I haven’t been posting much because I don’t have much to say about travel during this Coronavirus outbreak. The news is about staying home, not sharing economy travel. Everyone should be staying at home to help prevent deaths. I do want to share what the HomeExchange network has done during this Covid-19 pandemic. I think their response is spot on.
New Logo: Stay Home
First, HomeExchange transformed their logo:
“In these times of confinement, safety comes before traveling. Let’s stay at home, keep exchanging news, words of encouragement, and memories, and we will exchange our homes later.” This is the right sentiment and I’m glad to see the leadership from companies promoting this message.
Housing for First Responders
In addition, HomeExchange added a service to help facilitate housing for health care professionals. Members with an empty home can put it to good use through this network. Here’s an excerpt from the announcement:
Over the last few weeks, we have received messages from Members who have graciously offered their homes to help medical professionals in need during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thank you for offering your homes and personifying the hospitality, generosity and solidarity that are part of the HomeExchanger’s DNA.
As you may have heard, many health care professionals are in need of a place to stay as they help fight the coronavirus. They need a home where they don’t have to worry about infecting their families or a house that is closer to their workplace so their commute is easier each day.
For those who want to offer housing to medical workers, the HomeExchange team has devised a way to facilitate those generous exchanges: the new COVID-19 Solidarity group on our website.
I appreciate that HomeExchange is putting resources into facilitating this service. They still have all the same expenses (and probably decreased income from people opting not to renew memberships this year). I think this is a great use of their team. They probably have some time on their hands with the low volume of home exchange activity right now. I hope they will continue this service after the pandemic. There is always a need for emergency housing for first responders during local and regional crises.