…to tell you how completely and utterly overwhelmed I am with the amazing and touching stories that have come my way via the giving is awesome effort I took part in (see details here). It was an emotional and heart filling journey for me to go through this process and because of the response I got and the way these families touched my soul I decided to choose three families to share my art with. Thank you to all of you who nominated families I wish I could have chosen each one. I hope that my efforts along with the efforts of the nearly 500 other photographers across our great world touched the families we chose as much as they have reached our hearts by hearing their amazing stories. 

Each family I chose will experience complimentary custom photography – $1,265 worth, to be exact on me! That’s right, the fabulous find collection will go to these amazing families who truly deserves it this holiday season. The wonderful women who nominated the winners will also receive a $250 print credit. I hope I was able to make each of you feel absolutely special this Christmas you deserve it!

The nomination for our first choice came from Elizabeth Wiedmaier and here is what she wrote.

I have a family that I would like to nominate. They are, “The Hendrie Clan” as they like to call themselves. the family consists of my oldest sister Christina (mom) her husband John (dad) and their five children; Lowgun (16), Preston (13), Kellsea (13), Cheyanne (11), and Autumn (9). They are a very wonderful, loving and close knit family and there are a few reasons I feel that they should be nominated. My brother in law John, was just recently diagnosed with Fibro Myalgia at the begining of year, which has made it that he had to leave his job he loved working for the borough. The past year has been rough on the whole family because they are used to struggling and living paycheck to paycheck but this year has been especially hard with John having to travel a lot for medical appointments and being so sick from new medication trial after medication trial to be bed riddin. My sister had to give up being the homemaker she loved to go back to work. She does not have much skill, and no continuing education after high school because all she wanted to be was  a mom, and she was great at it. She began working as the school lunch lady at Joy Elementary. This was a huge adjustment not only for her but for her children. they are used to their mom participating in every school event, activity and being there right there after school when they needed help with homework. they’ve really had to grow up quite quickly this past year and help out more than usual. 

They also had to move out of the home they loved, because they could no longer afford it, to a little one bedroom mobile home. They are pretty squished in there, and everybody is in everbody’s business, but they make it work and they are just happy that they all are together and warm. I really think this family deserves this, because not only have they not had a family picture since the kids were babies, the kids have not recieved christmas presents in two years. (let alone mom and dad). John and Christina just realized that they could not afford christmas for their five kids, and sat them down two years ago, and told them. The kids are pretty mature about it, realizing that if it cant be done, it just cant be done. I’m so proud of this family because no matter what trials come their way, they stick together as a family and work it out. no one whines or complains. there are some tears now and again, but not from anger. They thank God everyday for the things they do have, and they forget about the things they dont. My sister and her husband do everything for their kids, and i know this would be the greatest gift for them to have custom pictures of their kids. what great artwork to display in their little home, the kids that keep them going everyday!

 The nomination for our second family came from Alli Pearmine and here is her story.

 I think I have the best nominee.  Her name is Sheena Batac.  She is the most hardworking, honest person I have ever met. I wish I could adequately articulate her story better, but here it goes.  This past spring she had a baby boy and literally hours after his birth she noticed something odd. They ran several tests and the doctors decided he needed to be flown to Anchorage for further diagnostics and more extensive care. To make a long story short, and to be honest I don’t have all the exact details, the baby stayed at Providence in Anchorage for about five weeks (and from there has since made a trip or two to Seattle for even further care, plus other trips to Anchorage). Brayden is Sheena’s first baby and having a newborn, one who needed intense hospitalization, must have been especially frightening.   She was always positive and knew Brayden would pull through.  Then one day, I got a phone call at work.  It was Sheena, crying hysterically.  Colby, her boyfriend (and Brayden’s father) was dead.  After leaving the Anchorage hospital and on his way back up to Fairbanks he somehow lost control of his motorcycle, he was wearing a helmet.  

Somehow, through all of this Sheena has remained resilient. She is now a single mother, going to school full time and working part time.  She makes numerous trips to the doctor with Brayden, as his condition warrants lots of care and expensive medications and monitoring, probably for the rest of his life.
She never thinks about herself, let alone do something special for herself, it just isn’t her style. I can’t imagine the sadness and despair she has endured, and so I want her to create lasting memories of smiles and joy.  Please consider her for your wonderful gift, she really deserves it.  Thank you.  Alli Pearmine

The nomination for our third family came from Tonya Garnett and here is her story.

Her name is Sharlot Evans.  She is such a nice, sweet, hard working person and has gone through a lot.  She and her soon to be ex husband have five kids together.  She always worked full time while raising her kids. Her kids are all nice, well behaved sweet kids and all of them have such a nice personality.  She goes above and beyond for her children even while in a bad relationship with her husband.  She took on many of the responsibilities; school, work, practices, bills, etc.  She never let anything hold her back when it comes to her kids.  She always made rent, car payments, provided for all six children.  All her children are so nice and a delight to have around. Even though all these things were going through her life she still made time for family and friends and is always a person you can call on when you need help.  Sharlot works at the Cancer Treatment Center here in Fairbanks.  Sharlot always thinks of creative ways to make life interesting and fun for her kids with activities and outings!  Even though she has five of her own children she still babysat for her cousins and other family members.  

I just think that she needs something special, especially during this holiday season.  She is such a neat loving smart person and she only deserves the best.  She is really an inspiration and we are so glad to know her.  If you meet her you can just feel the genuine person she is; loving, nice, and goofy and she is contagious by making others smile and feel good around her.  
She’s just had a tough year and I think something special can probably bring up her spirits.  Her and her kids are all very beautiful people and they are such a joy to be around.  
 
Thank you Cassy!  You too are an awesome person! 

Thanks again for the amazing stories. Below is a photo I took in Texas that inspires me and makes me realize we can endure and thrive even in the harshest of circumstances. I titled this photo the Test of Time because this tree is thriving on a huge gravel pad where nothing around it for a couple hundred feet is growing yet it is making it’s way and holding strong and standing the test of time. I hope these special families inspire each and every one of you to realize that no matter how rough it gets you too can stand the Test of Time! God Bless each one of you, Merry Christmas.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 24th, 2008 at 10:44 pm and is filed under Just for fun. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.