A temple should be a place of peace and happiness and one should feel safe worshipping the various gods and goddesses. Hats off to Washington Kali Temple for their exemplary management of Durgo Puja 2021 and for following amazing COVID protocols. There were sign-up genius links to each day with slots of 35 people at a time. The check-in was also managed very well with proof of vaccination needed for anyone 12 and older. The temple volunteers had marked the way by directional arrows and it was an amazing smooth operation. At the end of your prayers, there was also brown paper bags with mishit and fruit. Also shout out to the police who were there to manage the parking. They were friendly and polite. The only other place that I have seen such utmost care about keeping everyone safe is where I work-NIH. The temple showed that they care about people’s health and safety first and also used Zoom to broadcast the puja. I was so grateful to reside in a community where the Kali temple is following all the guidelines by CDC and making sure, devotees, young and old, vaccinated or not, can see and pray but also be safe. Having an unvaccinated child and a close family member with a medical condition, we felt so safe that we went twice. Again…exceptional management by the Kali temple staff. If you have not visited during COVID…you may rethink and visit safely and support our Kali temple.

Sujata Bardhan, PhD Health Scientist Administrator