2023

The end of 2022 kicked off our 25th year together (I know, how can it be?). Since two of our favorite things are fitness and altruism, we combined them and did a run up the Space Needle stairs for charity to kick off the year ahead. Transformative experiences have propelled our time together, so, in honor of this milestone year, we were all about supporting and advocating for all things that trigger a sense of awe – the arts, nature, and travel being our favorites. Speaking of travel, a celebratory year called for an extra dose of celebratory travel. A highlight was supporting and advocating for the USA’s outdoor spaces via a road trip that brought us to, among other things, four new National Parks. Another highlight occurred in June, when we prioritized being activists for Pride Month. We participated in the Seattle Pride Parade, did a run for charity, and attended Trans Pride events.

2022

This was a great year to love the ACLU even more than we already do. With hundreds of anti-LGBTQ bills introduced in 2022, we’re proud to support the ACLU’s efforts across our nation. And speaking of rights, we happened to be in Hawaii when SCOTUS overturned Roe v. Wade. We were proud to take to the streets – with both tourists and locals – to protest this monumental setback. We still have headaches from the after-protest mai tai action.

2021

Year two of the pandemic was a very good year to continue our advocacy for the environment and public lands. We saw many of the few remaining National Parks on our list, and we hiked like our lives depended on it. In Grand Tetons NP, we were thrilled to revisit the trail on which Caanan had the idea to name this very website No Vacation Required (way back when). We hope that our fellow outdoors enthusiasts here in Washington State support Washington Trails Association as we do. Of course with the continuing threat to civil liberties, we doubled down in our support of the ACLU – as advocates, activists, and members of the DeSilver Legacy Society. Finally, 2021 saw Seattle in a weird place with lots of infighting among liberals. We couldn’t resist the urge to get behind the causes and candidates that we feel support a better city. We feel very fortunate to live in a top-tier, progressive city, and we’re committed to making it equally welcoming to others.

2020

This year was all about Racial Justice! In addition to loving/supporting the ACLU more than ever, we put muscle behind other organizations – NAACP, Unicorn Riot, LQBTQ Task Force, Color of Change, NBJC – in order to spread the word and get informed ourselves (because even as woke gay guys, we had some learning to do, too). Additionally, we worked hard to get Trump out of office. While the candidate we volunteered for didn’t win, we’re happy that change is on the horizon in 2021. Despite the pandemic, despite all the yuck, 2020 was a massively transformative year for us. We were already starting a new Chapter (yay Chapter 3!) anyhow, so the change that 2020 brought further fueled us to make the most we could out of it. And, most importantly, to committed to doubling down on doing our part to use our health and privilege to help. other. people. Period. We were on a multi-week work/pleasure trip just as the pandemic hit. We raced back to Seattle from Hawaii just in time for lockdown. Prior to that, we had been in Miami, Puerto Rico, and New York earlier in the year. It’ll take 2021 (and beyond) to properly document what 2020 meant for us and the world.

2019

We started volunteering with the State's foster program to watch over neglected kids at a very scary time for them – immediately after they are taken into custody (before they are placed in foster care). It’s been a challenging but transformative experience to witness the tough experiences these kids endure and to try to be part of creating a different reality for them. Also, being in New York City to be part of World Pride 2019 inspired us to take our advocacy for equality to new heights. Thanks to our involvement in & support of organizations like the ACLU and SPLC, we’ve learned a lot about expanding the circle of opportunity. We’re geared up to heavily advocate for more humanity-forward laws and a new person in the White House in 2020. Rather than sitting around complaining, it's always best to put anger extreme frustration into positive action, right? Finally, we’ve made 2020 the year we’re going to level-up our advocacy for protecting Mother Earth. Motivated by our involvement with Washington Trails Association and Earth Justice, we got a jump start in 2019. We now carry around metal straws and cloth napkins and can’t wait to make more changes as the new year begins to unfold. Yeah, we’ve become those people and could not be happier about it! Prepping for a new Chapter, our travel cooled off a bit. A trip to the Baltic Region, and a return to (take a guess….) Italy were highlights. We finally made it to the Dolomites for a hiking adventure. Our world was rocked. That’s all I can say. I mean, look at the picture.

