A Baltimore couple is leaving it up to Reddit users to decide if they should cancel their upcoming wedding in St. Petersburg because of the threat of the Zika virus in Florida.
In a post titled "Canceling our St. Petersburg Wedding over Zika," Reddit user, RyCohSuave, says they have been planning their wedding for April 2017 and they have plans to fly down in late October of this year to do their final tastings and take pictures.
As the number of non-travel related cases of the Zika virus in the state of Florida continues to rise, family members have told the couple they won't be attending the wedding next year out of fear of contracting the virus. Some family members have even gone as far as to beg the couple to completely cancel the wedding and move it somewhere else.
If they were to cancel the wedding, they say they would still owe about $14,000 in fees, which are already being covered by the couple themselves.
So, they want the opinion of Floridians on Reddit. They want to know what the Sunshine State residents think the "realistic outlook" on the Zika virus is here in Florida.
One reddit user responded and said "Most of my family lives in the Tampa/St Pete area. It's business as usual. Have bug spray available for guests, but this is a suggestion I would make for any outdoor wedding, honestly."
Another user wrote: "My wife and I live in St. Pete and our first kid was born about 10 months ago before the Zika in the US stuff. We are planning to have a couple more kids and want them close together so that they have a bond growing up. We're trying for our second starting in a week or so.
Are we nervous? Yeah. We'll take precautions to reduce mosquito exposure. But we're not going to put our lives on hold. Ultimately you have to do what's right for you and trust your instincts. Don't give into fear, but also don't dismiss reason. Take reasonable precautions (bug spray, citronella, etc.) and let your guests know that you are doing so. Understand that some people will decide not to come and don't take it personally. On the other hand, there are some people that say they won't come unless you switch it, but they'll end up coming anyway if you decide to keep it."
A majority of people responding to the post are telling the couple not to cancel their wedding and to enjoy their upcoming "I do's" in St. Petersburg next Spring.
What do you think they should do?
You can visit and respond to the post here.
