It's official… we are going on the World Race! We couldn't be more excited to share this journey with you! Going on this trip is something that we have prayed and hoped for since we got married and it is surreal and exciting that it is becoming a reality.
Many people have been asking us some basic questions about the trip so we wanted to take this opportunity to answer them in a one-stop shop. Of course, if you have any more questions, feel free to send us a message (see the "Contact Us" link to the left) / call us / text us / email us / stop by our apartment… We'd love to share more with you!
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Q: What is the World Race? … is it that TV show?
A: No, we are not going on the Amazing Race. We are going on the World Race! The World Race is an 11 month long mission trip, coordinated by the organization Adventures In Missions, in which we travel to 11 different countries to serve God's children all over the world. (If you want to learn more about AIM.. click here.) We will be travelling with a squad of about 50-60 people from country to country and will be splitting off into a smaller team of about 6-8 people (who we haven't met yet!) to work on different projects on the day-to-day.
Q: When do you leave?
A: We are not sure of the exact date that we leave yet, but it will be sometime in early July 2013.
Q: What countries are you going to? Where do you start? Where will you end?
A: We are so excited to be on a route that will bring us to Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, South Africa, Swaziland, Mozambique, India, Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. We don't know the order of the countries yet or where we will start or end. But we are really really excited to get to meet people from these countries and see different corners of the world! (For more details about our route, click here.)
Q: What will you be doing in each country?
A: We don't know yet! Our team will most likely be paired with an organization or ministry in each country that the World Race has partnered with before. We may do anything from serving at an orphanage, teaching in schools, building churches and communities, or counseling women and children affected by human trafficking. Or we may help with a new ministry too! We will have a better idea of what to expect after we go to training in May.
Q: What about your jobs? Where will you put all of your stuff?
A: Colin and I both plan on quitting our jobs. We are sad because we have both been blessed with great jobs here in Austin. We have wonderful bosses and co-workers that we will miss, but we are excited for what is ahead! We will be selling and giving away a good bit of our belongings. Whatever we decide to keep, we will put in storage for our time away.
Q: Can we visit you? Can we send you packages?
A: Unfortunately we don't think this is allowed 🙁 but thank you for thinking of us!
Q: Where will y'all go/what will y'all do after the trip?
A: Who knows! We are open to what God has to offer! We will keep you posted if we know more about this as the trip goes on.
Q: How do you pack for a whole year?
A: Oh man! This will be a challenging task! We will each have a pack (i.e. a big hiking backpack). We will be bringing a tent for us to share, sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and as few clothes as possible (this will be really hard for Kristin). It will be interesting to see the true difference between 'wants' and 'needs' as we live out of this one bag for a year. We will also be bringing a computer, iPad, and camera to keep in touch with all of you and to document our fun adventure!
Q: Do you pay to do this?
A: Yes.. understandably an amazing trip like this isn't cheap. We have been praying and preparing for this trip for months. With that, we have been diligently saving to pay for as much of the trip as we can. The total cost of the trip is approximately $34,000 (see a breakdown of the cost below). We plan on contributing $15,000 of this total expense. If you would like to help fill the need of the remaining $20,000 please click the "Support Me" link on the left hand side of this page.
[Financial Breakdown: The trip costs $15,500 per person ($31,000 for the two of us). This amount covers training camp expenses, administrative costs, and expenses while in the field for the 11 months (i.e. intercontinental travel, additional transportation, food, lodging, and supplies). The additional $3,000 of expenses consists of the cost of gear, medical insurance, immunization shots, and travel to training and to the launch site for the trip. These are expenses we will pay for before the trip.]
Fundraising/Payment Deadlines for the main cost of the trip are as follows:
- $7,000 – Due 5/4/2013 (2 weeks before Training Camp)
- $13,000 – Due 6/17/2013 (2 weeks prior to our trip)
- $22,000 – Due 10/1/2013 (End of 3 months on the field)
- $31,000 – Total Due 1/1/2014 (End of 6 months on the field)
Again, we can't express how happy and thankful we are to be sharing this journey with you! If you have any further questions at all, let us know!
