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INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — With the holiday weekend just around the corner, people are preparing to celebrate another Easter during the pandemic. After most services and celebrations were canceled last year, churches and community groups are improvising.

There had to be a certain level of creativity when planning Easter events and services while maintaining the safety factor. It seems in Indianapolis it is going to be a happy Easter after all.

At New Direction Church on East 38th Street, they traditionally have an Easter extravaganza coupled with their in-person Easter services.

“You know, it is our hope that we could come back and worship for Easter Sunday. It has been a year now that we have had to be online only with our services,” pastor Kenneth Sullivan Jr. said.

In lieu of the big event, they are hosting a drive thru and trading the sanctuary for a virtual service.

“For starters we are going to have a car show that is going to be in the back. So when people come and visit they will see that car show and then they will be able to come around and even register for vaccinations. In addition to that, we have a petting zoo,” Sullivan Jr. said.

They will also be giving away bikes, tablets and, of course, Easter candy. The church’s food pantry will also be giving out Easter dinners.

“Easter is what I would refer to as Super Bowl for believers. It is the biggest weekend. It is what our faith is founded upon, the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” Sullivan Jr. said.

Indy Parks is hosting an egg scavenger hunt this Saturday at Riverside Park, a tradition that was canceled in 2020. They say they will be making up for lost fun.

“We will have eggs, empty eggs scattered all around. We will have our kids search for them and when they want to turn them in for treats they will bring them over to our counter where we have hand sanitizer and masks for everyone,” Roman Coffer, assistant manager with Indy Parks, said.

With COVID restrictions still in place, Coffer says the outdoor event is ideal to allow kids to still have a good time.

“We have plenty of space so 6 feet we can follow all of the rules and keep everyone socially distant. So we are just here to have fun and it is all for the kids,” Coffer said.

News 8 reached out to multiple churches in central Indiana and many are hosting a combination of in-person and online services. For those hosting in person services, you either have to register ahead of time for a seat to allow for social distancing or it is first come, first served.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — More restaurants are using Grubhub, Postmates and other services because of restrictions put in place during the coronavirus pandemic.

Some third-party delivery providers are listing some restaurants without their consent, causing issues for those businesses when delivery drivers show up expecting an order.

Joshua Gonzales owns two restaurants in Indianapolis. He says he started having issues when he reopened after a lockdown to curb the virus. He says he isn’t the only one dealing with the third-party delivery problem; he has talked with other restaurant owners struggling with the same issues.

Gonzales owns Thunderbird and Jailbird. Not long after his restaurants reopened from the lockdown, he started seeing delivery drivers show up to at his door.

“Drivers would show up to the bar looking to pick up an order,” Gonzales said, “and they were always ordering things that were from menus like years ago, years prior.”

He never got the order because his businesses have never used a third-party delivery service.

“We have never partnered with them. That is not something that we do. I try to avoid it. They take a large chunk of fees and a large chunk of the profits from the sales so we have never done it,” Gonzales said.

The restaurant then has to call the customer to explain the confusion as to why they can’t fulfill the order.

“You’re ordering food that we don’t offer anticipating a delivery that we can’t provide,” Gonzales said.

He says that the sites would also list incorrect phone numbers that weren’t for his restaurants.

News 8 reached out to Grubhub, Postmates, and Doordash about the problem. Grubhub responded.

“Grubhub places restaurants on our platform to offer diners variety and to increase the volume of orders for the restaurants. Restaurant owners can request removal by reaching out to us at restaurants@grubhub.com, and Thunderbird is no longer on our platform.”

Grubhub

Gonzales says he has had to reach out to Grubhub, DoorDash, and Postmates multiple times to get his restaurants removed only to see them relisted later.

“Super-frustrating, because then I have got to get on the phone and make a call in the middle of service, ‘Hey, why is my website here? Why is my business being listed? I am not a partner.’ And like I said, that could take hours on the phone,” Gonzales said. “I have been listed from DoorDash multiple times, Grubhub multiple times; now we have been listed on Postmates.”

Thunderbird and Jailbird use a different third-party service, ChowNow, that allows customers to place pickup orders, but the restaurants do not offer delivery.

After News 8 reached out to inquiry about the issues, both restaurants were removed from Grubhub. Neither is now listed on DoorDash, but at last check both are still listed on Postmates.

Coronavirus links

Indiana coronavirus timeline

With information from the Indiana Department of Health through March 4, 2021, this timeline reflects updated tallies of deaths and positive tests prior to that date.