. 12. Doors: As many doors as possible will be propped open to ensure you do not need to touch door handles and surfaces.   OFFERING For your and our convenience, we encourage you to continue giving online here. If you are unable to give online, ushers only will handle collection plates.   GOING FORWARD As we progress towards fewer restrictions, we will keep you updated with our plans to move towards more normalcy on Sundays. We ask that you be patient with us, patient with your brothers and sisters in Christ, and respectful of the directives enumerated above.