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THHFH-specific updates about COVID-19 action plan (read pages below or download)

Background and CDC Health Information

What is coronavirus disease 2019?

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. The virus that causes COVID-19 is a novel coronavirus that was first identified during an investigation into an outbreak in Wuhan, China.

Can I get COVID-19?

Yes. COVID-19 is spreading from person to person in parts of the world. Risk of infection from the virus that causes COVID-19 is higher for people who are close contacts of someone known to have COVID-19, for example healthcare workers, or household members. Other people at higher risk for infection are those who live in or have recently been in an area with ongoing spread of COVID-19. Learn more about places with ongoing spread at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/transmission. The current list of global locations with cases of COVID-19 is available on CDC’s web page at https://www.cdc.gov/ coronavirus/2019-ncov/locations-confirmed-cases.html.

How does COVID-19 spread?

The virus that causes COVID-19 probably emerged from an animal source, but is now spreading from person to person. The virus is thought to spread mainly between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet) through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It also may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads. Learn what is known about the spread of newly emerged coronaviruses at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/transmission.html.

What are the symptoms of COVID-19?

Patients with COVID-19 have had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of:

  • fever
  • cough
  • shortness of breath

What are severe complications from this virus?

Some patients have pneumonia in both lungs, multi-organ failure and in some cases death.

People can help protect themselves from respiratory illness with everyday preventive actions.

  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
  • To keep from spreading respiratory illness to others, you should stay home when you are sick.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

What should I do if I recently traveled from an area with ongoing spread of COVID-19?

If you have traveled from an affected area, there may be restrictions on your movements for up to 2 weeks. If you develop symptoms during that period (fever, cough, trouble breathing), seek medical advice. Call the office of your health care provider before you go, and tell them about your travel and your symptoms. They will give you instructions on how to get care without exposing other people to your illness. While sick, avoid contact with people, don’t go out and delay any travel to reduce the possibility of spreading illness to others.

Is there a vaccine?

There is currently no vaccine to protect against COVID-19. The best way to prevent infection is to take everyday preventive actions, like avoiding close contact with people who are sick and washing your hands often.

Is there a treatment?

There is no specific antiviral treatment for COVID-19. People with COVID-19 can seek medical care to help relieve symptoms.

Where can I get the most up-to-date information about the impact of COVID-19 in the U.S.

Internal Communications

Messaging Regarding Daily Operations

Beyond all else, our highest priority is the health and safety of our entire THHFH community— staff, clients, volunteers, supporters, and all our neighbors.

The following operations will continue to remain open to the public but monitored daily:

  • ReStore Home Improvement Outlets will be opened to the public, but closely monitored. The shared surfaces in the stores are being cleaned and sanitized in order to ensure customer and staff
  • Home Ownership, HOPE and Home Preservation Program related questions will be answered via telephone and email.

Remote Work Guidelines:

  • Employees working remotely should be accessible during regular operation hours (9 am to 5:00 pm) via email/phone/text, unless they have a scheduled meeting on their calendar.
  • Whenever feasible, employees should limit scheduling and participation in public meetings to virtual meeting platforms. Conference calls are also acceptable and can be organized by using THHFH’s VOIP software system Dialpad and UberConference.
  • It is recommended that any meetings where social distancing of 6’ or more between participants cannot be achieved be conducted remotely until March 31st, at the earliest. All internal in-person meetings/construction site activities are recommended to be limited to five people.

Channels used:

All employees will be updated and notified of actions being taken in relation to COVID-19 via email. Additionally, THHFH will post updates to the web page https://trumanhabitat.org/. If you receive questions from clients, customers, volunteers or any external supporters please refer them to https://trumanhabitat.org/.

If you are sick do not go to work. If you have a cough, fever, runny nose or other cold or flu-like symptoms you are to stay at home and not risk exposing others to your illness. All employees are asked to remain home until at least 24 hours has passed since being sick.

