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Sheri
O'Neal
Born: January 9, 1973
Background: Avid Sea Kayaker, Serious Traveler, Runner, Diver, Backpacker, Formerly, Sr. Analyst, Marketing,
Marriott Hotels |
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From time to time I
run into friends that I haven't seen since college. As
we catch up with one another they're almost always
surprised to learn of my upcoming adventure. That's
because anyone who knew me growing up knew a very different
person than I am today.
To give you
some background, I grew up along the coast in North Carolina.
It is a beautiful corner of the world characterized by huge
old oak trees, historic plantations, and soft white sand beaches.
It was an idyllic place to grow up and only rarely did I have
the opportunity to venture beyond its borders.
Back then, adventure
was a foreign concept to me. Fun revolved around days spent
lazing on the beach and going to parties. If you had asked
me to go on a weekend backpacking trip I probably would have
opted out.
But, life is an evolution and the person that you
are today isn't necessarily the person you were 10 or 15 years
ago. If you're fortunate like I am, you meet that one
individual that has a monumental impact on the direction
of your life. For me, that individual is my husband and soul
mate, Jim. We met in high school as two very different people,
opposites in many respects. Jim has always been an adventure-seeker
and risk taker. I guess it only makes sense that some of
it would rub off on me!
It all began with my first ski trip
in college in which Jim took on the ultimate challenge of
teaching me to ski. I wasn't quite sure what I would
think about this new sport, but after a few lessons, I started
to enjoy myself. This was the first time I left my comfort
zone and I was having fun!
My junior year in college, I took
my first commercial flight. It was also my first trip out
of the US and I found the experience intoxicating. It was
the start of an insatiable love affair with travel. Later
came road trips to Colorado for ski vacations with friends.
Each new experience inspired me to do more. To push myself
further. I learned that I loved exploring new places and
experiencing new things.
After college, I accepted a position
with US Airways to feed my growing hunger for travel. Joining
US Airways afforded us the opportunity to travel extensively
and I grabbed every opportunity to get outside and explore.
Throughout our travels Jim pushed me to try new things and
to take on new challenges. His desire for adventure soon
became mine and before long we were trekking to Everest Base
Camp, overlanding in Ethiopia's
Omo Valley, firing AK-47's in Vietnam, diving in Tahiti,
sea kayaking in New Zealand.... the list goes on and on.
I found myself seeking out new challenges and doing things
I would never have dreamed of as a child.
Since that first
flight I have taken a thousand more. Almost all to new places
to see and experience new things. My appreciation of this
earth and it's people and wildlife has grown
immeasurably during this time and my wanderlust is as strong
as it ever was. Life is short and we are chasing our dreams
so that one day, many years from now, we'll look back
at our journey only regretting the things that we did, not
those that we didn't do. So, I hope this answers the
question “why would you want to do that?”; this
expedition is part of that dream. Carpe Diem! |
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