May 7, 2020

To Our AWU Attendees:
Like all of you, we’ve continued to keep a watchful eye on the situation surrounding COVID-19. We have done our best to remain cautiously optimistic amidst abundant uncertainties, while taking into account Utah’s safety guidelines and projections for 2020.

After careful monitoring of our current COVID-19 situation and reviewing the plans and recommendations from the Utah Public Health Department, it has sadly become apparent that holding Anthro Weekend Utah is not going to be a possibility in 2020. Anthro Weekend Utah will therefore be postponed until July 16-18, 2021. We say this after speaking with relevant parties and reviewing all available data, projections, and guidance from our local and federal authorities. Believe us, we’re as frustrated as you are, but there is simply no reasonable path for us to take in order to safely and responsibly move forward with the event this year. Rescheduling for 2021 will allow us to hold a safe and enjoyable convention for all.

Next year’s theme, perks, merchandise, activities, guests, and everything else will remain frozen in time, ready to unthaw next year; we just need to wait a little longer before we get to see each other again. Thank you all so much for your continued support of our convention. While we’re deeply disappointed right now, we can’t wait to come back in full force next year to celebrate having such a devastating event further behind us. We’re also excited to have even more time to prepare and make next year even more amazing. Keep those heads up, and let’s move forward doing all we can to help stop the spread.

TL;DR

• AWU will not be taking place in 2020 and will be moved to July 16-18, 2021.
• 2020 registrations will automatically roll over to 2021, or they can be donated. Refunds are also available. You have until May 22, 2020 at 11:59 PM MDT to make a decision.
• 2020 hotel reservations will be canceled but 2021 rooms will be re-offered to those who already held reservations first.
• Our convention charity, Wild Wonders, is really hurting due to events being cancelled and could desperately use your donations. We have provided a combined portal which will allow you to donate to them and/or AWU’s operational costs. Please help the animals if your circumstances permit.
• Read at the bottom of this document for more info on dealers, DJs, panelists, volunteers, and fursuit dance competitors.

Registrations, Donations, Refunds

We can imagine that one of the first questions on your mind pertains to your registrations. All current convention registrations will be automatically moved to correspond to the 2021 convention dates. No action is required on your part to roll over your convention registration. Should the price of registration increase, you will not be affected by these changes.

However, there may be some of you who would like to elect to receive a refund. First and foremost: refunds are available for all attendees who wish to have one, no questions asked, as long as they are requested within the two-week period. With that said, however, we do want to be completely human and transparent with you: refunds hurt. Refunds really hurt for a growing convention like ours, where gratuitous financial overhead isn’t a possibility quite yet, and where some businesses we work with to make the convention happen can’t offer refunds either, only postponements. In short, all we mean to say is this: If it fits into your plans and circumstances, we deeply appreciate all of you who are willing to allow your registrations to transfer over to next year automatically. On the other hand, we know that a new year brings new uncertainties and new plans, and it simply will not work for everyone to make it to AWU 2021. If this is the case, please send us an email at registration@anthroweekendutah.org by May 22, 2020, and we’ll get things squared away with you. Please allow up to three business days for a response.

If you would like to donate your 2020 registration to AWU, we are very thankful for your generosity. To donate your 2020 registration, please send us an email at registration@anthroweekendutah.org to let us know.

Should you feel inclined to help Anthro Weekend Utah cover any operational costs as we reschedule to 2021, you can donate here. We are incredibly thankful for your assistance. Any leftover funds from these donations will be donated to the convention charity, Wild Wonders.

Animals Really Need Help

Our convention charity, Wild Wonders, is really hurting due to all of their fundraising events and educational shows getting canceled by COVID-19. Wild Wonders is a state and federally-licensed and insured, 501(c)3 non-profit animal rescue and education facility. They provide a home for injured, displaced, non-releasable, and geriatric animals. If your circumstances permit, we encourage you to donate what you would have donated at the convention, plus any extra you would like to (responsibly) offer. The portal for donating to Wild Wonders is combined with the portal for AWU donations, and you can find it here.

Hotel Reservations

Regarding hotel reservations, our hotel unfortunately does not have the capability to transfer existing block bookings to next year, which means we will be forced to open a brand-new empty block. Due to this, all hotel bookings through Hilton Garden Inn will be automatically cancelled. Because we know how frustrating it is to get a hotel room, lose it, and be forced to re-book, we will work around this hotel limitation by first sending out a private block link by email to all individuals who had a hotel room before this announcement was issued. This process will once again begin with Alphas and dealers, old or new, followed by all existing reservations from 2020. The block will then be re-opened to all attendees thereafter. Please keep an eye on social media later this year for updates on new hotel block openings.

Deadlines for Decisions

Now that the convention has been postponed until next year, our adapted transfer/refund policies are now in effect. This means that you have until May 22, 2020 at 11:59PM MDT to make your decision regarding your AWU 2020 registration. If you will be letting your registration automatically roll over to next year, you can relax; no action on your part is required. If you didn’t catch the adapted policies when we first shared them, you can review them under the "Revised Refund Policy" tab on this page.

Details

There are many pieces which make up the puzzle of a convention; have a look below at any categories which may apply to you as we roll everything over to next year.

