Age: 19
Hometown: Saranac, Michigan
Department at Thrive: LaunchPad

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
I prayed about it and felt like this is where God wants me right now.

What do you wish you’d packed?
I definitely wish I’d packed more aloe and sunscreen!

What’s your favorite ice cream topping?
Pineapple and bananas

What’s your most obscure talent?
I can ping-pong my eyeballs.

What’s your favorite worship song?
Amazed, by Desperation

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Screamin’ Green

Age: 18
Hometown: Severn, Maryland
Department at Thrive: Leadership Summit

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
I needed to get my life together and this is where God has called me to be right now.

If you were a superhero, what would your name be?
J-Sizzle

What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?
Cinnamon Toast Crunch

What do you wish you’d brought from home?
I wish I would have packed more shoes.

If you could have coffee with any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
Martin Luther King, Jr., because it would be interesting to talk with him about his ideas and how he persevered.

What’s your most obscure talent?
I can imitate the Gingerbread Man from Shrek.

Age: 18
Hometown: Jacksonville, Florida
Department at Thrive: LaunchPad

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
I felt like this is where I’m supposed to be right now in my life, and to learn more about God and ministry.

Who’s your favorite author?
Rob Bell

What did you bring that you wish you hadn’t?
Coffee, because it exploded all over the inside of my suitcase.

What’s your favorite word?
Paradigm. Because I think it’s important to understand different people’s perspectives.

If you could have coffee with any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
Mother Teresa, because she’s a remarkable woman with an amazing life story.

What was your favorite year in elementary school?
2nd Grade. I have few memories of elementary school, but my favorite was when our teacher taught us the Macarena.

Age: 16
Hometown: Severna Park, Maryland
Department at Thrive: Leadership Summit

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
A friend told me about Thrive, and I wanted to go, and it was God’s will.

What’s your favorite book?
Irresistible Revolution, by Shane Claiborne

What’s your most obscure talent?
I’m an awesome baton twirler.

What’s your favorite ice cream topping?
Runts

What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?
Flaxseed Plus

What’s the last song you listened to?
Lullaby, by Jack Johnson

Age: 23
Hometown: Forest City, Iowa
Department at Thrive: Executive
Education: BA in Communications from University of Tampa

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
Because I love South Africa.

What’s the last song you listened to?
Gravity, by Sarah Bareilles

What’s your most obscure talent?
I’m amazing at losing my car in the parking lot.

If you were a superhero, what would your name be?
Katastrophic. With a K.

What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?
Frosted Mini Wheats

If you could have coffee with any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
Nelson Mandela, because he had such a huge role in changing not only South Africa but all of Africa.

Age: 18
Hometown: Oswego, New York
Department at Thrive: Executive

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
I knew God was calling me overseas for an extended period of time so that I could better understand how missions will fit into my future, and this presented itself as the best opportunity.

What’s your favorite word?
Intoxicating, because it conveys such an immense and overbearing feeling.

If you were a superhero, what would your name be?
Captain Fire and Ice. It was a superhero that my aunt and I made up when I was 11.

What’s your favorite ice cream topping?
Oreos, preferably crushed.

What’s your favorite worship song?
Get This Party Started, by Toby Mac

If you could relive any year, what would it be?
1999 because it was the year before I left New York, and school was amazing, and I loved everything about the town we were living in.

Age: 24
Hometown: Rochester Hills, Michigan
Department at Thrive: Creative Services

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
My passion is to love the people here and it’s also my chance to leave all of my security and venture into where I feel God is calling me. I’ve realized that nothing I have is worth more than people. Plus it’s a great kick-off into missions.

What’s your favorite word?
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Because if you say it loud enough, you’ll always sound precocious.

If you could relive any year what would it be?
2001 so that I could fix the mistakes I made.

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Macaroni and Cheese

What’s your most obscure talent?
I repeat myself endlessly. I find myself repeating entire stories to people because I forgot I told them the first time.

If you could have coffee with any famous person dead or alive who would it be?
Francis Chan (pastor), because I’d love to talk with him about his perspectives and ideologies. He indirectly affected the way that I think nowadays.

Age: 20
Hometown: Clare, Michigan
Department at Thrive: Creative Services

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
To further strengthen my faith and because I feel like God has called me here so that I can serve people to the best of my ability.

What do you wish you’d packed?
I wish I’d brought more family pictures.

If you were a superhero, what would your name be?
Super Matt, as I’ve been named by my nephew.

If you could have coffee with any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
Bono because he understands Jesus’ Great Commission and understand the problems in the Church. I think he’s changing the mentality of Christ followers, and he rocks.

What’s your most obscure talent?
I can do an awesome impression of the lion from the Wizard of Oz.

What was your favorite year in elementary school?
I loved kindergarten because of show-and-tell.

Age: 23
Hometown: Lincoln, Massachusetts
Department at Thrive: LaunchPad
Education: BA in History from Wheaton College

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
I’ve always wanted to go to South Africa and this opportunity presented itself as the best.

What’s your favorite book?
King Leopold’s Ghost, by Adam Hochchild

What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?
Lucky Charms

If you could have coffee with any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
David Livingston, because he was an enlightened missionary for his time.

What was your favorite year in elementary school?
5th Grade, because the fifth graders ruled the school.

What’s your most obscure talent?
I know nearly all of the countries of the world, and their capitals.

Age: 23
Hometown: Gulf Breeze, FL
Department at Thrive: Executive
Education: BA in Liberal Studies from University of Central Florida

Why’d you join Twenty4Seven?
I came to get some practical knowledge to couple with my desire to take part in overseas missions.

What’s your most obscure talent?
I can fold my ears entirely on themselves.

What’s your favorite word?
Turkey, because it can be an adjective for a person and it’s a great food.

If you were a superhero, what would your name be?
Tawanda! With an exclamation point.

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Stardust

If you could have coffee with any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be?
I’d love to have coffee with C.S. Lewis because he’s got such wisdom and I just want to be able to talk with him about anything and everything. I think he’d have so many interesting insights.