Inside a family’s Park Hill home they call “the art house,” there’s a computer set up for musical recording, silent auction items lining the entryway, and boxes ready to be packed for an eight-month trip out of the country.

A map on the living room wall reminds the Kincy-Ballard family of trips already taken and the one that begins in June.

Brittany Ballard and her husband, Saxon Kincy, are parents to Seylah, 9, and Nya, 7. When Front Porch visited a few weeks before their departure, the girls had just returned home from school.

Their school, St. Elizabeth’s, is closing, and that decision served as an impetus for the trip.

“As soon as we got the email, we looked at each other. It felt like the universe was intervening, like it was telling us what to do,” Brittany said. “We decided to take it as a sign. It was time to spread our wings as a family and spend more time together.”

One way they will do that is to live somewhere less expensive and more “welcoming to people” that look like the family, she said.

The trip will begin with a month in Vietnam—Brittany called it a “dream place”—followed by visits to Japan, the Mariana Islands, and Australia. She said they’ll “figure it out as they go.”

They want to practice listening and learning from others around the world and then will share that with others. It will be similar to the education work that Brittany and Saxon do in their nonprofit Three Things, named for the evening dinner ritual of sharing three things family members are thankful for.

The programs that are part of the nonprofit include Unsent, a show and workshop series that includes writing workshops for youth and older adults, and a podcast. Brittany also leads Third Act Life Reviews, an initiative inspired by her work as a trained death doula, which she was trained to do when her mother was ill.

“I do legacy interviews with older adults, capturing their stories, their voices, for them and their families,” she said. Brittany is also writing her own story about her death doula work, her mother’s death, and grief.

Saxon, a rapper known artistically as Old Man Saxon, brings that same intention into schools through his program of hip-hop workshops for kids, Healing Futures.

“Growing up, I never really saw myself in the future,” Saxon said. “When I got older, I revisited songs I loved as a kid. In Ice Cube’s ‘It Was a Good Day,’ he asks, ‘Will I live another 24?’—wondering if he’ll make it to tomorrow. A couple of years later, Coolio echoed that in ‘Gangsta’s Paradise.’ ‘I’m 23 now—will I live to see 24?’ It blew my mind that we had accepted this kind of expiration date as a culture.”

That realization shaped his work, Saxon said. He now uses hip-hop as a tool to help young people reframe their thinking, encouraging them to write about their futures with intention rather than fear.

“We’re not just making beats,” he said. “We’re helping them imagine something beyond tomorrow, something bigger than what they’ve been told to expect.”

Saxon leads his workshops in schools and community spaces, including at Westerly Creek Elementary School. There, while speaking with students, he talked about discovering hip-hop at a young age—listening closely, writing down lyrics, and following that passion.

“The things you love at that age can stay with you if you stick with them,” he said.

Three Things is run solely by Brittany and Saxon, and much of their work, including the school visits, are offered for free. “There’s something in me specifically that it’s hard to ask for money when I know the feeling I get just from helping people,” Saxon said. “I feel rich.”

They supplement their nonprofit through other creative work, including performances, and small grants. “What we want to do is often so distant from things that make money and support our family,” Brittany said, but they remain committed to building a creative life together.

That creativity extends to their children. The family recently recorded Saxon’s song “Dreams,” featured in an Apple Education commercial that has reached 15 million views on YouTube.

“Everyone in this family is wildly creative,” Brittany said. “We want to give our kids the space to discover who they are.”

On the upcoming trip, that could mean cooking classes, visiting markets, and learning to navigate daily life in new cultures.

For Saxon, he’s interested in how environment shapes his music, noting that in some places, status and material success don’t carry the same weight. “There are people with very little who are still happy,” he said.

They’ve all watched videos, had multiple shots for travel, and are stocked up on malaria pills. The girls will be attending what mom calls “world school” and will stay connected to online learning.

The pair acknowledged the challenges ahead, including the lack of nearby support, like childcare or extended family, and the unknown of living in other countries.

The girls said they’re most excited about the food and the flight to Vietnam. Brittany explained their focus was on normal kid things, including end of school events. Right now, she said, “The question is, ‘Can I have a playdate?’ The question is not, ‘What are we doing in Vietnam?’”

The Three Things Listening Tour will involve each family member recording thoughts about their experiences from wherever they are once a week and asking locals to share their stories.

That’s the plan for now, but Brittany added, “We’re purposely not over planning this.”

To follow the family’s journey visit, linktr.ee/threethingsco.