More than 100 people who attended the 81st General Convention in Louisville, Kentucky, have reportedly tested positive for COVID, either after returning home or while still at the eight-day convention, which ended June 28.
One COVID-disabled clergy deputy from New Hampshire has made it her mission to publicize the outbreak, in the hope of sparing others the devastating consequences of her repeated infections.
The Rev. Kate Harmon Siberine has been posting daily on Facebook and TikTok, and wrote in the afternoon on July 1 that she was aware of 70 cases of COVID in the House of Deputies — a body of more than 800 people, plus 100 or so alternates.
The tally continued to rise into the evening. The Deputies Under 40 Caucus began maintaining a spreadsheet of infections, with the count standing at 92 cases in 39 deputations as of 8 p.m. That tally does not include a handful of cases that have been identified elsewhere. (As of late afternoon July 2, the tally stood at 142 cases in 49 dioceses.)
Siberine wrote that some deputations were informed of COVID cases as early as Wednesday, June 26, and said, “There absolutely should have been announcements that there were positive COVID tests.”
At least 12 bishops are believed to have been infected. Ten of them have disclosed their infections on Facebook: Diane Bruce (West Missouri provisional), Scott Hayashi (Utah resigned), Kym Lucas (Colorado), Rayford Ray (Northern Michigan), Jennifer Reddall (Arizona), David Rice (San Joaquin), Kai Ryan (Texas suffragan), Melissa Skelton (Olympia provisional), Jos Tharakan (Idaho), and Andrew Waldo (Upper South Carolina).
The Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, who stepped down as president of the House of Deputies at the end of the 2022 General Convention, made a brief appearance in Louisville and was honored by her successor, Julia Ayala Harris. Jennings also has COVID now, again. She was only in Louisville for about a day and a half, but told TLC she is quite certain she got COVID at General Convention, because she was in contact with several people who have contracted it.
No announcements about COVID precautions were made at the convention, and few people wore masks. Public Affairs Officer Amanda Skofstad said the General Convention Office (GCO), headed by the Rev. Michael Barlowe, had recommended that attendees follow current CDC guidelines for COVID prevention. She said the GCO did not have statistics on COVID infections, and “we would not be able to disclose people’s health conditions if we did.” She declined further comment. Barlowe previously announced he will retire in August, having run his fourth General Convention.
In a message that Siberine shared with TLC, Ayala Harris wrote, “We understand the measures and guidelines followed by the General Convention Office may not have fully addressed the specific needs and concerns of those attendees at a higher risk for COVID-related complications or who are immunocompromised.”
Ayala Harris added, “We look forward to working closely with you, other deputies and the General Convention Office to develop strategies for future events.”
“While I am grateful to President Ayala Harris’s desire to do better at future gatherings, I am disappointed that there is no apology for the unnecessary risk placed on all deputies at this one,” Siberine wrote.
Siberine has been taking COVID tests daily, and is thankful that they have been negative so far, because another infection could be devastating. She has long COVID, which the CDC describes as “a serious illness that can result in chronic conditions requiring comprehensive care.”
Long COVID forced Siberine to resign from parish ministry earlier this year. It has turned her into what she described as “an ambulatory wheelchair user” — she can stand and take a few steps, but is likely to pass out if she is upright for too long.
“What COVID did was damage my autonomic nervous system, which basically means all of the things that your body does automatically,” she said. “So my heart, when I am upright, cannot effectively circulate blood through my body … it can’t pump blood to my head.”
Siberine is 34 years old.
When TLC asked about her prognosis, she said simply, “my prognosis is this.” There is no cure for long COVID. Although she is participating in clinical trials, “right now, it is all about managing symptoms in the hope that one day there will be a cure. But really focusing on maximizing quality of life, rather than expecting to get better.”
“I’m very concerned about the wider implications of this event, and I applaud Kate for her truth-telling,” said Bishop of New Hampshire Rob Hirschfeld.
The 80th General Convention was held in July 2022, after being delayed a year because of the pandemic. After several members of the Executive Council came down with COVID at an April 2022 meeting in Puerto Rico, the church made the wrenching decision in May to slash the length of the convention in half, eliminate the always-popular exhibit hall, and strictly limit the attendance of staff and visitors.
Despite the precautions, at least 34 attendees tested positive after the 2022 General Convention, but a consulting epidemiologist said the number would have been much higher if the significant steps had not been taken.
Financial penalties for renegotiating contracts make it more complicated and more expensive to shorten a huge event than to postpone it entirely, and the net cost to the church of the 2022 changes was estimated at $1.1 million.
Siberine was scheduled to be a deputy in 2022, but was diagnosed with long COVID in January that year and did not attend.
She was rector of Grace Episcopal in Concord, New Hampshire, and planted a mission church in Franklin. She continued serving those churches as her health allowed until February 2024, “when my medical team told me that if I had any hope of ever getting better, that I needed to really focus on rest.” Her husband, the Rev. Zachary Harmon, serves at St. Christopher’s Episcopal in Hampstead.
TLC asked Siberine about her decision to attend General Convention this year. Her medical advisors told her, “for you right now, everything has its risks. But this sounds really deeply important to you, and your sense of who you are, your sense of call. So we came up with a plan that I would be on the floor every other day.” This gave the deputation’s alternates an opportunity to spend time on the floor as well.
“Disabled people are also part of the body of Christ,” she said. “Disabled people are also part of the Episcopal Church, and it felt to me really important to have that disabled representation on the floor of the house.”
Siberine’s demeanor was relentlessly upbeat and gracious in her videos and on the telephone. Near the end of a half-hour conversation, TLC asked if she is angry at the General Convention Office.
“That’s a great question,” she replied, stalling for time.
“Yes, I am angry at the General Convention Office,” she said after a very long pause. “I think there is an incredible pressure in the world to move on from COVID, because COVID was so traumatic for so many people, and part of the human experience is just wanting to be able to move forward from that. And I totally hear and appreciate that pressure, especially when planning something as large and complicated as a General Convention where thousands of Episcopalians get together. However, pretending that COVID does not exist is not an effective COVID mitigation strategy.”
