I don’t know if anybody else noticed this problem. In Colorado we used to have a serious problem with scheduling circuit assemblies and district conventions. That may no longer be the case now that there is an Assembly Hall in metropolitan Denver, but I can remember when scheduling these events caused considerable hardship.
This is what I mean. It would frequently happen that a circuit assembly would be scheduled as little as three weeks before a district convention. Now, if you lived in the greater Denver area, this was inconvenient, perhaps, but really no big deal. Few of us used hotels for either event as they took place in venues that were an easy drive from home. But for Witnesses who lived in other parts of Colorado, these could create serious economic problems. Those who lived on the Western Slope (all of the state west of the Continental Divide) faced extra difficulties.
This was because they would have to travel long distances on their side of the state just to get to a circuit assembly. That could be as much as two hundred miles away from their homes. Then the district convention—which was always held in Denver—would be slated for two or three weeks afterwards. That necessitated a trip of three hundred or more miles for many and additional expenses. For many of these Witnesses, convention season involved considerable financial sacrifice.
When I would bring this up, it was pooh-poohed. Some said that this was an excellent test of Witnesses love for Jehovah. One elder admitted the difficulties this would impose, but said the scheduling problems arose due to the scarcity of suitable venues for these events and the demand for them. “We have to take any dates we can get,” he explained to me. It still seemed like a weak excuse to me. I wonder if that is still the case not only in Colorado but elsewhere.
Quendi