We need to be intentional about the language we use. GO Teams are ‘suspended/paused’ or in the case of April/May teams ‘postponed’, but not cancelled. As we’re all experiencing now, things are changing too quickly for us to make any permanent decisions at this stage. Of course it is our hope that circumstances will change and that many of our teams will be able to travel as scheduled, but we simply cannot make any guarantees to that end right now.
GO Team Formations are also suspended. This means that if you had a meeting planned for your team in the next two weeks, you should go ahead and cancel it letting your team know that you will reschedule it as soon as possible. Please notify your teams and remove any reminders for these meetings from Managed Missions. Any Formations scheduled after that need to be on a ‘wait and see’ basis right now. I know this is grey, but unfortunately that’s simply the season we’re in. We will notify as you as soon as it’s prudent to resume meetings again. Remember this is not about fear. We need to give people space to focus on what’s important right now which is caring for their families and neighbors.
Support raising and deadlines are also suspended. The giving links for trips are not closed, however, if team members or their supporters want to continue to donate to their trips they need to do so with the understanding that at this point we cannot guarantee that any team will travel as scheduled this year. Once those gifts are given they are non-refundable, so we want to ensure that we’re being transparent with donors. It’s important that your team members are transparent about this in any letters they send or communication they share about fundraising right now.
Please continue to be positive about this ‘pause’ in your communication with others. We do not want to create confusion by teams getting conflicting messages or frustration about whether this is the ‘right choice’. I’ve not heard this from any of you, so thank you! Team members are going to be disappointed and confused about next steps and that’s understandable. Let’s communicate with hope, not fear or frustration. When we lead with peace and unity our teams will follow.