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January 7, 2021Holy Infant’s efforts to create a safe worship environment during the global COVID-19 pandemic has garnered attention from local and national media outlets. And the parish is committed to continuing safety measures in our new church through air handling systems.
A recent article in The Revealer, an online magazine that explores religion and society, featured Holy Infant as one of a handful of North Carolina churches finding creative ways to gather for services amidst the pandemic.
In the article, Elizabeth Fixler, a Holy Infant attendee, calls the need for church services “paramount” during this time.
“Being close, being a part of worship — all the emptiness of not being with people, all that is brought together and is so deeply affirmed by going to Mass and receiving the sacrament.”
Father Robert noted in an August article by the Diocese of Raleigh that the process set up by our health ministry has worked very well. The parish is pleased with how cooperative mass attendees have been with following the guidelines, he told The Revealer.
Those guidelines include pre-registration, health screening, spaced-out seating and arrows on the floor to direct foot traffic. Social distancing mandates will likely still be in place when we move to the new church this year, but the current regiment of safety measures will not be the only safety measure planned for the new space.
The building committee is taking steps to install bipolar ion generating systems in the air handling ductwork in all seven HVAC systems in the new church. These systems safely and effectively remove ultra-small particles, allergens and harmful pathogens such as viruses, mold and bacteria from inside commercial and residential buildings.
In addition, the building committee has determined that the three HVAC systems in the current church and the two HVAC systems in the Parish Center can be retrofitted with these bipolar ion generating systems. Plans are in place to use a handheld ion concentration meter to monitor and adjust the concentration of bipolar ions in our church buildings. We will also install MERV13 filters, the highest level of filtration for which our air handling systems in the new church are rated.