[EDIT: this post has been edited to reflect an update from Adventures in Missions received 03/13/20 after originally posting]
As we all get email updates from work, school, banks, credit card companies, random magazine subscriptions, and Uncle Joe addressing how COVID-19 (coronavirus) may or may not be affecting business as usual and any concerns or considerations going forward, I thought it would also be helpful for me to do the same and provide any and all information I have so far as it relates to my upcoming mission trip with the World Race.
Here are the highlights:
- The World Race organization and its staff are keeping a close eye on issues as they develop and are relying on respected experts including the World Health Organization, The Centers for Disease Control and the State Department travel advisories to inform their decisions and plans of action moving forward.
- As of today (03/13/20), there are no (further)* changes to my route or plans to alter preparations. Considering we do not launch until October, I’d imagine this will all work itself out before then. Even if it doesn’t, though, I wouldn’t expect any definitive changes or decisions made until much closer to that time. That being said…
- Any major changes or alterations I hear about will be relayed to you as soon as possible. My goal is to keep you as up to date with everything as I am, so if anything changes I’ll be sure to let you know.
Right now, the organization’s considerations are focused more on routes that launch sooner than mine (and not looking past May at this point) and also on taking care of the racers who have already launched and are currently out in the field. There’s no telling at this point how all this will shake out in the end, but here are some of my anticipated possibilities:
- No changes to our route at all, we launch in October and come back in September (What I consider to be MOST likely at this point).
- Minor changes to our route depending on affected countries/regions and access to transportation or continued health concerns, but we still launch in October and come back in September (I consider this a MODERATELY likely possibility).
- No changes or minor changes to our route, including shortening or overall trip from 11 months abroad to fewer OR extending our stay in a particular country from 1 month to more (I think this is probably LEAST likely).
- Our route is cancelled altogether. From World Race director Bill Swan:
“If Adventures in Missions makes the decision to cancel the trip, we offer participants the option to use raised funds to go on a future trip with us (time frames may apply). We also can offer donors the option of a refund, per the donor’s request. If Adventures has to make substantive changes to an existing trip, any funds raised toward that particular trip are handled on a case-by-case basis.”
So, if our route were to be cancelled, we would be given the opportunity to defer the funds that we’ve raised to another route launching next year or at some other later date. As unlikely a possibility as I see this being, I would certainly seek to discern the best course of action for me to take at that time. However, I am honestly not sure if I would choose to defer, since the timing of the October route was one thing that drew me to it in the first place. Going any later than October would necessitate finding a job in the interim and would further delay my ability to start pursuing a career and actually “get my life started.” I would hope you, my supporter, would understand and continue to support me in that decision as well. As stated in the quote from the World Race director, you would have the opportunity to request a refund of the funds you’ve contributed. If you do not, however, the funds you’ve given will still go to the work for which you gave them in the first place, the spreading of the gospel, I just wouldn’t be the one directly benefiting from your generosity (Again, I consider this an UNLIKELY possibility).
I hope this helps to answer any questions you may have, alleviate any concerns, or at least to provide some insight into the situation and possibilities moving forward. As far as my thoughts and feelings on the matter, I’m fully at peace with every possibility and eventuality knowing that God is ultimately in control of it all, and that I will continue to love and serve Him no matter what and in whatever capacity I’m capable!
Again, I will work to keep you as up to date as I am as the situation continues to develop, but if you have any questions or concerns in the meantime, please feel free to contact me and I will address them to the best of my abilities!
For His Glory,
*My route was recently changed from China to Taiwan as the seventh country we will visit on our trip. This was only partly due to the coronavirus and included other safety and security considerations as well.
