From the president of the WARCI club:
COVID-19 and the March 15th WARCI Swap Meet
For those of you who are wondering, WARCI is still moving forward as planned with our scheduled swap meet on Sunday, March 15th.
Unless you have been trapped under a rock these past few weeks, you've been inundated with various news stories surrounding COVID-19, the novel Coronavirus. On Thursday, Governor Tony Evers declared a public health emergency for the state of Wisconsin, and DHS secretary Andrea Palm recommended that public events of 250 people or more be cancelled.
For WARCI, our January meet attendance peaked at 55 buyers and sellers, and it was not the shoulder-to-shoulder crowd that everyone is rightfully concerned about. I'd like to think that our event poses no more risk than a trip to the grocery store, but I'll let you decide what is the best decision for you to make regarding your health and whether or not you should attend on Sunday. We are fortunate that Milwaukee county has no confirmed cases of the Coronavirus, but given the advance of the virus in other parts of the country, it is all but inevitable that Milwaukee will see cases in the coming days.
I've already heard from several of you that you will be attending the meet. Great! If you are planning on attending on Sunday, here are some helpful precautions:
If you are feeling sick or are immunocompromised, please stay home. WARCI has six more meets scheduled for 2020 and we'll look forward to seeing you then. The CDC warns that "Older adults and people who have severe underlying chronic medical conditions like heart or lung disease or diabetes seem to be at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19 illness."
Skip the handshake! A friendly hello will do.
Wash your hands! The Hampton Inn has bathrooms just outside the ballroom, please wash your hands during the show, before you touch your face, eat or drink, and once again before you return home to your family.
I'd like to personally wish you and your family well during this unprecedented time. I hope you will be able to find some solace in this wonderful hobby of ours, and I look forward to seeing you at a future WARCI event.
Sincerely,
Nick Tillich
WARCI President
[email protected]
.