March 13, 2020
Colma Community
Colma is taking proactive steps to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in our community, in close partnership with San Mateo County Health – https://www.smchealth.org/. Colma staff communicate daily with partners across the peninsula and at the County on the latest information about COVID-19.
If you have non-medical, non-emergency questions about COVID-19, please call 2-1-1 or text “coronavirus” or “covid19” to 211211, any time, day or night. Language assistance is available for 180 languages. If you are feeling sick or have medical questions, contact your doctor directly.
All residents should call the Town or conduct business online before coming to any Town facility in person. We are happy to help you by phone, through our website. For a list of phone numbers by department, please visit the Colma homepage – https://www.colma.ca.gov/ and select Contacts.
County Health Officer, Dr. Scott Morrow, issued guidance to cancel or postpone all non-essential gatherings. Colma has cancelled the following non-essential events and will continue to update the list as decisions on future events are made:
- After school program scheduled March 16 through April 3
- The St Patrick’s Day Luncheon at the Colma Community Center scheduled for March 18
- Pizza and Puzzles scheduled for March 16 & 23
- Yoga scheduled March 17 through April 13
- All Zumba scheduled through March 16 through April 12
- Boot Camp Fitness scheduled March 14 through April 12
- Creekside Villas Activities scheduled for March 25
- L.E.Y.P. scheduled for March 31
- Cooking Classes scheduled for April 1
- Friday Films, scheduled for April 1
- Ice Cream Arts & Crafts scheduled for April 3
- Sensory Friendly Hometown Heros Day scheduled for April 4
- Colma Ladies Social scheduled for April 6
- Spring Day Camp scheduled for April 6 – 10
- Sweet Scrabble scheduled for April 7
- Planet Granite Teen trip scheduled for April 9
- Teen Glow in the Dark Egg Hunt, scheduled for April 10
- Eggstravaganza Egg Hunt scheduled for April 12
Renters of Facility Rentals are highly encouraged to cancel their rentals at the Community Center and Sterling Park Recreation Center. Full refunds will be given to renters. No new reservations are being accepted through May 31.
School District Updates:
South San Francisco Unified School District:
Schools are closed through April 6. Please check the South San Francisco Unified School District website for updates. https://www.ssfusd.org/
Jefferson Elementary School District:
Jefferson Elementary is preparing to do its part to slow the spread of infection in the community. Our district, along with every other school district in San Mateo County has canceled or postponed many non-essential school activities, encouraged social distancing as well as the regular washing of hands. We hope you have also begun to implement these practices in your personal and family lives.
Our team has been planning for the inevitability of changing how we transition to at-home learning during this time and will be finalizing details for the approach/model we will pursue. Our primary goal is to support the health of our community, but we also hope that our student’s learning does not need to suffer. More information on this will be available by Sunday as these plans are finalized.
We express this to you because our families need to also make plans to accommodate these changes. We have not yet received direction from San Mateo County Health Officers to stop our in-person model of schooling but anticipate this order coming soon given the evidence of infection that is rising around us. We will have school on Friday, March 13, 2020.
Please take time now to make preparations for your families to prepare for the time when we will not be allowed to have school. This landscape is rapidly changing, and we are navigating it as best we can. We anticipate that much in our plans will need to shift as a new reality becomes apparent and we will attempt to regularly communicate these changes to you.
Please check the Jefferson Elementary School District website for the latest updates. https://www.jsd.k12.ca.us/
Jefferson Union High School District:
JUHSD is currently developing a plan for “at home” learning. This is different form closing schools in that staff would still report to work and students would continue to have learning opportunities. The School District has also implemented the following:
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- No student activities or adult gatherings of 40 or more.
- All field trips are canceled.
- Students and staff will practice social distancing to the extent possible. Students and staff should try to remain four feet away from others.
- Everyone should refrain from shaking hands, “high-fives”, etc.
- Awaiting Health Department guidance on CIF/PAL sports events. For current sports events, there may be NO spectators—players, coaches and supervising administrators only.
- It is likely that many of our end-of-year events will be affected and even canceled: prom, award nights, graduations, etc.
Please check the Jefferson Union High School District website for the latest updates. https://www.juhsd.net/
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The safety of our community is our top priority. We realize that cancelling programs and events is disruptive to your lives, but it is a necessary step in reducing the spread of COVID-19. The two best sources of information on COVID-19 are the County Health website and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. Please check those resources to learn how to stay healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As the Town continues to make changes to its services and programming, we will keep you updated through our website and social media accounts.
Thank you,
John Irish Goodwin
Mayor of Colma