In a large commercial building in Evans, there is a big auditorium. It鈥檚 dark inside, but the stage is backlit by purple fluorescent lights shaped like diamonds.
The Latin band on-stage is jamming, singing a Christian worship song.
鈥�Yo soy el bendecido, porque bendecido estoy,鈥� they sing in Spanish, that they are blessed that Jesus Christ came and transformed their life. 鈥淓s que vino Jesuscristo y mi vida transformo.鈥�
This is Mosaic Church. Every Sunday there are three services, two in English and one in Spanish.
Angel Flores, Mosaic鈥檚 lead pastor, is bald, stocky and wears a v-neck sweater and slacks. Flores is 48, but looks a decade younger. As he shares a funny anecdote about his bad singing voice, his warm smile is infectious.
鈥淚f I sing, you won鈥檛 worship God,鈥� he says as the congregation laughs.
Angel and his wife Diane founded Mosaic Church 13 years ago with a group of friends in their kitchen.
鈥淲e felt like there was an opportunity to create a church for unchurched people,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur original tagline was a church for people who don鈥檛 really like church.鈥�
鈥淲e strive to make Mosaic as welcoming, unweird, as we can,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou can invite your friends.鈥�
Mosaic is an evangelical church. It is open to anyone and counts many young, working class families among its congregation. A year ago, nearly 700 people would come worship on any given Sunday. Then COVID-19 started, and congregants who are first responders or work at meatpacking plants started getting sick.
Keeping the congregation safe
After the service, Angel and Diane Flores sat in his office in bright gray and orange armchairs. As they talked about how the church has adapted to COVID-19, their easy, loving banter underscored their three-decades-long marriage.
They are working through the coronavirus pandemic together, which includes getting tough calls from church members.
鈥淲e got a call from a lady in our church who said, 鈥楶astor, they鈥檙e about to intubate me.鈥� And so, I mean, that was that. It got real quick,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s her pastor, I鈥檓 telling her, like, 鈥榣ook, it鈥檚 going to be OK, you鈥檙e going to be fine. But real talk, you might be meeting the Lord soon. So, let鈥檚, you know, let me pray with you.鈥欌��
During the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, about two dozen congregants got sick with COVID-19 and recovered, including the woman who called Angel as she was being intubated. As a precaution, the church shut its doors in mid-March and moved online.
In April, Weld County had one of the highest numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths per capita in the state. Since then, the rates have dropped, but one statistic has remained constant: Hispanics and Latinos have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19.
鈥淚 think that takes a mental toll on the community,鈥� Angel said. 鈥淓verybody鈥檚 stressed out. Everybody鈥檚 tired of this. Everybody鈥檚 worn out.鈥�
While Mosaic Church was doing its best to hold on, Angel and Diane Flores also had to navigate local politics. Throughout the pandemic, Weld County commissioners enforced the state鈥檚 COVID-19 regulations. They鈥檝e encouraged personal responsibility instead, allowing residents to decide which public health guidelines to follow.
Over the summer, when Angel and Diane decided to restart in-person services, they were determined to do it safely.
鈥淚鈥檓 called to love other people and so love our community,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he way that we love them the best is to make sure that we鈥檙e doing everything we can to keep them safe and do our part.鈥�
But the couple wasn鈥檛 sure what they should actually do. Since Weld County did not have any specific policies in place, they chose to follow Larimer County鈥檚 guidelines instead. They removed every other row of chairs and asked people to leave space between families or groups.
鈥淲e ask everybody to wear masks. We bought gallons of hand sanitizer,鈥� he said. 鈥淗onestly, nobody really knows what we鈥檙e doing. We鈥檙e just trying to manage it the best we can.鈥�
The new normal
In mid-June, Mosaic began worshiping again in-person at a greatly reduced capacity. Meanwhile, church members kept contracting the disease. Angel had three family members pass away from COVID-19 in a week.
鈥淧eople are scared. So, they don鈥檛 want to come to church, we get that,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o that鈥檚 why we鈥檙e doing the online stuff to try and still keep them connected and engage their church family. But yeah, it鈥檚 been a trying time for sure.鈥�
Mosaic streamed their services on several online platforms andd Facebook for announcements, prayer and fellowship.
But not everybody uses social media and one of Mosaic鈥檚 biggest struggles, said Diane, has been keeping congregants engaged.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to know that some people fell through the cracks and we don鈥檛 know where they鈥檙e at and we don鈥檛 know if they鈥檙e OK,鈥� she said.
At the beginning of November, Angel tested positive for COVID-19.
鈥淚鈥檓 so bummed out to tell you this is happening to me,鈥� he said in a video posted on Mosaic鈥檚 Facebook page. 鈥淏ecause the last thing I wanted to do was bring this into my house and to bring this into my church family.鈥�
Diane also tested positive along with several staff members. So, in November the church had to close again for two weeks. In his Facebook message, Angel urged the congregation to remain diligent and stay safe.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e feeling sick, like get tested. This is serious, this whole COVID thing is not a joke,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 care what anybody says about the politics behind it or any of that ridiculous stuff, it鈥檚 real and it鈥檚 terrible. And I鈥檓 thankful that I seem to have gotten a mild case of it.鈥�
Providing hope
Today, Mosaic is open with in-person services that continue to be streamed online. This is the new normal. Even though their delivery methods have changed, Angel and Diane plan to keep doing what they do, connecting people to Jesus and helping them grow their faith.
鈥淚 think our main focus during COVID is to provide hope for people, remind them that this will pass,鈥� she said.
鈥淭his is not forever,鈥� he interjected.
鈥淭his is not forever. There is still hope,鈥� she continued.
鈥淥nce we get through this,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 know I鈥檓 going to appreciate worshipping with other people more than I ever have. Gathering with family, hugging people, shaking hands.鈥�
This is part three of KUNC's series, "Over-Infected, Under-Resourced: COVID-19 Hits Colorado Latinos Hard." Click here for more stories.
