Happy July! This is one of my favorite months of the year! SO many fun things happen this month...! Work slows down for a little while (yay family time!), the 4th of July is one of the BEST days (I seriously love seeing the pride for our country come out for one big in-your-face celebration!), AND it's my birthday month!!
I thought a great way to kick off the month of July was to make my second big announcement. Again, it's totally not what you think. :)
Announcement #2
I am honored to have been invited to travel abroad again this year for more documentary photography work with Allow the Children. And as if that is not awesome enough... this time I am taking my family WITH ME.
We are headed to Nepal this October as a family to serve in a few medical clinics and children's homes, and of course I will be bringing my camera with me.
Before I go on, I need to stop right here and share my heart.
I just need to confess this... that I was the girl at Liberty University who avoided "Missions Week" church services like THE PLAGUE. I was so sure God was NOT calling me to another country to serve people. Nope. No way, no how. Hot, smelly, dirty places with no AC and weird food. I'm embarrassed now to admit my heart was in that place... but I'm just telling you how it was for me back then.
Unfortunately, It took me a long time to grow into an adult who truly valued and understood what it meant to serve others and to see how the smallest act of kindness can truly change lives. When I was in Haiti, I purchased a pair of earrings hand-made by the children at the Hope of Life Children's Home. Those $3 went towards a meal for one of the children. A MEAL. As in, they have days when they miss meals. Poverty is a real thing... and we can say it over and over but it doesn't seem to click for us until we are face-to-face with the issue. And honestly, SMALL acts of kindness have the power to change the world. They really do.
I am truly blown away sometimes at the ways God can change our hearts. I am SO excited for another life-changing opportunity to meet people who live simply, who love deeply and who have such a pure faith in God. Their lives aren't complicated with packed agendas or endless options for dinner plans. It's inspiring and beautiful to me. (And don't get me started on how happy I am that I get to share in this with my husband - finally.) But to be able to capture it and bring it home to share the image of this with others... oh I feel so, so honored. Although truth be told, I'd rather take ALL of you with me so you can see these things in person!
In the past, clients of Sincerely, Liz, Inc. have supported my family in SO many ways... by investing in my services and products, sending along encouraging words and recently making unplanned investments in their family's photography during Tommy's furlough. Now I would like to offer the chance for you to invest in something that goes beyond our family.
Our trip to Nepal will be one that offers medical services to people who are otherwise unable to been seen or cared for by doctors, relationship-building opportunities to further share the love of Jesus to people around the country, and the chance for me to bring back real images of a real world that still needs real help.
If you would like to be a part of our trip we would be so grateful.
We have created two fundraisers
to help raise money for our trip:
The First - Mini Sessions on September 21, 2014
SEPTEMBER 21ST, 2014
in Lynchburg, VA
20 MINUTE SESSION
5+ DIGITAL IMAGES
$100 MINIMUM DONATION AMOUNT
By request, I've added a second date for my friends and client in the Fredericksburg, VA area!
FREDERICKSBURG, VA - OCTOBER 12TH, 2014
20 MINUTE SESSION
5+ DIGITAL IMAGES
$100 MINIMUM DONATION AMOUNT
This is a $50 discount on my normal mini session rate AND includes MORE digital images!! I honestly don't plan to offer this again in the future (with the exception of future fundraisers, I suppose :)).
The second fundraiser will be announced in the next week or so!
So, that's it! My (our) big, giant, Announcement Number Two. The third announcement will come in the next week or so and will include more details about a second fundraiser AND something else pretty exciting. :) Thanks for hanging in there while I totally string you along... you guys are good sports. I can't thank you enough for all of your love and support these past few years. I pretty much want to cry when I think about it. (deep breaths)
Thank you is honestly not enough.
