Abby grew up in a single-parent home, with her mom and two older brothers, Adam and Alex. Abby’s mom often worked two jobs to help support her family, and because of this, there wasn’t much time for her to travel when she was younger. In this way, maybe Josh and Abby are opposites: for Abby, it was her lack of travel and adventure as a child that were in fact what sparked her desire to want to travel someday. In fact, she remembers playing dress-up in her room as a little girl, trying to speak in foreign accents (like the Spice Girls), and pretending that she was a teacher in faraway places like England and Ireland.
Abby knew that if she wanted to travel to another country someday, it would be up to her to make it happen. It was in 8th grade that Abby learned if she went to college, she could participate in study abroad programs, and that if she worked hard enough, she could earn scholarships and financial assistance to study in foreign countries. It was this deep desire to travel that propelled Abby through high school and on to Colorado, where she enrolled at the University of Colorado’s School for Journalism in 2008, making her the first person in her family to attend college.
Equipped with his passion for adventure and love of the outdoors (like his dad), Josh made the move to Colorado to join Abby in 2009.
During college, Abby participated in two study abroad programs. The first one was in England. The second was in Tanzania. As part of the scholarships that made Abby’s study abroad dreams come true, she began volunteering with two youth development organizations: the I Have a Dream Foundation of Boulder County and Reach the World in New York City.
