Frankenmuth

10 I n light of the recent pandemic, we've learned that helping the community remain safe sometimes goes beyond the work of our first responders such as the Frankenmuth Fire Department or the Frankenmuth Police Department. Certainly, the professional responders have continued to play a vital role not only in responding to emergencies but also doing well checks on many that are alone or have struggled during this time. When individuals have been quarantined to their homes, fear and anxiety can become serious challenges. Those struggles can be fed by things like overwhelming, confusing or conflicting information in the news or social media. Or potentially from a lack of information all together. So, how can Community Leaders assist first responders in helping residents feel safe? One important way was identified early-on in the Covid-19 Task Force and that was communication. Consistent communication and facts regardless of who you got the information from; City Leaders, Church Leaders, Business Leaders, School Leaders, etc. We hope the residents feel like they've been informed with quality, timely, and consistent information from all their local sources. Still, every resident consumes information in their own preferred way. This has been a long-standing challenge to connect with as many residents as possible. It's one of the reasons the Frankenmuth Living publication was created. From all the comments received, we believe it has helped the city, schools and business community connect more with residents, especially in this time of uncertainty when we all seek answers about what lies ahead and how the Community is preparing. Sharing information via this publication is certainly one way, but more timely information can be found in the weekly Frankenmuth News. Or on many individual Facebook pages/groups for those that are on social media. Coming soon will also be a Frankenmuth Living Facebook Group for people who live, have children in or work in the Frankenmuth School District. On a couple of occasions, the Task Force, with the help of Muth Serves volunteers were also able to canvas homes in the City and Township with a hand-delivered message as well. This is another example of communicating with residents, especially for those who are not connected via other groups or social media. A big THANK YOU goes out to all the volunteers who helped to make those deliveries possible. There are many logistical challenges to pull something like that off so it goes without saying the system wasn't perfect. In the end, most homes should have received two hand-delivered messages from the Task Force. The last one even included two washable masks for each household, graciously donated by Matt and Abby Curtis, owners of the Frankenmuth Woolen Mill, Abby's of Frankenmuth and Jaami's Ice Cream & Treats. They had first-hand experience with how masks connected people and made them feel safe during this time when they donated countless yards of fabric to local mask makers. Matt & Abby wanted the community to have what they needed to safely venture out again as businesses were preparing to re-open and the Governor's orders recommended everyone wear a mask if they could medically tolerate it inside public spaces. The donation was significant and spurred others in neighboring communities to find ways to provide residents with masks. There were many other local businesses that aided in the effort to keep the community safe as well. In fact, as businesses were preparing to open, Mike Grossi, We are committed to, for your safety and ours, the following safety measures: • Community-wide signage expressing our common standards • Providing hand sanitizing/wash stations for public use • Wearing masks & providing them to guests • Physical distance measures (6ft apart) with barriers where necessary • Protecting & educating employees • Controlling access by screening & monitoring employee health • Restricting occupancy • Vigorous disinfection and sanitation procedures We invite you to: • Wear a face mask, if you can medically tolerate it • Maintain 6ft of distance from anyone outside your household • Wash or sanitize your hands frequently • Use contactless/curbside options for those with underlying health conditions or who are otherwise concerned • Stay home if you feel sick, have a fever, or have recently been exposed to a COVID-19 positive person or have recently had symptoms • Plan ahead as some places may require advance reservations or have other restrictions that may change frequently KEEPING OUR COMMUNITY SAFE

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