VBC Inclement Weather Procedures

The following information contains the procedures which we use to inform our members of changes, delays or cancellations of services due to inclement weather.  Due to the inclement weather we are having today in north/west Georgia, I thought it would be a good reminder for how these types of decisions are made.  The Inclement Weather Team is made up 6 men in varying geographic locations in regards to the church, hopefully allowing us to get a pretty good idea of the weather conditions where our members live.

Inclement Weather Procedures for Victory Baptist Church

*Even though we are located in Gwinnett County, the Victory Baptist School follows the Walton County School System’s Inclement Weather decisions.

It is the desire of the Pastor and staff to always continue with regularly scheduled services as long as it is deemed safe for our members and visitors.  There are times however, when weather conditions are threatening and may prove treacherous to travel to church, causing us to cancel or delay some of our Services.  Often we are asked, “How do you make the decision to suspend or delay church services due to inclement weather?”  The process involves several of our members/staff as well as local law enforcement and emergency agencies.  On mornings or evenings when inclement weather (snow, ice, tornadoes, etc) is expected or is a possibility, the Inclement Weather Team (IWT) will begin assessing the weather to determine the decisions made.

Sunday AM Bible Studies, Bus Routes and Services

• At 5:00 AM the inclement weather procedures start.
• The Sheriff’s Office and other emergency agencies are contacted for updates on current road conditions and any particular areas of concern.
• The team consistently monitors weather forecasts through a variety of weather sites both online and via television.
• The 6 member team then determines the road conditions in their specific geographic locations.
• By 6:00 AM the IWT forms an initial recommendation to continue with, cancel, or delay Services and relays this recommendation to the Pastor.
• By 6:25 AM the Pastor makes the final decision regarding the schedule for the AM schedule.

(If a decision can be made sooner (like the night before), the channels of communication will be the same, starting at the time of the decision.)

At 6:30 AM:

• The decision to cancel or delay the services will be posted online at www.victorybc.org as well as on the church Facebook page.
• An email with the information will also be sent from the church database. (*please contact the church to verify/update your contact information)
• The Church voice mail system will be updated and can be reached at 770.466.4040 ext 3. (This is normally the church Prayer Line, but also doubles as the Inclement Weather extension.)
• If the decision is to delay Service times, the IWT will continue to monitor road conditions and weather forecast information for their final decision.

Time Line At a Glance

5:00 AM: The IWT begins evaluating weather conditions.

6:00 AM: The IWT share information and makes recommendation to Pastor via conference call.

6:25 AM: The Pastor makes a final decision for canceling or delaying services.

6:30 AM: Various forms of communication and publication will begin.

Sunday PM, Wednesday PM, AWANA and other PM related Services/activities

• The IWT will make their assessments and recommendations, if possible, no later than 3 hours prior to the scheduled time of the Service or activity. (we will strive to make this decision as early as possible prior to Service times…there may be times where this is not feasible due to unknown conditions)
• Communication will then be made in the same manner as the Sunday AM procedures.

**Please understand that there will be decisions made that may or may not prove to be the best one “after the fact.”  Every effort will be made to insure the safety of our church family.  Weather can change very suddenly, causing us to “miss the mark” and notification times.  There even may be times when we cancel in anticipation of inclement weather and then it not coming to fruition.  In either case, we will do our best to inform our church body of Service changes due to inclement weather.  Ultimately it is up to each individual to determine whether or not the weather or road conditions will adversely affect their health, safety and wellbeing.