Dec 21, 2021

Hello Everyone,

This is Tim. First, Happy holidays! Second, in light of what is happening with the Omicron variant, we will be implementing a few new safety procedures starting with our Winter camp. Last year, we ran one of the safest youth sports programs in the country and we will be re-implementing and reinforcing some of the resources we brought to bear. Please note, we are implementing the steps below in the sole interest of keeping those around us safe.

This new policy starts Sunday, Dec 26, with Camps and clinics and include the Jan 1 tournaments:

1. Daily Covid Testing Last year, the club invested heavily in Covid testing, including getting licensing to administer Covid Tests. We will implement our "shields up" plan to do all we can to protect each student. Starting on Dec 26, to attend camp or any session at Tim Morehouse Fencing Club you must either:

A. Provide us with a negative COVID test administered within 12 hours of attending the club OR,

B. Take a rapid COVID test upon arrival for a $15 fee. Please note we are not making money on this testing; however, we need to charge a small fee to recoup some of what we are spending to continue testing.

Even vaccinated students will need to test daily since the new variant seems to be infecting a higher number of vaccinated people than previous strains.

What Implementation Will Look Like: We will be administering the Abbott Binax rapid tests when students arrive. Students will be tested and sit apart while they await test results. If tests are positive, we will ask parents to take the kids from the club. (Students coming on the shuttle from Manhattan will test before boarding the shuttle for camp.)

Please Complete This Form if you are participating in any days of our camps/clinics or tournaments:

https://fs29.formsite.com/0SGBF2/gklkbxhvol/index.html

2. No Visitors in the Club Parents will not be allowed in the club, regardless of vaccine status, from Dec 26 to Jan 1. This will reduce crowding and minimize the exposure of all students, coaches and staff. We will re-evaluate the policy in the new year.

3. Masks and spacing Students will need to make sure they are wearing masks correctly at all times. We also have spread out the student stations so the fencers will have more room between themselves and others when they are changing or drinking in-between matches.

We will remind students to keep their distance whenever they need to remove their masks, such as when drinking water.

4. We Need Your Support Last year, the club spent serious funds and resources to make this happen with the support of some parents who stepped up to help us offset some of the costs. These extra steps we took allowed our coaches to keep coaching and our fencers to keep fencing in as safe an environment as possible while other clubs had serious super spreader events.

My main goal is to keep our members and staff as safe as possible. To also be clear, we will ask for help again to offset costs. The club doesn't make money on testing and last year we ran a significant deficit on Covid testing alone. We also paid staff when we were closed and/or had limited students to ensure the safety of our coaches, staff and students. We would appreciate any contribution you could make to ensure we can continue testing students.

Thank you again for your support as we navigate this newest challenge.

With respect, Tim