Parents of students at Good Shepherd School on Lookout Mountain have been told that a school staff member has had exposure to a patient with the coronavirus.
The school, which is associated with Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, is currently closed. Family members have been advised to stay home until test results on the staff member are back early next week.
This message went out to the parents:
Dear Parents,
We were just informed that a Good Shepherd School staff member has had known exposure to a confirmed COVID-19 patient. This staff member is being tested for the virus, and we expect the results to come back sometime in the next week.
Until the results are available, we encourage any Good Shepherd School family who has a family member showing any of the primary symptoms of the virus - a cough, fever, or shortness of breath - to stay home and avoid contact with others.
I am sorry to have to share this news with you. This comes as a shock. We are in uncharted territory and this is frightening to all of us. I have spoken with her this evening and she is not experiencing any symptoms. She tells me the Health Department has been encouraging about her prognosis.
As soon as her results are in, I will share them with you. In the meantime, wash your hands, keep all surfaces clean and disinfected, and cover your coughs and sneezes. We are in all of this together. We are very hopeful this added social distancing the next two weeks will help flatten the curve of the spread of this disease and get us on the side to a healthier community.
Thank you for your support and encouragement as we move forward.
Sincerely,
Sandy Skorput,
Director