Welcome to Packs Light!
It's ya girl Gabby, the Gen Z travel expert and entrepreneur who quit her 9-5 engineering job one week before the pandemic and thrived to tell the tale.
I created this site to show you—ambitious young women from all walks of life—why you should be obsessed with seeking risk, seizing opportunity, and seeing the world. The how? Packs Light's resources are all about giving Gen Z info & tips on solo female travel, Black travel, funded travel opportunities and application tips, and adventure.
Please keep your arms and legs out of the aisle and fasten your seatbelts—you're gonna enjoy this ride.
Seek Risk • Seize Opportunity • See the World
My mom loves to tell the story of how when I was a child and people would ask what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would always reply "Barbie".
And I didn't care about Ken—I wanted Barbie's freedom. Her lifestyle. She could wake up every morning and be whatever she wanted! A princess in England, then a windsurfer in Rio, then an international spy in Spain.
Adults thought it was adorable, but I was completely serious. "Why not?", I would ask (and I've yet to get a good answer). No one could sway me from my goals at 5, and that delusionally confident mindset has the extraordinary things in my life.
"Why not?" is the question I challenge all of my followers to ask themselves when they feel doubt.
You cant travel solo? Why not?
You won't win that scholarship? Why not?
Why not you?
When it comes to me and my story, you can read this post if you'd like the nitty-gritty of my back story.
Essentially, I grew up in a military family that led me to move between California, Missouri, Virginia, and Japan before the time I was 10.
The ever-changing military lifestyle made me adapt to making new friends, switching schools, and living minimalistically so much so that when we settled in small-town, Confederate-flag-waving Stafford, Virginia for my middle school and high school years, I felt... itchy. Stifled. Stagnant.
I knew I was biding my time til greater things so I did what I could to keep busy including taking all advanced classes (International Baccalaureate kids, holla!), starting my first business tutoring 3rd graders in Math & Reading, and applying for scholarships. Hundreds of scholarships.
I ended up being awarded—not "winning". It wasn't luck, it was hustle!—more than $70,000 which funded a majority of my Statistics degree and completely covered my year of study in Dubai and travel to 6 new countries.
Ultimately, I graduated debt-free which put me in the perfect position to plot to eventually work for myself!
I'm committed to showing you how to seek risk, seize opportunity, and see the world. And yes, you will get tired of hearing that, but you'll whisper a quiet "Amen" every time anyway.
It might seem obvious, but it's packed (pun intended) with more meaning than you might think.
1. She packs light — mentally and physically. She doesn't bring the baggage of her past into her future and does not place excessive value on material possessions.
Aside from being #TeamCarryOnOnly for virtually all of my trips, this reminds me to always look forward toward the opportunities in the future instead of what-ifs of the past.
2. She packs light — she brings inspiration, positivity, and empowerment into every aspect of her life and hopes to spread that light to others.
The true goal of my business and life. To leave the world a bit brighter.
3. Peace and light — "Pax" in Latin means peace.
I took 5 years of Latin, so I loved this final meaning. In a way, Packs Light truly means Peace and Light.