• Panel, Dance, and DJ Applicants: If you’ve applied to run a panel, compete in the dance competition, or be a DJ at AWU 2020, this information applies to you. Applications for this year are now closed. We plan on reopening all applications this fall. If you previously applied for one of these areas, an email will be sent to you once applications open for 2021. If your 2020 application is still completely accurate for 2021, we will have an abridged form for you where you can re-confirm your interest without going through all the steps to re-apply.
• Volunteers: If you applied to volunteer, your application will be retained, but you will be contacted via email in Spring of 2021 to re-confirm whether you still wish to remain a volunteer applicant.
• Dealers' Policies: Current dealers will be able to cancel their applications and receive a full refund at any time, up to July 1, 2021. Current dealers may choose to roll their tables over to 2021, with no action needed on their part. Cancelled tables are not permitted to be transferred to another individual; open tables will be given to the next person on the waitlist. Starting Friday, November 6, 2020, we will begin reaching out to waitlisted dealers with any open spaces and allow them to register as a dealer for AWU 2021. We will continue to work from our list of waitlisted dealers to fill our dealer’s den for AWU 2021, and AWU will therefore not have a new dealers’ den application reopening. If you’re interested in being a dealer for AWU 2021, simply sign up on the waitlist and we will notify you if there are openings available on a first-come, first served basis.
  If you would like to request a refund for your dealer’s table for AWU 2020, or have any other questions regarding dealers, please email dealers@anthroweekendutah.org.
• 2021 Registration: We will re-open registration for all tiers Friday, November 6, 2020. Registration for Ultimate and Alpha tiers will be open until May 15, 2021, however these will be limited in number and may close earlier depending on interest. Basic registration will remain open until July 9, 2021, after which it will be available at the door. As always, we highly encourage people to register online, before arriving at the convention space to save time at badge pick-up. We plan on offering our advance badge pickup option for 2021 as well. For those who roll over their registrations to 2021 and opted to pick up their badges from their local post office in advance, we will be mailing badges approximately 4-6 weeks before the 2021 con dates. More information on this will be provided closer to our new dates.
• Amusement Park Trip / Lagoon: We plan on offering discounted tickets to Lagoon again for July 15, 2021, the day before the convention. For those who purchased discounted tickets this year, we will roll your tickets over to our new 2021 dates. Refunds are also available upon request until July 14, 2021 for the Lagoon ticket only. If you would like a refund of your Lagoon ticket only, please email events@anthroweekendutah.org. Please note that you cannot cancel your convention registration and still hold on to your Lagoon ticket. If you cancel your convention registration for 2020, your Lagoon ticket will also be automatically refunded.

April 27, 2020

As you are all acutely aware, the spread of COVID-19 has been impacting countless aspects of our lives, including everything from trips to the grocery store, jobs, and planned convention trips. We at AWU continue to closely monitor the situation, with particular attention paid to the policies and procedures enacted specifically in Utah, since those will ultimately affect how this year’s convention proceeds. At this current time, we still plan on moving forward with AWU 2020 and have continued to plan and prepare this year’s convention needs.

However, we do need to be prepared for the event that local and/or state restrictions prevent AWU 2020 from moving forward. To this end, the following amended refund policy will be enacted only in the event that AWU 2020 is canceled:

• On the date that the cancellation announcement is made, a two-week timer will start. This two-week window will be the only time during which a refund for AWU 2020 may be obtained.
• The following options will exist for your AWU 2020 registration during that window:
• Immediate transfer of your registration to AWU 2021. This is the “default” option and will take effect automatically at the end of the two-week window unless you act on one of the other options below.
• Donation of your registration funds to AWU and cancellation of your 2020 registration.
• While we certainly don’t expect this, all we can say is “thank you very much for your generosity.” These funds will be used to assist with any other operational costs associated with AWU being canceled and rescheduled for 2021.
• Should you wish to make additional, separate donations toward convention operations, we will provide the means to do so as well. We’re humbled that some of you have even asked; thank you.
• An email with your first and last name, registration ID (included in your confirmation email), and the email you used to register must be sent to registration@anthroweekendutah.org.
• Refund of your registration.
• AWU will eat all processing fees associated with your refund.
• An email with your first and last name, registration ID (included in your confirmation email), and the email you used to register must be sent to registration@anthroweekendutah.org.
• Only the purchaser of the registration will be permitted to make decisions regarding the options outlined above.
• To reiterate, if we do not hear anything from you within the two-week window, your registration will automatically be transferred to AWU 2021 and will no longer be refundable at any time.
• If you are a dealer for AWU 2020, your options will be similar; an email will be sent to you directly further outlining them.
• All current dealers will automatically have their slot rolled over to 2021.
• Any dealers’ cancellations will be filled by the current waitlist. In other words, if you are a currently waitlisted dealer, your position remains intact and you will continue to move up whenever a dealer cancels.
• If you are currently in the den and decide to cancel your slot for 2021, you will have to re-enter the wait list from the bottom if you change your mind. Also note that your dealers’ table still cannot be transferred to other individuals, as this give an unfair advantage over those on the waitlist.

In the end, what matters most is the safety of all attendees. We’ll continue to keep a watchful eye on all developments, particularly those in Utah. We remain cautiously optimistic that means and measures will be implemented which will allow us to safely hold the convention and will keep you updated as we stay in contact with local authorities. Keep your heads up; let’s make it through this together!

-Your AWU Board

March 12, 2020

To Our Wonderful AWU Attendees,
Like many of you, we at AWU are closely monitoring the situation surrounding COVID-19. We are grateful to have a bit of time on our side, as more than four months stand between us and the scheduled dates of the convention.

We urge everyone to follow the guidance and counsel of the world's and nation's leading health authorities, and comply with restrictions imposed by state, local, and/or federal governments. Doing the simple things will ultimately lead to a quicker recovery and the ability for everyone to get out and enjoy things they love (including conventions!).

In the event that the situation does not improve in four months and/or restrictions prevent AWU from taking place on the scheduled dates, we are currently in discussions with our venue, equipment providers, and insurance agencies to ensure that any changes or cancellations will be handled correctly and fairly for all parties, including attendees.

Enough gloom, though! Keep those muzzles up, wash those paws, stay alert and vigilant, and we'll all make it through this together. We look forward to seeing you all in four months for another amazing convention.