Teens Westward Bound Trip 1!!
Hi America! Meet your 2019 TWB counselors- we are so excited to learn all about you while traveling America this summer. For now, here is a little information about us. We cannot wait to see you on June 15!
Grant Deaton- Program Director
HELLO AMERICA! My name is Grant Deaton and this is my 19th year traveling across this amazing country with TWB. I started going out west in 1996 and 1997 as a participant. In 2001, I began traveling as a counselor and became the tour director in 2003. It was such an honor and privilege to take on the role of Program Director in 2016. Words cannot express how excited I am about traveling out west again this summer with such an incredible group of young people. We are going to have a blast!
I have worked as a Marketing teacher for 13 years in North Carolina. I enjoy golfing, mountain biking, backpacking, as well as hanging out with my family and dogs. My wife, Kitch, and I are extremely blessed to have four wonderful little boys in our lives. Connor (8 years old), Brandon (6 years old), Samuel (4 year old) and Grayson (2 weeks old) bring so much joy to our family. I will miss them so much this summer.
Enjoying every minute of life is so important to me. Going out west every year with the best young people God has to offer is the best way to spend a summer in my mind. I can't wait to see you soon!!
Ever since I took my own TWB trip the summer of 2006 I have dreamed of being a counselor on this trip. This will be my 6th time heading out west! I consider myself beyond blessed to have been be given this opportunity, and from the looks of it, this trip is going to be AWESOME!
I’m originally from good ole Gastonia, NC, but graduated from North Carolina State University in May (can I get a Go Pack?!) in Fashion & Textiles (don’t worry, I won’t be judgmental when we are all wearing the same T-shirt 5 days in a row...). In August I’ll be moving to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to work for Kohl’s Headquarters in Product Development - obviously I am looking forward to soaking up the sun this summer before turning into an icicle in Wisconsin!!!
Hello! Hello! My name is Brandon Watford, and I am from Laurinburg NC! This will be my second time going out west and my first time as a counselor! TWB was a huge impact on my life and I can’t wait for y’all to experience it as well! In 2014 I got to travel “Merica” with with beautiful peoples that I call family! TWB was one of the greatest things to happen to me and I’m so stoked to experience it again as a counselor! But what makes this even better is that I’ll be sharing that breathtaking experience again with y’all! Yes at first it can be overwhelming but once you get past that first awkward hello to your fellow TWB peeps you’ll be just fine.
Now a little about me! I am a very loving person and might be obsessed with frisbee.... I went to UNCP for 3 years and played each year on their club team! I was captain my sophomore and junior year before I found a career. I have been working the past 8 months with Gryphon Group Security training military personnel! I am the combat cameraman/drone operator and I actually start back school at Sand Hills next year to get a degree in drone operations. I still travel with frisbee on the weekends and just finished trying out for a club team in Charlotte called Sizzle.
After graduating from Trinity-Byrnes Collegiate School in 2015, I moved to small town Indiana to attend DePauw University where I recently graduated with a B.A. in Communication. I am excited to travel around the country with everyone before I go into the “real world” to start my job at LinkedIn’s Chicago office.
Lauren Abernathy (TWB 2013-1)- Blog
Director- Josh Kerns (TWB 2006-1)- Site Managers
Ever since I took my own TWB trip the summer of 2006 I have dreamed of being a counselor on this trip. This will be my 6th time heading out west! I consider myself beyond blessed to have been be given this opportunity, and from the looks of it, this trip is going to be AWESOME!
My name is Josh Kerns. I graduated from the UNC Greensboro in 2014 with a BS in Kinesiology and a concentration in Physical Education and Health. That is the fancy way of saying PE teacher. It is my passion to work with kids in a setting that is not limited to a classroom. I am all about sharing experiences (hello TWB!!) with my students and teaching things that aren’t just for a test, but for a lifestyle! I am the PE teacher at Lake Norman Charter School in Huntersville, NC and have the best job in the world. I get to play games all day, be a big kid (although not tall), and never have to fully grow up!!! I also Coach the football and basketball teams at LNC!
As you probably guessed from the PE portion, I am a sports nut. It doesn’t matter if it is a game of football, sport I’ve never tried, or simply a game of cards, I love competition and think that it is one of the best ways to really get to know someone. The second best way, GO OUT WEST WITH THEM!
A little about me:
- First and foremost I am blessed in so many ways by a gracious God who loves me
- I am married to the most wonderful woman in the world, Katti Kerns, who I met through TWB as counselors.
- We are expecting our first child this September, a little girl, Blythe Hazel Kerns. Thank you Katti for letting me go out west while you prepare for our little blessing!
- We have a chocolate labradoodle Named Olsen after Greg Olsen on the Panthers
- Speaking of Panthers, I am OBSESSED and could talk about them for days (23 days to be exact)
The rest will have to be discovered on our journey together! I can’t wait to meet you, get to know you, and share this adventure with you (unless you are a Falcons fan…kidding….kinda). What happens on TWB, doesn’t stay on TWB, it stays with you forever!
