Sabbatical Homes

Blog | Stories & Spotlights

Discover the people and stories behind SabbaticalHomes.com. Explore member spotlights, founder updates, academic journeys, travel experiences, and community connections that bring our global network to life.

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  • Brian Thompson

    Notable Member: Earthen Vessels Founder Brian Thompson

    Founded in 1980 by SabbaticalHomes member Brian Thompson and Marie-Claude Thompson, EVkids has grown into a thriving Boston nonprofit supporting young people through tutoring, mentoring, college guidance and summer camp.

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • Morgan O’Hara in her New York City Studio.

    Member Spotlight: Morgan O’Hara

    We first profiled artist Morgan O’Hara in 2017, and she has kept expanding her work since. She catches us up on her activist and experiential art, including the ongoing Handwriting the Constitution project that continues to draw people in.

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • Alex Carballo-Dieguez at the Teatro Colón Opera House in Buenos Aires Argentina.

    Member Spotlight: Alex Carballo-Diéguez

    Alex Carballo-Diéguez, PhD, spent an active academic career at Columbia and used SabbaticalHomes to find apartments while traveling for conferences and lectures. Now retired, he reflects on his research, his travels, and the stays that supported them.

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • Katherine K. Merseth headshot.

    Member Spotlight: Harvard Educator Katherine Merseth

    Harvard educator Katherine Merseth has been called an academic entrepreneur for the inventive research and teaching that shaped her 40-plus-year career. A longtime SabbaticalHomes member and Harvard Professor of the Year, she shares what has kept her work fresh.

    • Stories & Spotlights

  • Fulbright Scholars: Interviews & Advice

    Each year scholars travel to new universities as visiting researchers, and Fulbright awards remain among the most sought-after honors. Fulbright alumni share their experiences and advice, offering a window into the work and the journeys behind the fellowship.

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • NadegeConger_ToniDevreaux_HuntingtonLibrary_Pasadena

    Founder on the Move: Helping Find Homes for Huntington Scholars

    On a bright and beautiful spring day, I had the pleasure of meeting with one of our wonderful members, Toni Devreaux, at the Huntington Library, Art Collection, and Botanical Gardens in Pasadena, California. We were surrounded by lush plants and creatures that seamlessly existed among…

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • Nadege Conger and Mari Fitzduff Discuss Peacebuilding when they met in Belfast, Ireland.

    Peacebuilding Pioneers: A Meeting of Minds in Belfast

    On a recent trip to Belfast, founder Nadege Conger met Mari Fitzduff, an Irish policy maker, writer, and academic whose peacebuilding work spans decades. Their conversation traces a career devoted to resolving conflict and bringing people together.

    • Stories & Spotlights

  • Seeking Peace through Partnership

    We highlight notable member Edward “Edy” Kaufman, a scholar of Israel who has spent much of his life on human rights and peace work, teaching and lecturing in more than 40 countries. He shares what drives that mission.

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • Hatshepsut, the fifth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt.

    Founder on the Move in Egypt with the AIA

    Founder Nadege Conger crossed a bucket-list trip off her list with an Archaeological Institute of America tour of Egypt. She shares an educational immersion into shared global history, and what it meant to see these landmarks in person.

    • Stories & Spotlights
  • Author Alix Christie

    Member Spotlight: Author Alix Christie

    We recently had the opportunity to reconnect with author Alix Christie and her husband, Ludwig Siegele at the historic House of Shields bar (open since 1908) in downtown San Francisco, California. A longtime SabbaticalHomes.com member, Alix and her family have traveled throughout the world and…

    • Stories & Spotlights

Member Spotlights

Brian Thompson

Notable Member: Earthen Vessels Founder Brian Thompson

Founded in 1980 by SabbaticalHomes member Brian Thompson and Marie-Claude Thompson, EVkids has grown into a thriving Boston nonprofit supporting young people through tutoring, mentoring, college guidance and summer camp.

  • Stories & Spotlights
Morgan O’Hara in her New York City Studio.

Member Spotlight: Morgan O’Hara

We first profiled artist Morgan O’Hara in 2017, and she has kept expanding her work since. She catches us up on her activist and experiential art, including the ongoing Handwriting the Constitution project that continues to draw people in.

  • Stories & Spotlights
Alex Carballo-Dieguez at the Teatro Colón Opera House in Buenos Aires Argentina.

Member Spotlight: Alex Carballo-Diéguez

Alex Carballo-Diéguez, PhD, spent an active academic career at Columbia and used SabbaticalHomes to find apartments while traveling for conferences and lectures. Now retired, he reflects on his research, his travels, and the stays that supported them.

  • Stories & Spotlights
Katherine K. Merseth headshot.

Member Spotlight: Harvard Educator Katherine Merseth

Harvard educator Katherine Merseth has been called an academic entrepreneur for the inventive research and teaching that shaped her 40-plus-year career. A longtime SabbaticalHomes member and Harvard Professor of the Year, she shares what has kept her work fresh.

  • Stories & Spotlights

Fulbright Scholars: Interviews & Advice

Each year scholars travel to new universities as visiting researchers, and Fulbright awards remain among the most sought-after honors. Fulbright alumni share their experiences and advice, offering a window into the work and the journeys behind the fellowship.

  • Stories & Spotlights
NadegeConger_ToniDevreaux_HuntingtonLibrary_Pasadena

Founder on the Move: Helping Find Homes for Huntington Scholars

On a bright and beautiful spring day, I had the pleasure of meeting with one of our wonderful members, Toni Devreaux, at the Huntington Library, Art Collection, and Botanical Gardens in Pasadena, California. We were surrounded by lush plants and creatures that seamlessly existed among…

  • Stories & Spotlights