[<a href="https://www.newstribune.com/news/health/" style="color:#33AEFF">access the News Tribune Health section</a>]
First Presbyterian Church's annual Easter sunrise service has been a staple of the Jefferson City community for years.
Each Easter morning, congregation members fill seats set up at the Governor's Gardens beside the Governor's Mansion to hear the Easter story as the first rays of sunlight shine into the gardens.
That stalwart tradition was canceled this year, one of the many that have been sidelined by the coronavirus pandemic.
However, in its place, members of First Presbyterian Church, as well as other local Christians, kept the faith on Easter as they started what may become new traditions.
Local churches are learning new ways to celebrate physically apart, but virtually together.
"Easter service was very different this year. There were no hugs and sitting in the pews with your family and good friends, but it still was very connected," said Priscilla Ford, an elder at First Presbyterian.
In addition to the church's livestreaming of its Easter service, church members sent in short videos to the rest of the congregation, ranging from them singing to giving Easter wishes.
"It was a way to feel connected in these physically unconnected times," Ford said.
Ford has been watching the daily live Facebook video by the church's pastor, the Rev. Angela Madden. The "Sunshine Moment" typically lasts seven minutes or so, and imparts biblical lessons and encouraging thoughts.
"It's a way for me and my church family to watch simultaneously and make comments. It's a very uplifting message and that's very much needed in these times," Ford said.
The congregants of Capital West Christian Church came out in force Sunday to celebrate Easter apart, but also together. More than 100 cars rolled into the church's event center parking lot for a drive-in service, many decorated with Easter messages in brightly-colored paint.
Rick Yoder, who has been the connections pastor at Capital West Christian since 2001, said he saw a mix of people, from those who frequent Capital West, to those from other congregations, to even people he hadn't seen before.
During the service, whenever attendees agreed strongly with something that was said or sung, a loud chorus of honks from all the cars would ring throughout the parking lot. It was enough to bring a couple of the ministers close to tears.
"I can't tell you how overwhelming this is," Mark Landis, Capital West's children's minister, said at the end of the service. Another wave of honks responded to his words. Landis had to pause a few times while speaking to let the sounds die down enough to be heard.
Yoder said the drive-in was a good opportunity to bring their "church family" to see each other in person. This was the first time in three or four weeks the group had physically gathered in some way, since services have moved online.
"This is such a strange time, everybody's confined to their homes but yet, we as our church, we have a great community and a great togetherness. And we're missing each other," Yoder said.
At Our Savior's Lutheran Church, a group of about 10 visited at noon to make what Tricia Schlechte dubbed a "joyful noise" in celebration of Easter. The church had held a Facebook livestream of services earlier in the morning.
From cowbells, to cymbals, to a large aluminum pan, members of the church brought what they could with them and stood a safe distance away, loudly sounding off together for about 30 seconds. Some people stuck around to catch up for a few extra minutes, to tell each other their dinner plans and to wish each other a Happy Easter.
Schlechte had the idea earlier in the week to visit Our Savior's Lutheran and ring the large bell that sits by the building's entrance. She said she didn't expect so many to join her.
"I just really thought, 'I'll just come and ring the bell. That's okay, it's not a big deal and I knew people were going to stand outside their doors, and ring bells and things. I didn't think they would show up here, but that's neat," she said, laughing and smiling. "It's different, but it dawned on me today that the church is empty, kind of like the tomb. But that's okay, because the church is people."
On Facebook, some people connected by sharing Easter ideas, such as how to buy and deliver Easter baskets to relatives using contactless delivery.
Sarah Bray organized a neighborhood Easter egg hunt in her neighborhood near Binder Park that incorporated different colored eggs for different children.
She stuffed 500 eggs with candy the night before, and about 14 children from seven families participated. They were able to hunt for eggs at their leisure, since each family searched for eggs with the specific color they were assigned. That helped ensure social distancing, she said.
"Everybody got to get out of the house, so that was kind of fun," Bray said. "I know a lot of people didn't get to visit with family today, we were one of them. But we still wanted to do something fun."
Jay Bosch, a deacon at First Presbyterian, watched his church's streaming service Easter morning, which included still photos from past Easter sunrise services.
"This is truly a testament to our faith that we don't have to necessarily be in a building in order to see the love of our church family, and we don't have to be in our building to worship God and celebrate Easter," he said.
Bosch also was moved by Italian opera singer Andrea Bocelli's Easter concert, broadcast live on YouTube from within the Milan cathedral in Italy. Bocelli ended the concert with a stirring rendition of "Amazing Grace," while photos of empty streets were shown in major cities across the world.
"It just shows all of us are in this together as one planet, and the hope and faith and trust we have in Jesus is still a very powerful thing throughout the world," Bosch said.