Bellingham exchange student held up by COVID-19, needs help getting home in Mongolia

What was supposed to be a fun vacation for Khaliun and her family, seeing the U.S. and Bellingham — where she was an exchange student, turned into a dramatic COVID-19 trial of patience and understanding.

Khaliun, who goes by one name as is Mongolian custom, brought her mother, father and brother to the U.S. in late December, visiting Jan Hayes in Bellingham as well as doing some sightseeing in California. Khaliun stayed with Hayes as an exchange student in 2014 and has visited her several times since.

The family was supposed to return to Mongolia in early February, just as the coronavirus pandemic began.

“They were shocked,” Hayes said. “Her parents in particular, because they can’t read English, they can’t speak English, they’re isolated. It’s pretty frightening. I think they were pretty depressed about the whole thing.”

Mongolia closed its borders with China and halted all international travel. Fortunately, Khaliun had friends in California and Chicago. She took on part-time work for extra money as she was the only family member able to work legally in the U.S. But that stopped when the outbreak hit the U.S.

“She was working for a little while until things really tightened up. Then all the little restaurants and places where she could find temporary work closed. Then they had no source of income and that’s what I needed to step in,” Hayes said. “It was not a financial burden to me, so I could do it and I was just glad that I could, because I don’t know what they would have done.”

Despite attempts to return home on different flights, the family has been stuck in the U.S. for five and a half months with no clear path home.

However, a lifeline appeared when the Mongolian cabinet authorized a humanitarian aid package to the U.S. worth $1 million. A MIAT Mongolian Airlines will deliver the protective equipment and clothing to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Sunday, June 21. The plane will also act as a repatriation flight for Mongolian citizens stranded in the U.S. and will take home more than 250 Mongolians on its return flight.

However, the tickets for the flight were not cheap, with tickets costing $2,500 per person. And while they already have their plane tickets and are en-route to Seattle, they will still have to quarantine at a hotel for three weeks upon landing before spending another two weeks self-isolating at home.

Hayes started a GoFundMe campaign to help them pay for quarantine costs in Mongolia. By Friday night, June 19, the campaign has raised $1,665 in three days.

“Since no one in the family has had any work for nearly 6 months, they are scrambling to find ways to help with this financial burden,” Hayes wrote on the GoFundMe page. “They need your help!”