2018

With the gap between rich and poor widening at a rapid pace (especially in places like our home base, Seattle), we got much more involved with our own community. We advocated for transit and building laws that favor a diverse population, and we deepened our support for organizations like Seattle Art Museum, which – via initiatives like the Olympic Sculpture Park – strive to keep art (and space!) available to all people. 2018 was also about influencing people to vote in the mid-term elections. For example, in Orlando for a travel campaign with Disney just prior to the election, we jumped on the opportunity to walk the theme parks spreading the word (see pic). Finally, 2018 was about further cultivating our relationship with the ACLU and getting involved with the Southern Poverty Law Center. On the “making tracks” front, 2018 was probably one of our best yet. We started the year with a dreamy hiking trip to Patagonia (with, of course, return trips to our other favorite places in Argentina). We also tagged on Brazil on our way home. Over the summer, we made it to the final of the 50 states (Delaware was our last!). Finally, in the autumn, we went on a grand anniversary adventure to Scotland, Norway, and Greece. Words can’t describe our good fortune and how grateful we are.

2017

In 2017 we, once again, leaned heavily into the Effective Altruism movement. Oxfam was, for the second year, our charity of choice. We also continued to make donations based on our walk/hike/run mileage total throughout the year and crossed 3000 miles (our goal for the year) on November 7th. Additionally, we took our relationship with the ACLU to a new level. We live in a turbulent world, and few organizations can protect vulnerable populations like the ACLU can. We were happy to become part of the ACLU's advocacy movement in Seattle. Because #solidarity! 2017 also brought us to Japan and South Korea for the first time. An epic Germany road trip (and Oktoberfest) was another highpoint. And of course we had to add on Italy, visiting the Amalfi Coast for the first time.

2016

In 2016 we leaned heavily into the Effective Altruism movement. Effective Altruism is all about evaluating altruistic options and acting in a way that positively supports the greatest possible impact. It's also about making decisions in your own life that support a "take only what I need" mindset. Tough stuff to grapple with, for sure. In addition to continuing to support charities we love, we embarked on a fun partnership with Oxfam that capitalized on our love of walking / running / hiking. In a year full of travel, our favorite travel moment was an epic autumn adventure to France and Italy, where we met up / stayed with friends to celebrate wine harvest season (gotta love those Barolos!). We then returned to Europe in December for a work project - a Christmas market themed river cruise.

2015

Our Charity of Choice was the ACLU. We especially love that the ACLU strives to give all people equal footing and, in 2015, that they were at the forefront of the fight for marriage equality. We negotiated a travel writing assignment that combined our passion for travel and LGBT advocacy. The assignment took us to several cities where we were able to participate in critical LGBT advocacy events (including several Pride celebrations and a rally on the steps of the Supreme Court during marriage equality deliberations). Also, we were again in the midst of all sorts of other advocacy in an attempt to do our part in making the world a better place, in general. 2015 was another heavy travel year, with nearly 6-months of time spent on the road. As always, our laptops were constant companions as we balanced exploring and making a living.

2014

In addition to focusing on our Charities of Choice, CARE and Share Our Strength – we leaned heavily into our passion for LGBT advocacy. We did some exciting work with the Normal Heart Foundation and drummed up support for Broadway Cares / Equity Flights AIDS (BCEFA). Thanks to some help from one of our generous, altruistic corporate clients, we hosted a fun meet up in NYC and a group attending BCEFA's signature annual event. As always, though, it's the day-to-day mindfulness that excites us the most. We encouraged NVR readers to share their "best advice" rather than leaving comments on the site. For each nugget of wisdom received, we donated a $1. That, in addition to several other advocacy blitzes during the year, led to about $7000 in donations to our Charities of Choice. 2014 found us kicking off the year with an extended trip to SE Asia. We ended the year with several weeks on Maui, finalizing plans for a travel campaign.

2013

We're one step further along on the road to marriage equality. Early in the year, we had a great advocacy trip to DC to rally for the cause. We then celebrated (hard!) when things went our way with the Supreme Court in June. This year's summertime “advo-camping” adventure was all about small acts of kindness. While hiking/walking/running 250+ miles, we made it our aim to bust out an act of kindness each day. During the last quarter of the year, we again ramped up our food security advocacy and – in conjunction with World Food Day and our trip to the New York City Wine and Food Festival – rallied support for Share Our Strength. They work to ensure that every kid in America gets the needed nutrition. Travel highlights included a lengthy stay on Kauai in conjunction with the Kauai half-marathon.