Gray Heath (TWB 2013-1) - Cooks
"Howdy TWB!!! My name is Gray Heath and I am beyond excited to travel out west with y’all this summer!! I journeyed out west the summer of 2013 (TRIP 1, of course!) and have been waiting for my opportunity to do it all again.
"Howdy TWB!!! My name is Gray Heath and I am beyond excited to travel out west with y’all this summer!! I journeyed out west the summer of 2013 (TRIP 1, of course!) and have been waiting for my opportunity to do it all again.
I’m originally from good ole Gastonia, NC, but graduated from North Carolina State University in May (can I get a Go Pack?!) in Fashion & Textiles (don’t worry, I won’t be judgmental when we are all wearing the same T-shirt 5 days in a row...). In August I’ll be moving to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to work for Kohl’s Headquarters in Product Development - obviously I am looking forward to soaking up the sun this summer before turning into an icicle in Wisconsin!!!
Some of my favorite things include a nice sunset (we’ll be seeing 23 beautiful ones!), cooking, a good quote, learning about other people, and a slow morning with a cup of coffee! .... And I should definitely add TRAVELING!!! I studied in Italy for a semester in college, visiting 10 countries & 28 cities! Get excited to be goofy, have long road trip convos, and see God’s beautiful country!!! LET’S GO WEST!"
Brandon Watford (TWB 2014-3)- Dishwashers- Bus Packers
Hello! Hello! My name is Brandon Watford, and I am from Laurinburg NC! This will be my second time going out west and my first time as a counselor! TWB was a huge impact on my life and I can’t wait for y’all to experience it as well! In 2014 I got to travel “Merica” with with beautiful peoples that I call family! TWB was one of the greatest things to happen to me and I’m so stoked to experience it again as a counselor! But what makes this even better is that I’ll be sharing that breathtaking experience again with y’all! Yes at first it can be overwhelming but once you get past that first awkward hello to your fellow TWB peeps you’ll be just fine.
Now a little about me! I am a very loving person and might be obsessed with frisbee.... I went to UNCP for 3 years and played each year on their club team! I was captain my sophomore and junior year before I found a career. I have been working the past 8 months with Gryphon Group Security training military personnel! I am the combat cameraman/drone operator and I actually start back school at Sand Hills next year to get a degree in drone operations. I still travel with frisbee on the weekends and just finished trying out for a club team in Charlotte called Sizzle.
I can’t wait for send off! I am extremely jealous because I would give anything to be back in your shoes with my T Dubs Fam! I hope y’all are as stoked as I am to travel the beautiful land we call home! It is one memory you won’t ever forget! See y’all June 15th!!!
Will Freeman (TWB 2013-2)- Bus Cleaners- Bus Packers
Hey, everyone! My name is Will Freeman and I am from Florence, SC (but born and raised in the big city of Laurinburg, NC). I went on TWB in 2013 and I am beyond excited to head out west again this summer!
Now that the bland professional info is out of the way, I can tell how great/life-changing the TWB experience is for all participants and how it made me fall in love with traveling. After going on TWB in 2013, I fell into the mindset that I should act on every opportunity to travel while I’m young and have traveled to over 15 different countries (favorites were Cuba and Croatia) since then. Actually, a week after I return from TWB I will be heading back to Europe for two weeks to visit some countries I missed during my semester abroad at a business school in London. However, my TWB experience still tops the list for travel destinations because nothing can beat singing Country Roads while driving through the beautiful states in the best country around - U.S.A (I am excited to show off my red/white/blue for July 4th and to see if I have any competition).
Again, I cannot wait to travel out west with everyone and make great memories along the way!
Again, I cannot wait to travel out west with everyone and make great memories along the way!
Lauren Abernathy (TWB 2013-1)- Blog
HELLOOOO TRIP 1 2019!! My name is Lauren Abernathy and I am SO STOKED to be heading out west with y'all this summer! I went on TWB in the summer of 2013 and I have been counting down the days since I stepped off that bus to be able to go again!
I am from Belmont, NC but graduated from East Gaston! Go Warriors! I started my college career at Appalachian State (still love my neers) and ended up finishing at Carolinas College of Health Sciences with my degree in Nursing. That should make your parents feel a little better, right? I will begin my career as a pediatric nurse at Levine Children's Hospital as soon as we return!
I am a lover of coffee, chick fil a, all things nursing, showing off my bad dance moves, listening to OAR (if you don't know who they are you will by the end of the trip), lake days, the beach, and of course traveling across America! Just know I am already praying for a safe and life changing 23 days for each of you! SO GET READY because June 15th is quickly approaching and we're going to have a BLAST!!!!
