For Carl Burris, 15, Japan has been a dream deferred due to family troubles and a stint in foster care.

To Shannon Dunkle, 15, the island nation is the source of colorful gifts her serviceman father has brought her over the years.

And Japan promises Sam Walter, 13, a new adventure to remember along with the Peruvian villages, Florida waters and Colorado campgrounds he’s visited.

Whatever their reasons for going, the 18 Lawrence teens trekking to the seaside Japanese city of Hiratsuka on Wednesday for a 10-day trip have one thing in common: a journey to remember forever.

“This is like a once-in-a-lifetime chance,” Dunkle said. “If I hadn’t taken it, I would regret it for the rest of my life.”

The group is the 15th student delegation to visit Lawrence’s sister city since the program began. Lawrence also is a sister city to Eutin, Germany.

This year, between 20 and 30 students applied to the program. Organizers would like to see more applicants, said Bob Moody, a chaperone.

Typically, about 20 students go on the trip. Average costs are about $1,500 per student, and scholarships are available.

Shannon Dunkle, who will be a sophomore at Lawrence High School this fall, will visit Lawrence's sister city, Hiratsuka, Japan, for 10 days with a group of Lawrence students. Gifts from Japan, courtesy of Shannon's father, Donn Dunkle, a U.S. Marine, have sparked her interest in Japan and the Far East since she was young.

Burris, who will be a sophomore at Free State High School, has been waiting for this opportunity for years.

He didn’t apply as a seventh-grader because he had family troubles, he said. And he couldn’t go last year because he was in foster care. It is difficult to travel when in foster care, Burris said.

Instead, he watched friends go and have great times. Meanwhile, he held onto hope. He wrangled his way into the running this year, he said.

Burris was adopted in February, which helped clear the way.

He has only visited nearby states – Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri and Oklahoma. But, Burris is prepared for the long flights and a new culture and its people.

“You get to have two kids over in the next year after you go,” he said. “Half of the fun of the trip is having the kids over here.”

Shannon Dunkle’s father is a Marine. He’s been around the world – twice, she said.

“He’s been to all of these magnificent places that I’ve always wanted to go to,” Dunkle said.

He brings her gifts. A doll from Okinawa, Japan. A rice hat. Mahogany horses from Thailand. These items are on display on Dunkle’s room, but she wants to see where some of them came from. She wants her own adventure.

For part of the time, she will stay with a host family. They can see Mount Fuji from the windows of their home, and Dunkle hopes to visit the volcano.

Sam Walter, 13, has hiked the Inca Trail to Peru’s Machu Picchu, the legendary “lost city.” He has canoed with manatees in Florida and inner-tubed on white waters in Colorado.

Now, he has his sights set on Japan.

He’s bringing his host family gifts, including Kansas-made honey, a water bottle and T-shirt with Lawrence logos and a CD of the band, Kansas.

While he’s often explored rural and remote areas of the planet, this trip will show Walter the Japanese urban experience.

“I think it’s going to be totally different,” he said.