Temple Emanu-El COVID Policies
Joining Us In-Person
Would you like to join us in-person at the synagogue? We can't wait to welcome you! Please consult this page to help keep you and the rest of our Temple Emanu-El family safe during the COVID pandemic.
Our Current Policies
Updated: Aug 30, 2022
- REGISTRATION: Please help us by registering for in-person programs and services where registration is requested. If you didn't have a chance to register and you would like to attend last-minute, we can almost always accommodate you. Please try to come early and please follow COVID protocols. All events and services can be found on our calendar. Please email Carli Portman (during office hours) if you need help with registration.
- VACCINATION: We ask that attendees ages 12 and older be fully vaccinated; however, we will not be requiring proof of vaccination.
- MASKS: We are reviewing this policy and for now we are requiring masks for everyone ages 4 and older, worn over your nose and mouth at all times for indoor services and programming. Masks are not required for outdoor services and programming.
- PRE-SCREENING: We are counting on you to determine if you should be attending by reviewing the following questions. If you or anyone in your household answers "yes" to any of the questions, please stay home and enjoy the service or program online:
1. Are you experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19 ("Symptoms" refer to the new onset of: a new or worsening cough / shortness of breath or difficulty breathing / temperature equal to or over 38°C / feeling feverish / chills- fatigue or weakness / muscle or body aches / headache / new loss of smell or taste / gastrointestinal symptoms (abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting) / feeling very unwell)?
2. Has anyone in your household experienced any symptoms in the past 10 days? (Note: if the symptomatic person in your household has received a negative COVID-19 test result after experiencing symptoms, answer 'no')
3. In the past 10 days, have you been identified as a close contact of someone with COVID-19 or been told to self-isolate?
4. Have you travelled outside Canada in the past 14 days AND been advised to quarantine per the federal quarantine requirements? (Federal quarantine requirements are found HERE).
By joining us in-person, you attest that you answered "No" to the four questions above.
Please note that we are maintaining somewhat more stringent protocols than required by the province.
In a congregate setting, we ask that you stay home if you have had symptoms of Covid, received a positive Covid test result, or have been identified as a close contact to someone with COVID-19 within the past 10 days.
If you or anyone in your household is feeling unwell, please stay home and enjoy the program or service online. Zoom links can be found in your Sunday or Friday Temple Emanu-El emails, or in your registration confirmation email.
Why are masks still required?
Our COVID Task Force has determined that until our air circulation and ventilation systems can be updated or until there are more significant changes in communal transmission, it is safest to require everyone age 3+ to wear masks while indoors at the synagogue.
Other Considerations
In making your decision to attend services in person, please take note of the following important information provided by our Reopening Task Force:
While Temple Emanu-El has made every possible effort to keep everyone who attends in person safe and healthy, including:
1. Asking individuals ages 12 and older to be fully vaccinated in order to attend;
2. Maintaining masking at all times while in the building. We recommend n95 or kn95 masks;
3. Maintaining physical distancing between yourself/household members and others in attendance;
4. Mandating a no food/no beverage policy indoors;
5. HEPA filters constantly running in the rooms where people will be;
We nonetheless need to make it clear that Temple Emanu-El is an older building and, as such, does not have the HVAC and air filtration capacity that a more modern building might have;
COVID-19 has been shown to be transmitted by direct contact and droplet/fomite as well as airborne aerosols;
Even asymptomatic, fully vaccinated individuals have the ability to transmit the virus to others;
We also know that fully vaccinated individuals can still contract the virus.
Please take all of the above into consideration, as well as your own and your family’s unique health situation, in making your decision whether or not to attend in person.
Getting Help
If you need help registering for our in-person programs or connecting with our programs online, please reach out to Carli Portman (during office hours M-Th 9am-5pm, Fr 9am-3:30pm): carli@templeemanuel.ca
