In a new memoir titled It's a Long Way to Florida, authors Brooke and Patricia Sadler recount how a planned honeymoon road trip to St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1957 transformed into a two-decade missionary adventure spanning 30,000 miles across Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The book, published by the authors, is available online via major book retailers.
The narrative begins with a simple lakeside wedding in Michigan and a brand new red Falcon car intended to carry the newlyweds to their dream honeymoon. However, divine interventions quickly altered their path, leading them to step into the unknown and embark on an epic journey of faith. Instead of sandy beaches, the Sadlers found themselves navigating harrowing overland trips, including a 12,000-mile family road trip from London to Sri Lanka through military checkpoints, surviving national food famines and economic collapses.
The memoir offers an honest and gritty account of modern missionary life. Among the extraordinary accounts is how Brooke Sadler illegally smuggled truckloads of flour past five armed military checkpoints during a government-declared famine to feed starving church workers in Colombo. Another story details the profound, decades-long friendship Brooke forged with a local Buddhist High Priest, which ultimately saved their mission school's land from government seizure.
The couple also opened their doors to vulnerable children, nursing abandoned and malnourished infants back to health. Prompted by a question from their young adopted daughter, Pami, the Sadlers ultimately welcomed more than 80 orphaned children into their home over the years. "We never could have mapped out the life we lived," said co-author Brooke Sadler. "Every time we faced an impossible logistical problem or a dangerous crisis, the answer arrived in a way we never could have engineered. We wrote this book to remind readers that when God redirects your route, the detour is very often the destination."
Today, Brooke and Patricia Sadler are mostly retired and reside in Greeneville, Tennessee. They transformed a historic log cabin into Nolichucky Cabins, a mountain retreat and glass wedding chapel where they continue to serve their community. The book, aimed at fans of Christian memoirs and inspiring biographies, offers a practical template for living by faith. It serves as a reminder that following where you are led, rather than where you intended, can lead to a richer and more purposeful life.
