Who Are We?
Meet the Family Behind Two Kids, One World
We’re the Pope family—a Brooklyn-based crew of four (originally from Seattle!) trading our routines for a year of global adventure. While we deeply love our life in New York—our neighborhood, our school community, our friends—this journey is our chance to step away from the everyday and spend intentional, quality time together as a family.
We’re not travel influencers or full-time nomads. We’re just two parents and two kids with big imaginations, a love of exploration, and a shared dream of seeing the world—one memory, one country, and one coffee (or juice box) at a time.
Mike
I’m Mike Pope—dad, traveler, espresso enthusiast, and until recently, the executive director of a nonprofit I spent 15 years helping to build. Our family lives in Brooklyn, New York (after relocating from Seattle nearly two decades ago), and while we love our community, our friends, and our life in the city, this year we’re hitting pause—and heading out to see the world.
For the last decade and a half, my professional life has been deeply rooted in social justice work. At Youth Represent, I led efforts to create a fairer, more equitable criminal legal system—work I care about deeply and am incredibly proud of. But now, for the first time in a long time, I’m stepping away from that role to take a breath, reconnect with my family, and figure out what comes next.
This trip is a reset for me—a chance to reimagine my identity beyond my job title and to rediscover some of the parts of myself that have taken a backseat over the years. I’m hoping to get back into photography, maybe learn a thing or two about web design, and definitely spend plenty of time in good coffee shops around the world. I also love wine, street food, and just wandering new places with Elisa, my partner of nearly 20 years (we’ll be celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary on this trip!).
Elisa
Elisa Pupko is a proud mom, actress, founder of Treasure Trunk Theater, and all-around force of creative energy. Nearly 18 years ago, we moved to New York City so Elisa could pursue her passion for musical theater—and she’s never looked back.
While continuing to perform, Elisa discovered a second love: teaching children through the power of imagination and storytelling. That passion blossomed into Treasure Trunk Theater, a magical children’s theater program she started ten years ago with a single class and a big dream. Today, it’s a thriving organization that fosters creativity, confidence, and kindness in kids all across Brooklyn.
Elisa has poured her heart into building a space that celebrates acceptance, play, and joy—and she feels incredibly fortunate to have a phenomenal team behind her. With their support, Elisa will continue working remotely during our travels, ensuring that Treasure Trunk grows and thrives, even from afar.
Outside of her work, Elisa is a Broadway superfan who has been squeezing in every show she can before we hit the road. She loves coffee (a lot), has a natural gift for connecting with others, and has recently found her groove sharing our story through social media. Her passion for storytelling and adventure is a big part of what’s fueling this journey.
Evelyn
Evelyn Pope is 7 years old and already dreaming big. While she’s sad to be missing her friends at P.S. 29 and taking a break from third grade, she’s even more excited about the adventure of a lifetime—exploring the world with her family.
Evelyn is a budding musical theater actress who has already taken the stage as the lead in both community and professional productions. She loves Disney (a lot), lives for anything involving princesses and fairy tales, and spends countless hours creating art and playing imagination games around our Brooklyn neighborhood.
One of the things she’s most excited about? Japan. Evelyn is already planning to write a book about her time there—complete with stories, drawings, and all the details of her own adventures. She’s a loyal friend, a natural performer, and the kind of kid who bursts into song just walking down the street. She brings joy and magic wherever she goes.
Daxton
Daxton Pope is 3 years old and a firecracker of energy, joy, and curiosity. He’s our little adventurer with a big love for anything that moves—cars, trucks, trains, planes… but especially fast cars (which, in Daxton’s world, usually means any red car he spots!).
He’s most excited about the airplane rides—25 to 30 of them, if all goes as planned—and we’re pretty sure he’ll be keeping a mental log of each takeoff and landing. His adventurous spirit keeps us all on our toes, but underneath it all, he’s got the sweetest disposition.
Daxton’s favorite person in the world is his mom, and wherever she goes, he’s right behind her. Whether he’s zooming toy cars across the floor or running full speed toward the next adventure, Daxton brings his own kind of magic to this journey.