Evacuation Notice

We got news on Friday, August 1st, that the LDS missionaries in Liberia were being evacuated due to the Ebola virus outbreak. Why do we care? See header above--our son, Rain, has been serving as an LDS missionary in Liberia since September 2013.

Here's the "official statement" about the evacuation (from http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/missionaries-serving-two-african-nations-reassigned)

Missionaries Serving in Two African Nations are Reassigned (1 August 2014 at 4:00 p.m. MDT)

Due to the outbreak of illness related to the Ebola virus, as a precautionary measure, all missionaries serving in the African nations of Sierra Leone and Liberia are in the process of being transferred out of these countries and reassigned to other missions. Ensuring the health and safety of our missionaries is our top priority. In recent weeks measures have been taken to reduce risk to missionaries, including asking them to remain in their apartments. To date, there are no reports of illness among the missionaries. Families are being notified as the missionaries arrive in their new assignments. This is a very challenging situation for the missionaries, members and citizens of these countries, and like other organizations, we are taking every practical step to reduce risk.

We received a call from our local news station about our thoughts and feelings on the evacuation. Click here for Dale's interview with the Deseret News.

On Tuesday, August 5th, we received a phone call Ghana. Our son Rain ("Elder Price"), was reporting in that he was healthy and safe and now serving in Cape Coast, Ghana.

The newsroom updated their report on August 6th:

UPDATE (6 August 2014 at 3:00 p.m. MDT):

All missionaries have safely departed from Sierra Leone and Liberia, and have been reassigned to other locations. Missionaries will be traveling to their new assignments over the next few days. When they arrive they will call their families to update them. All missionaries are safe and in good health.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a strong presence in Liberia and Sierra Leone, where thousands of our members continue to live, worship and serve. The Church, through its humanitarian programs and partners, is in the process of assessing needs and considering how to best support relief efforts to its members and the people of these countries.

Somewhere in Ghana. Where will this path take him?

Elder Price is now forging ahead with new experiences in Ghana. We'll continue to update his blog with his weekly letters home. We will continue to pray for the people of Liberia. Our son continues to think of Liberia as "home" and misses "his people" there.