Live Update to Residents-June 18, 2020
Live updates to residents on our in-house TV970 keep us informed and connected. Today’s update featured John Burns, President and CEO; Gayle Hunter Haglund, Vice President Resource Development; Lynn McClintock, Director Pastoral Care; and Rev. Irving Stubbs, resident.
The following updates were shared during the live briefing on TV970.
John Burns
As of today, the COVID-19 data for Virginia includes:
• 491,884 people have been tested for COVID-19, including 8,860 since yesterday. Positive cases total 56,238, with 401 new cases since yesterday.
• The rolling seven-day positivity rate in Virginia is 7.2% (decrease of 0.1%), Henrico is 7.7% (decrease of 0.4%) and Richmond is 9.9% (increase of 0.1%).
• There have been 5,744 total hospitalizations.
• There have been 1,586 deaths associated with COVID-19.
• 7,429 people have recovered.
Twenty-one states in the United States are backsliding in terms of the number of cases and positivity rates. Thankfully, Virginia is not one of them, but we remain prepared for the possibility that the situation could worsen in the future.
Mary Morton Parsons Health Center Update
While parts of the campus are opening, Mary Morton Parsons Health Center remains under quarantine and closed to all visitors because of CMS regulations. Independent Living residents are not allowed to enter Parsons Health Center. We are actively working to implement all the requirements for allowing visitation including testing all Parsons Health Center staff every week. We started testing this week. We will be ready as soon as federal regulations allow it.
Live Briefing Schedule
The Tales that came out today does not have the correct live briefing schedule as there was a change after it went to print. Starting next week, Live Updates will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 3 p.m.
Next Steps
All residents will receive a copy of a new memo outlining our next steps and ongoing programs this afternoon. It will also be posted on our blog and in Touchtown Community Apps. Read the memo here.
Gayle Haglund
Because Westminster Canterbury Foundation is not able to host events, and we can’t yet gather in the theater for live performances, we are combining a party and a live performance tonight! The Live Virtual Gala begins at 7 p.m. Tune in by 6:45 p.m. for pre-show entertainment! Hear live performances from Desirée Roots, Ryan Corbitt, Cameron Ralston and Bryan Connolly. There will be live segments and more about what inspiring generosity makes possible at Westminster Canterbury. On campus, tune to TV970. Off campus, or if you prefer your computer, go to YouTube and search for the Westminster Canterbury YouTube Channel. Starting Monday, the program will be available on Facebook and YouTube.
Thoughtful Thursday
Rev. Irving Stubbs, resident, shared the following comments.
We, in the Western part of the world, live with a calendar that was shaped by the life of Jesus. BC initially meant the years before Christ, and AD (which means the year of our Lord in Latin) meant the years after Jesus. Some now use the term “Before the Common Era” and “The Common Era,” but in either case we live with a calendar divided by the life of Jesus. Jesus lived in liminal space.
This was a new word for me that I learned from Richard Rohr. He said we are living today in liminal space – it is where we are betwixt and between. Jesus lived betwixt and between BC/AD. After Jesus there was new space. There was room for new things to happen.
We are living on the threshold of a liminal space. The world will be different on the other side of the space in which we are living today. Future histories will refer to before COVID-19 and after COVID-19. So, what will AC-19 look like?
There are many opinions about what that space will look like. Dolly Parton is optimistic about this. She told Time magazine, “When life is good again, it’s going to be better than it ever was. I know I’ll be a better person. I can see a lot of things that I can do better than I did before.” She put her money where her mouth was and donated $1 million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center towards research on treating and preventing this virus.
How about the rest of us who will live in this new liminal space?
Will more people work at home?
Will our ways to educate continue to evolve?
Will we continue to celebrate those who risk their lives for us?
Will we do more to help those less able to help themselves? Will be build more bridges across our differences?
Will we tell those we love that we love them more often?
Will we forgive more often?
Will we say thank you more often?
There was a great quote on our Westminster Canterbury digital bulletin board.
“Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass, it is about dancing in the rain.” Are we dancing in the rain?
Dear Lord, help us to live better in this new space.
Amen.