Dear Old Bridge Church Family,

Grace and Peace, brothers and sisters to you through the Love of Christ from OBUM’s Healthy Church Team.

In small steps, we are now returning to on-site non-worship events and activities at Old Bridge. We get it. People want to return to worship as soon as it’s safe to do so. Rest assured the Healthy Church Team is working hard to:

• Return to church activities on the grounds and in the building as soon as possible
• Ensure a worship and meeting environment that is safe for all
• Provide clear and appropriate guidance to all that attend to ensure everyone’s safety
• Ensure all Virginia Annual Conference and State health guidelines are followed.
• To date, we have had non-worship groups use the church or grounds, and in the near future, we will enjoy outdoor worship.

One of the primary goals of the Reopen Plan is to ensure the safety of the entire church family – from our youngest to our most senior.  We have worked hard to develop a plan that describes what actions must be taken and also the reason why.  This plan was written with the intent to clearly describe all of the steps that need to be followed so that we can safely begin gathering outside and inside the OBUMC Church Building.  The first steps, non-worship meetings first outside, now inside, have been successfully achieved.

As we move forward with opening the grounds and building to meetings and events, we hope to learn and develop confidence to begin safely holding worship services on the OBUMC property.  We will update the Reopen Plan as we learn more about what processes work and what we need to improve to ensure everyone’s safety.  

The first version of the OBUMC Reopen Plan can be found by clicking the link or image below.

However, the Healthy Church Team realizes that not everyone may want to read the entire Reopen Plan.  Therefore, we developed one-page Appendices that summarize the important information, such as:

• Appendix A – All I need to Know Before I Arrive
• Appendix B – Be Mindful – Expectations at OBUMC
• Appendix C – Cleaning and Closeup Procedures
• Appendix D – Request Use of Outside OBUMC Facility
• Appendix E – Emergency Plan for a Positive COVID-19 Test
• Appendix F – Finding Your Room
• Appendix G – Greeter Responsibilities
• Appendix H – Request Use of Inside OBUMC Facility
• Appendix I - Checklist For An Outdoor Worship Service
• Appendix J - Register to Attend Worship
• Health Acknowledgement Poster
• OBUMC Blank Group Roster 

The OBUMC Reopen Plan was written in accordance with directions from the Technical Assistance Manual for Local Churches (TAM), which is part of the “Next Steps Return to In-Person Worship and Other Gatherings” (updated 8/3/2020), developed by the Virginia Annual Conference under the guidance of Bishop Lewis. 

The publishing of the Reopen Plan is the first in a number of steps which will ultimately get us back to in-person worship in the sanctuary; we look forward to seeing you then.  In the meantime, this first step  has allowed the gradual re-opening of the OBUMC campus for non-worship events by both church & non-church groups. 

All recommendations and questions related to the content of this document should be submitted by email to the Healthy Church Team Leader, Jacob Mosser at

Want to know about how Outdoor In Person Worship will go on Sunday? Click here to watch health Church Team Member Brian Smith explain the outdoor worship plan.