2012

During the 5 year anniversary of our living this NVR life, we made a commitment to take things – including our advocacy – to a whole new level. Things went well! We travelled to Washington D.C. to advocate for religious freedom and healthcare for all. Once again, we were all about spreading the word on food security / poverty reduction, and we took that message on the road during our annual “advo-camping” adventure. In 2012, we were big on being better local citizens in Washington State and Seattle. Of course, we fought like crazy for marriage equality – it was successful! Travel highlights included our first visit to China and Northern Africa. We also ended the year with a return to Costa Rica.

2011

Early in the year, we advocated along side CARE in Washington D.C., and the impact was immense. Just as we did last year, we set out on another camping/hiking “advo-cation” (2 actually!) and made huge progress in our quest to integrate some sort of advocating into our everyday life and travels. In 2011, we were especially proud to further incorporate advocacy into our business plan, raising clients' awareness and donating a portion of fees to organizations, like CARE, that are working to expand the circle of opportunity. We closed out the year by championing new initiatives from Oxfam and the Opportunity Finance Network. Travels this year included extensive time in Europe, including Eastern Europe, Italy and the UK.

2010

In 2010, we were especially inspired to make a difference by the fact that 1 in 6 world citizens are chronically hungry. Not cool, so we wanted to help change that. A highlight of the year was our “advo-cation” to Wyoming, where we shared that disturbing statistic and motivated people to act. Throughout the year, we continued to make our Charity of Choice (Mercy Corps) a big part of our business plan. They did/do a lot of great work in Haiti, which we were thrilled to support. A clear highlight of the year, though, was traveling to Washington D.C. in order to advocate our representatives on behalf of the world's poor. Thanks to another charity we dig, Care International, we had an incredible experience. During the year, we also scoped out volunteer opportunities in Mexico. It was also a year full of travel, capped off by a lengthy visit to Kauai at the end of the year.

2009

Honoring our ability to live deliberately – doing exactly what we love – we officially integrated giving back into our business plan. We enjoy donating our professional services to struggling individuals and like-minded organizations. Also, we selected Mercy Corps as our first "Charity of Choice" and began advocating for their incredible work via our business. Integration feels good and we admire the work that Mercy Corps does towards "alleviating suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive and just communities."

2009

While on a return, long-term visit to South America (Argentina), we connected and did some work with Idealist, a fantastic non-profit that's all about helping others to "lead free and dignified lives." A perfect fit for us! We think Idealist is especially cool because they help to facilitate positive action on behalf of people / organizations that want to change the world. We spent the end of this year on a lengthy cruise from Australia to the USA. No matter where we were, we were working hard to grow our new business,

2008

We returned from South America early in the year and worked hard to implement the business plan we had been concocting during our time away. Over the summer, on a road trip across the USA, we learned a lot more about the inequality and despair that exists right here in our own country. Retracing some of the steps of the Civil Rights movement reminded us that the struggle is recent and ongoing.

2007/2008

Inspired by our journey to Africa, we initiated a personal fundraising campaign to support the education of kids back in "our" community in Zambia. The money we raised (thanks to generous friends / family!) paid the school fees of over 100 kids. None of this would have happened had it not been for our long training runs as we prepared for the 2007 Paris Marathon.

Forever changed by what we witnessed in Africa, we set out for South America where we had arranged a volunteer opportunity in a shantytown outside of Quito, Ecuador. This is where we got the best "education" of our lives. The months we spent there provided a mind-blowing opportunity to dig into the reality of poverty and how to best advocate for more equality in the world.

2007

With the help of an incredible charity, we were able to learn about the reality of abject poverty by visiting one of the most poverty-stricken places on the planet, Zambia. At the same time, though, we were inspired (and ultimately changed forever) by the hope that exists amidst the most treacherous conditions you can imagine. Visiting the girl / family / community we support (pictured), we saw first hand what can happen when you lend a hand to bolster infrastructure.