Sabbatical

Finding Balance on Sabbatical

Finding Balance on Sabbatical

At Francis, we encourage our employees to find their own Work-Life-Money Balance through new experiences and spending time with family and friends. That is why we established a company sabbatical program that includes paid time off along with a travel benefit for employees who have been at Francis for at least 10 years. We only ask they share their learned lessons and new perspectives with their peers at Francis post-sabbatical.

Read about some of their adventures.

Joe Topp italy

Joe Topp

Vice President Investment Consulting Services | Principal

Joe Topp italy

My wife and I spent 31 days traveling kid-free through Austria and Italy. It gave us the opportunity to connect with old family friends that we have not seen in over 25 years, which was such an amazing testament to how friendship can last over time and distance. It was a list of firsts for me: first time traveling abroad, first time staying in an Airbnb, first time on a robust public transportation system and first time spending time on vacation with my wife without the children around. Austria was incredible. We visited the mountaintop featured in “The Sound of Music,” my wife’s favorite movie. The trip was so incredible that it got us thinking about destinations for our next sabbatical trip, possibly Switzerland or even back to Austria.

Edward McIlveen family

Edward McIlveen

Vice President Investment Consulting Services | Chief Investment Officer | Principal

Edward McIlveen family

My family and I took a road trip through Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Washington, D.C., with our travels ending in Cape Cod. We visited significant landmarks, including the Civil War Antietam Battleground, where our distant relatives fought in the Civil War, the Capitol building and the Supreme Court. It was an eye-opening experience to consider what it was like for our relatives to leave things for future generations and made us appreciative of the sacrifices made. To end our trip, we stayed near family on the Cape, and spent quality time relaxing and restoring before the drive home. This trip inspired us to consider international locations next time – possibly without our children.

Timothy Shirk landscape

Timothy Shirk

Financial Planner

Timothy Shirk landscape

My family and I had a hybrid trip between time spent on the road and at home. This was the first vacation in a long time that was not work related, which felt incredible. We started in Heron Island, Washington, at a bed-and-breakfast owned by one of my relatives. We took our time driving down the Pacific Coast Highway, looking at the beautiful vistas and stopping to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. We spent time with my parents in Ripon, California, learning about bioluminescence, watching the porpoises in the sound and going gooey duck hunting. Upon our return to Wisconsin, I was able to organize my personal library and experience work that did not feel like work. For my next sabbatical trip in 2023, I’ve been flirting with the ideas of taking my wife and kids to either Alaska or Israel.

Kelli Send

Senior Vice President Participant Services | Co-Founder

My husband and I spent three weeks in Israel and two weeks in Traverse City, Michigan. Those five weeks gave me ample time to genuinely rest and recharge. Not needing to reply to emails on my phone was remarkably freeing. In Israel, we had the opportunity to go sailing on the Sea of Galilee and walk through Hezekiah’s tunnel. We learned so much about the history of major world religions and got to see so many well-known historical sites. In a national park in Israel, I had the wonderful luck of slipping on a rock and breaking my thumb. However, the time away from work helped me realize how much I loved what I do, since I was genuinely looking forward to my return to work. I am eligible in 2024 for my next sabbatical trip, and although I have no formal ideas yet, I really like the prospect of another international location.

Kevin Roloff

Director of Research

Although my original sabbatical trip to Scotland was canceled due to the pandemic, my family and I still had an exciting four weeks. We spent four days as a family in Traverse City, Michigan, where we explored the Sleeping Bear Dunes, and I was able to gain some insight into how to pack a lot of travel items in a car with two children. My wife and I had three great days of alone time in the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. We got to tackle the mountains and take over 2,100 photos of our trek. My wife is a photographer, so I was able to learn more about cameras and the process of photography. I even braved a solo night in the wilderness. I spent the rest of my vacation with my kids, witnessing milestones that I usually cannot be present for. I am eligible for my next trip in 2025, and although I have not started planning for the next, I am thinking Scotland might be a strong option.

Cliff Dunteman

Senior Vice President Investment Consulting Services | Principal

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We were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary and my 50th birthday. We had not traveled to Europe. We wanted to experience a new culture at our own pace. We planned the entire trip ourselves and stayed mainly in AirBnb and VRBO properties. We wanted to see some of the historical sites Kristin studied art history in school and wanted to see the art museums.

There were so many awesome parts of the trip its hard to pick one memorable moment. We drove the countryside in Tuscany in a manual transmission Mercedes Benz. That was an experience since neither of us had driven a manual trans in over 25 years. We took a pasta making class in Florence. We visited St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel. We walked the trails of the Cinque Terre overlooking some of the most picturesque water and towns we’ve ever seen. It was a trip of a lifetime.

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