Nationwide, church attendance increases about 25% on Easter, according to Jim Davidson, a Purdue professor of philosophy and religion.¹ That’s good news for church growth and evangelism efforts. But extra people — especially guests — also add risk.

Have you planned to keep your visitors safe?

Safety starts with the first step on-site.
Begin your safety efforts in the parking lot:

• Ask members to park in the farthest parking spots so the best spots are available for visitors. Be careful in making this request, however. Senior adults are often the first to comply with special requests of this nature, regardless of health issues. Make sure members who need to park close feel free to do so.
• Ask for volunteers to serve as parking attendants to help people exit their cars and find parking spots. If you are utilizing off-campus parking and/or shuttles, make sure you have attendants to help people cross streets safely.
• During services, assign deacons to “walkabout” duty to prevent theft or vandalism in the parking lot.

Greet all guests.
Many of your visitors will be families who attend church only at Easter and Christmas. They may be feeling stressed from getting everyone dressed and into the car and from visiting an unfamiliar place.

• Make first impressions matter. And make sure guests don’t stumble before they even enter your doors. Start now repairing uneven surfaces and holes in walkways. Arrive early on Easter morning to clean debris from parking lots and sidewalks. Have attendants at curbs, stairs and exterior doors to assist people as they come and go.
• Greet visitors as soon as they arrive. Make sure they know where to go for Bible study and worship and where to find the nursery, restrooms and seats in your sanctuary. Consider asking members to “adopt” visitors to make sure they’re comfortable navigating your facilities.

Make children your chief concern.

• Recruit extra workers for the nursery and Sunday school classrooms to help with higher holiday attendance. Make sure volunteers have been screened by church leadership. Ideally, they should have had criminal background checks as well.
• Establish a check-in and check-out procedure if you haven’t already done so.
• Guard against accidents. Make sure crafts and games are well supervised and that supplies are rated for child safety.
• Never leave children unattended.
• Alert parents if you will be serving food or drinks. Food allergies can be life threatening.

Practice preventive safety — just in case.

• It may be unlikely, but a heart attack, spring storm or fire is possible. Make sure you have a plan in effect for all possible emergencies. If your church’s risk management plan isn’t up to date, now is a good time to make that a priority. 
• Staff, deacons and other lay leadership should know where first aid equipment and fire extinguishers are located. Post emergency phone numbers, the church’s physical address and a list of individuals trained in CPR.

Preventive measures on your part are often invisible to guests, but they keep safety concerns from becoming a distraction. And if your efforts are noticed, the response will likely be positive. Ultimately, Easter should be a memorable, spiritual experience for everyone. But it shouldn’t be remembered as a day your church wasn’t prepared.

To learn more about how you can protect your ministry with the GuideStone Property and Casualty Program®, call 1-877-455-GSPC (1-877-455-4772) or visit www.GuideStonePropertyCasualty.org.

¹www.news.uns.purdue.edu