Birthday Adventure Fund for Will

**UPDATE III: At the suggestion of one of Will's friends, we have a new goal, now. It's a stretch and I have no expectation of getting there (but who knows! so exciting!), but it was pointed out to me that if we raise $1300 then Will can do ALL the adventures. How cool would that be? Because really, how could he ever choose between Gladiator School and the von Trapp family? In all seriousness - this gift is going to make the difference between traveling around and seeing things (which is great) and getting to do things (which is even better).**

 

**UPDATE II: You guys are incredible. I am speechless. No words at all. You're the best.**

**UPDATE: Wow! It's only been a few hours and we're already at the level of seriously changing the flavor of Will's trip. I love this pooling our resources thing! And I love all of you. Will has such amazing friends and it's so moving to me to see how generous and loving you all are. This is already far exceeding my expectations - if we continue at this rate I think we may end up elevating the whole adventure from sleeping-on-trains to sleeping-in-hostels! And a good night's sleep while on the road is the best adventure of all. :) **

Dear friends,

 

This Sunday, August 26th is the birthday of Will Trichon, a man we all know & love. As many of you know, Will has received a fellowship to go to Berlin for a week in October. He's super excited, this will be his first time in Europe, and he's planning to stay longer and travel some (seeing historical sites relating to military and political history, of course :). However, the fellowship doesn't cover airfare, finances are tight, and Will is planning this trip on a shoestring.

 

I can't think of anything I'd rather give Will for his birthday than some money towards this epic adventure. But while I feel fine handing my nephew a twenty on his birthday or sending my niece a check, it feels weird for some reason to just hand some cash to a peer. Like, "this is the exact dollar amount of how much I love you." So I had a thought - what if those of us who want to chip in for Will's trip pooled our resources? Then we can pool both our birthday offerings and our well-wishes and the whole thing will be less awkward and more awesome!

So I've set up this site to do just that. If you want to participate in this gift, you can do it through the site, and then maybe send a fb message or email ([email protected]) to let me know you did so I can make sure your name is on the card. If you don't have any money to contribute but would like to pass along your best wishes for Will's trip, send me a message or email. Everyone who wants to gets to be part of this gift, whether you kick in cash or not (but hopefully between all of us we can make a nice gift - I'd love to finance a trip to the opera in Paris!).

 

Some fun benchmarks we can aim towards:

If we raise…

$22 - an underground tour of WWII bunkers and flak towers with the Berlin Underworld Association

$50 - a traditional Austrian meal with wine at Zu den 3 Hacken, a 350-year old gasthaus in Vienna

$100 - daytrip to Pitigliano, Tuscany's "Little Jerusalem," from Florence or Rome

$125- a day of Gladiator School in Rome at Gruppo Storico Romano (tunic and sandals included)

$140 - a dinner cruise through Venetian canals aboard a replica 1600s galleon

$150 - Tosca at the Opéra Bastille in Paris

$220 - 2 nights (the minimum stay) at the Villa Trapp (home of the Sound of Music's Von Trapp family) in Salzburg

$250 - half of a Eurail pass (5 travel days between 4 countries) (I know a Eurail pass isn't very quirky or exciting in and of itself, but it will enable many adventures.)

$500 - ALL of a Eurail pass

$1300 (!!!) - ALL THE ADVENTURES. WILL CAN DO THEM ALL!

Lastly, please, please keep this a surprise! Not a word to Will until the big day arrives.

 

Thanks so much!

~Lailah