WATTS, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- For a child growing up in Watts, a trip to Senegal and The Gambia is a chance of a lifetime.
"We've never been out of the country before," said Bridget Harper, who signed up to go on the trip with her two sons.
Then news broke about the Ebola outbreak in Guinea, which borders Senegal. About half of the two dozen parents and students who signed up for the trip organized by the Watts Learning Center dropped out.
"I don't want to take that chance of going to West Africa and exposing them (my sons) to this deadly virus," Harper said.
Adding to Harper's distress, she may not get back a $1,500 deposit she put down with Nubian Tours, the travel agency that organizes the trips for Watts Learning Center.
School officials say they have no power to help Harper get her deposit back, which she wants so she can take her sons elsewhere during the holidays.
"I am comfortable with this trip as are some of our families," Watts Learning Center co-founder Sandra Fisher said.
The Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention says Senegal is safe, as the border with Guinea has been closed for weeks.
Jo Keita of Nubian Tours says the money has gone to airlines, hotels and vendors. A partial refund might be possible, but not until December.
"It is not easy getting money back from Africa, and I have got them to agree to do it," Keita said.
Harper says she still wants to go, just not this time.
"We have our passports ready, but it is just that it is not a good time," Harper said.