Thanks to everyone who participated in our Fire Drill on Sunday! It may have been old hat for some of you, but with three new staff people this year, it was an important learning experience for us.

One thing we learned is that it is hard to simulate a real emergency. We noticed there was a bit of a laissez-faire attitude from some folks, and some folks began to move as soon as I announced the drill in the sanctuary. In the future, we plan to have some drills that are entirely unannounced to try to better understand how long it takes for us to get out of the building and ensure everyone is accounted for. (In case you are wondering, it took about 3 minutes and 10 seconds for us to be substantially out of the Sanctuary and Parish House this time around. Hopefully we can beat that next time.)

Another thing we learned is that there are a lot of you compared to the number of staff! Of course, we knew this at some level, but being in the midst of the fire drill made it even more apparent. We often have a 1:50 or more ratio of staff to people in the building on Sunday mornings, so your cooperation in emergency situations and in drills is vital.

We also learned that some folks have a hard time with the sound and lights of the drill, with physically getting out of the building, and/or with anxiety of an emergency situation. If any of these apply to you, we encourage you to try to connect with a few people who will understand your response in these situations and your needs, and will be able to make sure you get out of the building safely if a real emergency happens.

Finally, we learned that it can be really hard for parents not to go immediately to find their children during a drill or an emergency. If you are a parent, we want to assure you that our teachers are trained on what to do in these situations. You can trust Sandra and the teachers to make sure your children are safe and accounted for, and know that it is actually much easier for folks to get out of the building on the White Wing side. As soon as everyone is out of the building, you’ll be able to go over to Grove Street and pick up your children. If you have a concern about your child in particular, feel free to contact Sandra so she is aware.

Again, thank you for participating, and for helping us learn what we can about keeping everyone safe in the event of a fire.

Blessings,

Allison