PTO/Sick Days: In accordance with THHFH’s employment policies, employees will be allowed to utilize accumulated PTO and remaining gift PTO from 2019 to accommodate illness and FMLA eligible leave. Employees that have elected to purchase short-term disability insurance through Colonial Life may be eligible for benefits if given a diagnosis of illness and determined unable to work.

Please remember to:

  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. Avoid close contact with others, especially those who are sick.
  • Refrain from shaking hands with others for the time being.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

Additional steps will be evaluated and communicated. For more information on COVID-19 please visit CDC.GOV.

Questions/Concerns can be discussed with your supervisor or sent via email to Christina Leakey at cleakey(at)trumanhabitat.org.

External Communications

Our highest priority is the health and safety of our entire THHFH community— staff, clients, volunteers, supporters, and all our neighbors. As appropriate, and in an effort to be proactive for the sake of THHFH and all those we serve, Staff members should rely on the following statements to begin communicating information regarding THHFH’s response to COVID-19 to the public.

1. The following operations will continue to remain open to the public but monitored daily:

  • ReStore Home Improvement Outlets will be opened to the public, but closely monitored. Shared surfaces in the stores are being cleaned and sanitized multiple times a day to ensure customer and staff
  • Home Ownership, HOPE and Home Preservation Program related questions will be answered via telephone and email.

2. Additional steps will be evaluated and communicated as necessary.

3. As part of the THHFH family, you understand the power of community action. Thank you for your continued support during this time and for playing your part in promoting the well-being of our entire community.

4. We know when the dust settles from this current situation, our clients and community will need the support of Truman Habitat to help low income families stabilize through housing security, perhaps more than ever before. If you were planning on volunteering, shopping at a ReStore, or supporting Habitat in 2020, we strongly encourage you to consider supporting our future by making a monetary donation to help keep our doors open today. You can donate to THHFH from our website at https://trumanhabitat.org/

For more information on COVID-19 please visit CDC.GOV

Read details below or jump to these sections:

  • Habitat Clients
  • Volunteers
  • Events
  • ReStore
  • Administrative Offices

Habitat Clients

Clients with upcoming home closings or active pre-approvals: We will work with you to continue with your home closing.

Home visits will not be scheduled for at least 30 days. We will notify potential homebuyers when we are ready to schedule home visits.

Sweat Equity can be completed on a limited basis in the ReStore and within the limits of five total people, including THHFH staff, working on construction sites. Remote sweat equity activities are available for homeowners working on sweat equity requirements.

We are committed to supporting our clients during this time. Please email Crystal McLain at cmclain(at)trumanhabitat.org with questions.

Volunteers

All volunteer opportunities are cancelled through March 31st. We know how important our work is to the families we serve, and we hope to limit disruptions to our production schedules by allowing staff to continue building while practicing social distancing.

We will do our best to work with you to reschedule your volunteer day. If you need to reschedule or cancel a scheduled volunteer shift after March 31st, please email Lindsay Browne at lbrowne(at)trumanhabitat.org or cancel using your unique volunteer link.

Events

We will cancel or reschedule all events with 10+ people through May 10th. See below for details on a few key events. If you have registered for any of these events or others, we will contact you directly with more information about alternate plans.

  • Women Build will be rescheduled.
  • Bloom’n Tea Party Women of Faith Event
  • THHFH Board Retreat

ReStore

As of today, our ReStore Home Improvement Outlets remain open for business. To keep our customers and staff safe, we’ve taken the following additional measures:

  • Hand sanitizer is available for customers and employees.
  • We will sanitize electronic devices used between credit card transactions.
  • We are taking additional steps to clean and sanitize shared surfaces throughout our stores.
  • If you are sick, please stay home for your own well-being and to mitigate the spread of illness to other customers and to our staff.

Administrative Offices

Our administrative buildings are closed to the public. Some staff will be working remotely and others will practice social distancing through March 31st, at the earliest.