Building, Becoming and Being a Welcoming, Safe Community for People with Allergies
Harcourt strives to be people-friendly with the following tools and policies:
Our Harcourt community includes people who have allergies which can be life threatening. Just a few thoughtful actions by each of us, enables all people to gather at Harcourt safely.
This is a very brief list of key, known, allergies. More information is available on the Harcourt Website and from the Office. Please let the Office know if your allergies are not included.
Allergies – in the Sanctuary:
- Scent from any source: Fragrance, perfumed flowers, scented products that you may have used (e.g.scented soap, shampoo, hair spray, laundry detergent, deodorant, cleaning products etc.)
- Latex products (e.g. elastics, fundraiser bracelets, friendship bracelets, markers, erasers)
- Bread which has gluten (wheat). At communion gluten free bread is available.
A few actions:
- please refrain from using scent in any form (e.g. fragrance, perfumed flowers, scented soap, shampoo, hair spray, laundry detergent, deodorant, cleaning products etc.
- leave friendship bracelets, pencils with erasers, markers, at home or in the car. It is the “disturbing” of the latex that causes the allergy problem, such as pulling an elastic or fiddling with a fundraising bracelet, or using an eraser. It’s really hard not to do this!!
- use safe plants if you are bringing plants (e.g. hydrangeas, commercial roses, orchids, gladioli, azaleas, cylamen, alstroemeria, gerbera daisies, snapdragons, carnations or dahlias.)
- choose gluten free bread at Communion.
Allergies – among children in the preschool
| Cedar | Latex Products (e.g. elastics, markers, erasers, poinsettias) |
| Gluten | Cow |
| Dairy Products | Some types of band-aids |
| Eggs | Citrus (e.g. oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit) |
| Strawberries | Maple Syrup |
| Red Food Dye | Tumeric |
| Peanuts | Tree nuts (e.g. almonds, walnuts, pecans) |
| Ant bites | Bee stings and/or Wasp stings |
| Nickel |
A few actions:
- the staff of the children and youth Ministry, know of the allergies that the children and youth have and the necessary action required if their allergies are triggered.
- if you make food specially to accommodate the allergies of the children and youth, be sure that they are kept separately, on their own dish, from all the other cookies/food.
- if you are not sure, please ask
- learn a little more about allergies through information on the web site at Harcourt or in a document available through the church office.
