08/19/2026
Somehow, in the middle of everything happening this week, we missed a pretty important date.
On Monday, August 17, 2026, Unlikely Journeys, Inc. turned FOUR. 💜
Unlikely Journeys began as an idea years before it became an organization. The vision started taking shape during incarceration in 2012–2013—a belief that lived experience could be used for something more. That our hardest experiences didn't have to be wasted. That maybe the things we've survived could become tools for helping someone else navigate their own unlikely journey.
There were plenty of internal barriers that kept that vision from becoming a reality. Then life changed dramatically, and so did the willingness to stop waiting.
And people showed up.
Friends. Board members. Mentors. Professionals who offered their knowledge. People who encouraged the vision before there was much to see. Community partners who opened doors. People who believed in what Unlikely Journeys could become.
And, yes, even the people who doubted it.
Sometimes discouragement has a funny way of becoming fuel. We've learned to take what could stop us and turn it into energy to keep building.
Because Unlikely Journeys has become so much bigger than one person.
These four years have been about learning, creating, experimenting, building relationships, making mistakes, adjusting, and continuing to show up.
At times, the growth has felt slow.
Looking back, though, maybe it hasn't been slow at all.
Maybe it's been right on time.
We're incredibly grateful for what this organization has taught us, for the people and communities who allow us to walk alongside them, and for every person who has played a role in getting Unlikely Journeys here.
Four years down.
And we're still learning. Still building. Still becoming.
Happy 4th Birthday, Unlikely Journeys. 💜
