Detroit or the Congo?

Coach Mike Holmgren's wife will not be at the Super Bowl in Detroit. She'll be with their daughter Calla, a doctor, on a trip to the Republic of Congo as part of a Northwest Medical Teams venture.
Kathy Holmgren was a medical missionary in the early 1970s when she first traveled to the African nation to do volunteer work. Back then, the country was known as Zaire. This time, she's returning to the same town where she did her work in what the coach described as "a dream come true for her."
Mike Holmgren gave his wife the trip as a Christmas present. So it was planned well before the Seahawks advanced to the Super Bowl.
On Super Bowl Sunday, Kathy will be in Africa and not at the game.
Why the hell didn't Holmgren make the reservation for a week later, just in case?
Is Africa going somewhere?