As we all know, COVID-19 has changed everything. In particular, the disability community is facing serious health and economic challenges, as well as increased social isolation. At BORP we are working hard to address at least some of these needs.
For some months before the pandemic, we were working on providing online fitness and wellness classes, but then COVID-19 struck, and, under the very capable leadership of Cynthia Noonan, the BORP Online Fitness Studio was born almost overnight. We have been overwhelmed by the popularity of the classes and the acclaim they have received.
As restrictions ease, BORP has started planning for the reopening of our programs. Our first priority is the health and safety of our participants, staff, and volunteers. To that end, we created a Task Force to plan our next steps. These will include the following:
- Train all program staff and volunteers on health and safety best practices.
- Ask participants to stay home if they have an elevated temperature, feel unwell, or have any other symptoms associated with COVID-19.
- Require participants, staff and volunteers to wear a mask, and wash hands and/or use sanitizer prior to and after participation.
- Implement social distancing at program sites.
- Sanitize equipment before and after each use.
We are excited about reopening, and plan to start with the Cycling Center (see article below). Our commitment is to reduce the risk as much as possible while offering our community opportunities for sports and recreation, but we cannot eliminate risk altogether. Each individual will need to make their own decisions about participation.On a final note, I wanted to update you on our 2020 Revolution. We have determined that the REV cannot go forward in Santa Rosa as originally planned, and we are planning a reimagined REV this year. While it will be different, it is more important than ever that our community comes together to support BORP’s programs. I hope you can join us to support BORP in weathering this challenging time.
Rick Smith, Executive Director
