COVID-19 Response Updates

East End Baptist Church, Suffolk, Describes Participation as Local Vaccination Site

Posted: 2/18/21 at 11:00am.

East End Baptist Church, a BGAV-member church in Suffolk, VA, recently partnered with their health district to serve as a local vaccine distribution site on Wednesday, February 10, 2021. Their senior pastor, Wayne Faison, sat down with us in a Zoom call the day after the event to share what the church did, what the event was like, and what they learned in the process. Click here to see the 23-minute interview and footage from the event.

If you’d like to ask specific questions about East End’s experience in order to determine whether you’d like to pursue a similar opportunity with your church, you may contact Wayne Faison at wayne.faison@bgav.org or 804-921-4472.

John Upton Chats with Virginia’s Vaccine Coordinator

Posted: 1/29/21 at 6:00pm.

On January 28, 2021, BGAV Executive Director John Upton had an informative Zoom meeting with Dr. Danny Avula, Virginia’s Vaccine Coordinator. Dr. Avula answered specific questions from pastors relayed by Upton regarding the science, safety, and distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine. The 44-minute conversation is presented in its entirety, and permission is granted to use this in BGAV churches only in its full version. Click here or on the video link above to view their conversation.

Disaster Response Feeding Unit Activated to Assist in Mass Vaccination Event in Richmond

Posted: 1/21/21 at 12:00pm.

As the Covid-19 vaccine is becoming available to individuals across the Commonwealth of Virginia, Disaster Response (DR) volunteers from the Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV) are doing their part to take care of the medical and emergency personnel who are administering the immunizations.

Starting Tuesday, January 19, the Henrico County Health Department began a large-scale vaccination clinic for those currently eligible, held at the Richmond Raceway. The clinic will likely operate for at least six to eight weeks, depending upon supply and demand. BGAV’s Disaster Response volunteers are serving meals to the healthcare workers, security and emergency management personnel, and other critical workers on site at the clinic. Read more.

Re-gathering Guidance

Posted: 11/13/20 at 6:00pm.

In response to the recent spike in COVID cases and hospitalizations, Gov. Northam issued new restrictions related to public and private gatherings, as well as an expanded mask-wearing mandate.

A Message from John Upton, BGAV Executive Director

Posted: 3/13/20 at 12:45pm. Written by John Upton.

I have been receiving a large volume of inquiries from church leaders concerning COVID-19, asking for suggestions. The BGAV is not a professional health organization, so we are not qualified to give advice regarding the disease. What we can do is share links to professional health resources and share how other churches have chosen to respond. We want to assure you that we are closely monitoring this rapdly changing situation and are in communication with the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), both of which have issued specific interim guidance for faith-based organizations that can be accessed here.  Please, at a minimum, follow their recommendations. Also, I encourage you to have your leadership meet and make a decision regarding church activities based on the welfare of the most vulnerable in your church and community such as older members, children, those with health issues, and neighbors. Watch closely the decisions of your local school systems and follow the recommendations of the Governor’s declaration of emergency. The BGAV is doing the same regarding all its events for the next couple of months. 

Finally, let’s be sure as we gather for worship, whether online or at church, to take time to pray for our communities, our country, and the world as this virus spreads to every corner of the globe. We are discovering that as a global community we are more connected than we ever realized. Someone becomes ill in China, and soon the world becomes infected.  In an event such as this we are all brother and sisters. Let’s pray and offer God’s care and love to all God’s children.