Caroline Elizabeth Raynham - Hampshire 

Carrie was born in Kent and grew up in Hampshire before studying History at Girton College, Univeristy of Cambridge. She made a career in Marketing, living in Basingstoke, Hampshire with a strong passion for pursuing every travel opportunity that crossed her path. In 2015, she took her next career move, starting at Autodesk in their UK Marketing team.

Benjamin James Thompson - California

Ben was born in California and grew up in the hills of the San Francisco North Bay. He studied business at the University of Puget Sound. Ever avid about hiking and cycling the California outdoors and also geeking out on the internet, Ben combined these passions for the digital and physical and leads sustainability initiatives at Autodesk in San Francisco.

Carrie and Ben - having never met - by chance flew with a group of work volunteers from around the globe and were first introduced in Kigali, Rwanda. There they worked with a non-profit architecture firm, MASS Design Group, to support their efforts building local hospitals with new practices. On top of this important work, they also weathered stomach bugs, paper cuts from copious post-it brainstorms, and Carrie almost being taken as a gorilla wife. Ben secretly admired Carrie’s dedication and energy. Carrie liked the travel.

Over the next year, Ben happened to visit the UK on the way home from his sabbatical in Africa. Carrie happened to visit the US for work. Both traveled together with mutual friends they met in Rwanda. Carrie talked of finding more opportunity in San Francisco. Ben encouraged her.

On one last June trip with friends across the UK, Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece, it became clear that Carrie would move jobs to the US by the end of the year. Only a few days into that trip, Ben & Carrie were called out for trying to hide a budding relationship. That relationship blossomed for five long-distance months over time-zone-challenged text messages, bleary-eyed video calls, and the occasional personally-recorded podcast to listen to while the other commuted.

In October 2017, Carrie moved to San Francisco, shrinking the distance from a 5,300 mile plane ride to a short one mile bus-ride. A year later Carrie moved in with Ben, helping him to realize his long-held ambition of creating “Mega Room”, in a flat with friends. City living as a couple meant enjoying new experiences together, from new food (Carrie loves sushi now) to pushing comfort zones (Ben looks forward to the next Panto). They shared values, such as their mutual love for other cultures and discovered new places together across almost every continent. They also learned more about each other (Carrie needs to plan that next vacation and Ben needs down time), grew together (Carrie became a football (soccer) player and Ben has mastered the pressure cooker), and curated patience for each other (through Carrie’s US driving license practice in Ben’s car and Ben’s frequent projects).

In December 2019, while visiting Florence, Ben proposed overlooking the lights of the Ponte Vecchio, where they then picked out a ring together.

In March 2020, planning a California wedding for transatlantic families came to an abrupt halt with COVID-19, with businesses shuttering as they drove home from wedding venue visits. With one major life change on hold amidst pandemic lockdown, another major life change was to take its place. Yearning for more space during lockdown, the couple found a new home a short drive north in Marin county. Affectionately known as Club Berrie, they are now closer to nature, closer to Ben’s family, and with space to live, work, and have a dog.

In September 2020, amidst other canceled weddings and continued pandemic lockdown, Carrie and Ben held a brief civil ceremony at their home with their immediate family over Zoom. With temporary silicone rings, the couple vowed to one day have “the real deal” in a once in a lifetime celebration with transatlantic friends and family.

Soon after, they adopted their small huskador, Ruthie. While regular travel still may be on hold, together the three can be found hiking the surrounding hills, visiting local restaurants, or lounging by the pool with friends and family.

Club Berrie’s guest room is rated 5 stars and available for visits!

Our Travels