Holy Family: Protecting You During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Dear Parishioners,

Figure 1
Figure 1

On August 18th you received an email from Father John sharing the good news that we have received the approval from the Archdiocese of Montreal to reopen the church on August 30th. In accordance with the guidelines from the Diocesan Deconfinement Committee, the Assembly of Quebec Catholic Bishops, and the recent Government protocols, we are confident we have all the safety protocols in place for a safe re-opening. We would like to inform you of our plans prior to your return.

We have approximately 32 volunteers to assist us in this process. Teams of 7 will be needed for each mass. We held a Training Session with them this past Wednesday evening. We would like to thank all the volunteers for their service and for taking time out of their busy schedules to attend the meeting.

Entering the Church

Figure 2
Figure 2

When you arrive at the Church, there will be a volunteer outside to assist you in the process. Masks are mandatory entering the Church, so please put yours on before going through the doors and remember to keep the 2-metre distance. If you don’t have a mask or forget it in the car, not to worry, we can give you one.

Once you’re through the outer doors, there will be another volunteer there to welcome you and ask you the now-familiar Covid-19 questions. Before moving on, you will be reminded to sanitize your hands. You will then be asked to go into the church and register at either one of the 2 registration tables, (one on the left and one on the right) as it is important for us to have your contact information.

There will be no collection picked up during the mass, so if you have brought an offering with you, you may place it in the basket (see Figure 1).

Entrance to the pews is by the center aisle only. There will be a volunteer there to assist if necessary. Please be sure to pay attention to the white tape and arrows that you will see on the floors throughout the Church. (see Figure 2)

Figure 3
Figure 3

We have identified 60 available pews. On top of the pews, you will see white indicators as to where you can sit.

  • pews on the right of the main aisle are for individuals
  • pews on the left of the main aisle are for couples (2) (see Figure 3)
  • pews on the far left and far right near the windows are for family groups of 3 or more. (see Figure 4)

Communion

There will be a communal AMEN prior to going up to receive.

You will be asked to remain seated until the ushers indicate to you that your row may proceed into the center aisle. Please do so with your masks on.

Figure 4
Figure 4

Once you receive communion, you can either:

  • step to the side, remove your mask, consume the host, put the mask back on, and then return to your seat, or
  • you may wait until you get back to your seat to consume the host.

In either case, please be sure to return to your seat via the side aisles following the arrows on the floor. No shortcuts!

Any handicapped person can have communion distributed to them at their seat. Please let Father John and Deacon Richard know ahead of time.

After the Final Blessing

We ask that parishioners remain in their seats until the ushers give the go-ahead to exit by the side aisles. The pews closest to the doors will exit first.

Figure 5
Figure 5

General Information

Entrance through the church is by the front doors. Access via the ramp is for handicapped people only.

The balcony is off-limits and will be blocked off with a table.

Access to Sacristy, Sanctuary or Rectory is for authorized persons only.

Unfortunately, there will be no congregating with friends before or after Mass in the church.

There will be no congregational singing.

The washroom is available, but users must sanitize the following:

  • sink faucets
  • door handles
  • toilet handle
  • toilet seat with the spray or wipes provided.
    (Used paper towels and wipes should be placed in the basket.)

We thank you in advance for your cooperation in helping to protect others!

Figure 6
Figure 6

In Conclusion

We are all under special circumstances during this time of Covid-19 and in addition to the information above, please be advised that there is and will be for the next few months a lot of construction in and around Holy Family Church along with a Bixi Bike stand right on the corner of De Castelneau, eliminating parking spots we used to have there. (see Figures 5 & 6)

The whole corner has since been completely dug up, hopefully by the time we open the work will be finished.

Kindly keep this in mind, parking near the church is limited. Parking on St. Hubert is suggested. To ensure a ticket free stay, wherever you find parking, please check out ‘signage’ as all of that has changed in the neighbourhood as well.

Looking forward to seeing you again!

The Deconfinement Committee
Father John Baxter
Deacon Richard Brisebois
Brenda Brisebois
Tom McCutcheon