Case Study Twelve: Hope is a Person, Named Jesus Stephen M. Horst Stephen Horst, a missionary under Eastern Mennonite Missions, has lived in Thailand since 2013, making disciples and developing leaders among the Isaan people group. Context: Small-town Western Virginia Affiliation: Mennonite Size: 600 members Introduction When the first case of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) appeared in the state of Virginia on March 7, “Public health officials caution[ed] that evidence [had] not been seen of COVID-19 spreading in Virginia and said the risk is low.”1 In little over a month, however, the small western Virginia city of Princetown2 would find itself in the grip of a worldwide pandemic. On March 12, about one month before Holy Week, Virginia Governor, Ralph S. Northam would declare a state of emergency in response to the increasing spread of COVID-19.3 Many were hopeful that after a couple of weeks, the number of new COVID-19 Commonwealth of Virginia, Virginia Department of Health. "First Virginia Case of COVID-19 Confirmed at Fort Belvoir." Newsroom, 7 Mar. 2020, www.vdh. virginia.gov/news/2020-news-releases/first-virginia-case-ofcovid-19-confirmed-atfort-belvoir/ 2 All names, including names of places, churches, and people have been changed to maintain anonymity. 3 Northam, Ralph S. Executive Order Number Fifty-Five (2020): Temporary Stay at Home Order Due to Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Commonwealth of Virginia, Office of the Governor, 30 Mar. 2020, www.governor.virginia.gov/media/ governorvirginiagov/executive-actions/EO-55-Temporary-Stay-at-Home-OrderDue-to-Novel-Coronavirus-(COVID-19).pdf. Accessed 4 Dec. 2020. 1
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