Joshua Lindley was eager to be back in his Salem church.

In early March, the 39-year-old business consultant returned from his mother’s funeral in Arkansas and went to see friends at Salem First Church of the Nazarene. There he found comfort in a community he’s been part of for over a decade.

He was feeling especially tired that day, the result, he assumed, of his travels. Nothing serious, he thought.

The March 8 service was normal, with one exception. Interim lead pastor Bill Carr told Lindley the congregation was for the time stopping handshakes, a precaution to limit any spread of COVID-19. Lindley, a self-described “germophobe,” announced the change to the congregation.

Otherwise, the service went on as usual. Lindley sometimes leads the music for the service and on this Sunday he played “10,000 Reasons” on keyboard, a song about the good God provides in human life.

“It was just a good upbeat service,” Lindley said.

That turned out to be the last service the church held in its sprawling Market Street facility as the global pandemic took hold in Oregon.

Within a week, Lindley was seriously ill. The disease sapped his energy and left him fighting for breath after walking a few feet. He was not alone.

Over the next month, 10 members of the church tested positive for COVID-19. Two would die, their spouses saying goodbye over the phone, the mechanical hum of a ventilator in the background.

No one imagined the church would face such a devastating turn.

Read the rest of the story by the Salem Reporter.

This article was originally published by the Salem Reporter, one of more than a dozen news organizations throughout the state sharing their coverage of the novel coronavirus outbreak to help inform Oregonians about this evolving health issue.