Friends are advised that NGFM is now hosting outdoor, in-person un-programmed worship, weather permitting. All who attend are asked to bring their own chairs, if possible, and to wear a mask, physically distance, and use proper hand sanitation practices. Restrooms near the fellowship hall may be used if needed, one individual or family group at a time. This outdoor meeting for worship will occur Sundays between 9 and 9:45 a.m. Adult forum will now start at 10 a.m. A group discussion about next steps for in-person NGFM activities will occur at the rise of our virtual meeting for worship next Sunday, May 16, at noon via Zoom. Please use the same Zoom link as meeting for worship.
Cases of COVID and hospitalizations in NC have declined slightly this week. Vaccinations are ongoing but with lower numbers of vaccines being given than 6 weeks ago. The use of the Pfizer vaccine has now been approved by the FDA (as of yesterday) for use in 12-15 year olds, and is expected to be available for this use later this week.
This is the last week that the Affordable Care Marketplace will be open (through May 15). Friends can get more information on the availability of health care coverage at https://www.healthcare.gov/
Find CDC guidelines for appropriate behavior to minimize transmission of COVID infections at https://tinyurl.com/cnve9m9b Friends are encouraged to read these guidelines to help them decide what activities are appropriate for each family group.
Persons, vaccinated or not ,are still encouraged to wear masks, physically distance and wash hands frequently when in indoor public places or in medium/ large groups of people even out of doors. Symptomatic (cough , fever, shortness of breath) persons still need to be tested and treated regardless of vaccination status.
The ongoing wave of cases in India continues to overwhelm resources there and reminds us that there could be a third wave of cases here particularly if vaccination doesn’t protect enough of our fellow Americans.
As of today Cone Health continues to vaccinate 16-18 year olds and up at their vaccination sites and walk in vaccinations will be given though appointments are still preferred. Those who walk in need to show up at least 2 hours prior to clinic closure for the day. As of today (May 11) they have vaccine appointments available. They have Moderna and Pzifer vaccines depending on what site you sign up for. They plan to offer the J & J vaccine in the future but do not have it yet. The Cone Health website is: https://tinyurl.com/d7ueuj4u . Appointments can also be made by phone at 336-890-1188 Monday through Fridays 7 a.m -7 p.m.
Guilford County sign ups may be done at www.healthyguilford.com (Email address required) or by phone 336-641-7944, option 2. Phone appointments must be made 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. They have Pfizer and J & J vaccines and a person may choose which vaccine they sign up for. Group appointments can now be scheduled. The vaccination sites still include Mount Zion Baptist Church, High Point Community University Center and Greensboro Coliseum. People can subscribe to updates about vaccine availability and appointment openings from the Guilford Health Department by texting GC19 (or GC19S for Spanish) to 888777. They are now also doing walk-in appointments and they have another organization on their web site named Star Med which is giving all three vaccinations at a few different sites. Their phone number is 980-445-9818.
The Four Seasons Mall site is also delivering vaccinations for walk in and drive up vaccines, they will be operating through May 27 according to their website. They are still scheduling appointments as well at GSOmassvax.org . They are offering the Pfizer (2 dose ) or the J & J (one dose) vaccines, depending on patient preference.
Pharmacy supplies of vaccine can still be found at https://vaccinefinder.org. Walgreens and CVS allowssign up for a vaccine at Walgreens.com or CVS.com after setting up an account with them. Other pharmacies have similar sign up opportunities.
The NC site which helps persons find a vaccination site is https://myspot.nc.gov/ . This site will also show you where vaccines are available close to your zip code. NC has said all groups are now eligible for vaccine. There is also a hotline for help or questions at 888-675-4567.