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Marshall County Church Holding Services At Drive-In Theatre

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This article has been updated to include comments from Governor Andy Beshear regarding the Pathway Baptist drive-in service.

A Marshall County church will practice social distancing by holding Sunday services at the Calvert City Drive-In theatre

Attendees of Pathway Baptist Church will worship in their vehicles with live music and preaching at the front of the theatre. Pastor Mike Donald said the service is a unique way to engage his congregation during the unprecedented nationwide shutdowns.

“I don’t even know if it’s the next best thing, but it’s just maybe more of a novelty idea of gathering together and worshipping the Lord,” Donald said.

Donald said drive-in church is not a new idea, but one he said is ideal given COVID-19 concerns. Even though congregants will be isolated in their vehicles, Donald said precautions will still be taken.

“We will be abbreviating a lot of things,” he said. “We can’t have as many people in the pulpit area.”

Donald said the response to the planned service has been “overwhelming.” Although he said the positive publicity will assist in the church’s ministry, he said he looks forward to a sense of normalcy.

“It’s just seeing if we can find something temporarily until we get back to whatever the new norm’s going to be,” he said.

Governor Andy Beshear on Thursday ordered the cancelation of all public gatherings, including in houses of worship to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Beshear addressed the Pathway Baptist drive-in service at his daily press briefing.

"I believe this is a creative solution as long as there is the distance in between those cars." Beshear said. "We want to see creativity. We want to see ways they can connect. But we have to make sure they follow that guidance."

Dalton York is a Morning Edition host and reporter for WKYU in Bowling Green. He is a graduate of Murray State University, where he majored in History with a minor in Nonprofit Leadership Studies. While attending Murray State, he worked as a student reporter at WKMS. A native of Marshall County, he is a proud product of his tight-knit community.
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