Can you walk us through what happens when someone contacts you for this first time?

"The first thing I ask is: How do you plan on getting there? If they say, ‘I have no clue how to get there,’ I look up bus routes and times. I always check the bus first. But a lot of times, [the bus] isn’t a reasonable option, because there are three transfers and it’s going to take 9 hours. So if there’s nothing there, then I say ‘Hey, do you know if you could have a friend you could drive with if we paid them to drive you?'" So you pay for the friend’s gas?

"No, we’ll actually pay them. It’s cheaper than a flight. It’s paying somebody for their labor; for taking the day off to drive you. On top of their gas, we pay about $50 per half day. If that doesn’t work, then we go to a plane. If there is no airport nearby, then [we book a long-distance] taxi." You mostly communicate over text? Why?

"It’s a lot easier to say, 'Here’s a screenshot from the plane ticket,' by text. You can use emojis and communicate in a more friendly way. If you’re on the phone, you need to find a quiet space away from anyone you don’t want to know. But you can [text] under the table. And I think it’s probably a lot easier to tell a stranger personal details over text than over the phone. I also do calls. Some people want to talk to a person."