We are overjoyed to announce that, with your generous donations, we reached our first year monetary goal of $12k and have raised nearly $15,000! Together, we are making our vision a reality… a world where people with mobility issues have the opportunity to travel and create unforgettable experiences that enrich lives.
We are proud of incredible accomplishments so far and want to show you exactly where your contributions went and what is needed as we continue our mission of Freedom Trippers, empowering mobility impaired travelers seeking freedom and independence to travel the world. We believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to live life to the fullest and pursue their dreams.
We have filed all necessary paperwork for our 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation status.
Cost for accounting Services including filing articles of incorporation and nonprofit $1000.
We own several domains and continue to build our online presence with our website and social media platforms. We are building a store web store and will offer merchandise online and at pop up locations for future fundraising events. We are looking to hire a Web and social media manager in the future, but are currently doing this in house.
Domain and hosting services YTD $1117
We and have booked and paid for our first trip, a 7 day cruise to the Greek Islands in June 2025 for Gigi, Galen and our two caregivers.
Total cruise cost $5453
Cost for onboard Wi-Fi for company phone $118
We have added an additional seven day stay on the mainland to acclimate to the time change and travel lag. (After extensive research, we found the effects of jet lag, especially with our medical conditions, would be tremendous in the first few days and made staying a few days in advance was a necessity.)
Total Cost 6 nights hotel 2 rooms $1800
We have booked nonstop flights from Los Angeles, California to Athens, Greece. (Nonstop flights were not available from our local international airport in San Francisco, California and the chances of the airline damaging Galen‘s powerchair and our manual chairs increases significantly at each transfer).
Airfare for people plus baggage, seat, seats, and insurance $6318
Travel costs transportation round-trip from Capitola, California to Los Angeles international airport $450
We spent months researching popular and historical destinations in Greece and the islands included in the cruise, as well as excursions offered by the cruise lines for travelers with mobility impairments.
What we discovered was quite disheartening yet expected, there wasn’t much available for us to choose from, certainly not with all the things that we wanted to see and document for Freedom Trippers during our stay.
We studied local transit options like the subway and ferries and discovered that although we may be able use some of these systems, we would still need to be transported to those places, making the journey both troublesome and expensive once more.
We searched options for van rentals that would accommodate out powerchair and both of our manual wheelchairs and found only one possibility after calling many rental companies in Greece. A van would cost roughly $200 per day and there was a possibility that we could not keep it for more than 24 hours at a time. In addition, we were told that parking could be a real nightmare and we weren’t 100% sure that the rental van would actually accommodate our needs concerning our wheelchairs.
The cruise line offered trips from the airport to the cruise ship for $200 per person, once again, we weren’t sure if they were going to accommodate the powerchair either.
We discovered that taxis were almost nil on the islands and couldn’t find one to reserve that could take the powerchair in our research.
We looked extensively into offshore excursions offered by the cruise line, especially accessible and “mild” outings. We found that the choices were minimal at best and choices were quite costly for such a small amount of time off ship. We came across so many places that we wanted to go to and provide insight for travelers with disabilities and that, in addition to our limited budget could in no way be accomplished by going through the cruise lines excursions alone. After speaking with the accessibility department at the cruise line, we discovered even some of the mild excursions would not be suitable for us. We did end up booking only one excursion to Ephesus, Turkey with the cruise line. We absolutely had to find other alternatives due to our limited mobility.
Cost of cruise excursion Ephesus, Turkey $220
Did we become frustrated with the lack of options? Yes! It also cemented the fact of just how important our mission is and will be to travelers’s around the world with mobility impairments. Filled with even more determination, we continued to search for a way.
Finally, after searching for months on end, we found Hello Thessaloniki, a guide service for all of Greece including the Greek Islands! We stumbled across this luxury tour company by accident, calling them regarding renting a van. (Honestly, we never would’ve called them as they are listed as a luxury tour company, and we would not have thought that we could afford such a service). We spoke with Solon, the guide companies owner, and explained our mission with Freedom Trippers and sent him videos and photos of Galen’s powerchair and the specifications, including height and weight. Solon took our extensive list of places we wanted to go and added their own suggestions as locals with generations of knowledge including beaches, boating and snorkeling options, incredible foodie tours, and so much more!
Hello Thessaloniki’s affordable services includes
air-conditioned transportation for all four of our passengers as well as our powerchair and two manual wheelchairs. All of our transportation needs were met, including to and from the airport and cruise port (offered by the cruise line for $199 per person), an English and Greek speaking guide and wi-Fi for the entirety while we are in the van provided by Hello Thessaloniki. In addition, it includes 24 hour service, morning coffee and tea and air conditioning…extensive local knowledge as lifelong residents of Greece and even photography and video services! We are beyond ecstatic to have found such a gem of a tour guide service.
Cost private guide/transport 12 days various locations in Greece and Islands with Hello Thessaloniki $6112
We are continuing to investigate places of interest and accessibility options for our trip to Greece and are studying how to create map that our fellow handi-capable travelers can follow hopefully on Google maps and Google Earth.
We have had our company logo professionally designed and are currently creating our line of merchandise including T-shirts and sweatshirts. We hope to add hats and other merchandise as well to assist with our fundraising efforts.
Cost of logo $250
ADDITIONAL YTD EXPENSES
Salaries $0
Company phone and service $347
Company mailbox $210
Office supplies and printing $177
Travel expenses $1263
WHAT IS STILL NEEDED?
Merchandising will be a primary fundraiser for Freedom Trippers and 100% of proceeds will go directly back into funding Freedom Trippers.
$3884 Fundraising Merchandise Start Up
Includes Set up and print Freedom Trippers t-shirts and sweatshirts various sizes Qty 144
8 foot Event/Display Tables Qty 2
10 x 10 Event Tent with Freedom Trippers logo ****Corporate Sponsorship Available***
Total donations as of March 2025 $15,000
Total Expenses Greece 2025 Trip $21,471
Total company expenses 1/2024 - 2/2025 $4517
Fundraising Merchandise Start Up $3884
TOTAL AMOUNT STILL NEEDED $14,872
Thank you so much for your support, we could not achieve all this without your generous contributions!
We are looking to add to our team! Are you inspired by our story? We would love your help!
Intern/Volunteer Positions Available!
Grant Writer
Social Media Manager
Website Manager
Map Creator
Fundraising Volunteers
Photography and Video Content Editing
Corporate sponsorships available!
Contact Us at freedomtrippers2024@gmail.com
You can continue to support us by following us on our social media and by clicking on the link below to send your donation through GoFundMe.
Checks can also be sent payable to Freedom Trippers at
Freedom Trippers, 1840 41st Ave. Suite 102, Box 318, Capitola, CA 95010.
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