UI Foundation/UI Advancement Weekly Update 11.12.21

Dear Team:

If you are like me, your personal and professional calendars are filling up with in-person events. It’s been 20 months since the pandemic began impacting our lives, and it’s certainly not over, but increased vaccinations and taking other precautions are permitting individuals to gather in greater numbers at more indoor events.

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the CU Dancing with the Stars fundraiser for the Champaign-Urbana Boys and Girls Club at the I Hotel. It was the first large-scale indoor public event I’ve been to since March 2020, with more than 500 people in attendance enjoying dinner and the performances. I have to admit that even though I am vaccinated, being in a ballroom with so many people still was a bit disconcerting at first. It made me realize, once again, that if we are to overcome COVID-19 and return to some semblance of our pre-coronavirus lives, we must embrace the shared responsibility of doing everything we can to keep ourselves and our families safe, as well as everyone with whom we interact. For me, that meant getting my booster shot (which I did this past Wednesday).

Science tells us the best way to avoid getting the coronavirus, be less sick if we do get it, avoid passing the disease on to others, and help end the pandemic is to be vaccinated if we are able. We are a society that prides itself on personal choice, but in making choices, we ought to be mindful of the impact our decisions have on others. We are all in this together! We don’t know when the pandemic will end, but we do know it is not now.

Whether vaccinated or not, continue to follow all required precautions and take advantage of the extra safety resource we all have available at our universities – free saliva-based COVID testing, with quick results, anytime we want it.  Particularly during the upcoming holiday season, if you attend a large-scale event or travel, a test before and after you go can help keep you and everyone around you stay safe. Foundation managers and supervisors are happy to provide employees with time to test, and I presume the same is the case for university employees.

This weekend, we are going to be tested with perhaps the coldest temperatures of the fall thus far, so bundle up if you are going out, or put those familiar warm slippers on and hunker down at home if you’re not. Either way, enjoy your time away from the office and have a wonderful weekend.

Best,

Jim