JMac Day 3

Hot, Great attitudes, amazing counselors, kids were awesome, autographs were signed.  Thanks for coming home and putting on a great camp, Jeremy.  We're all so proud of you! 

JMac Day 2

It was another hot day in St. Louis, but all you saw at this camp were smiles.  You know something good is happening if kids are working hard on a sweltering turf and laughing and smiling.  I was once again impressed with the great enthusiasm that all the counselors showed and the effort they put forth to ensure that the campers learned and had fun. Way to go!!!  One more day to go and I'm sure it will be another great one. . . 

JMac Football Camp

Great fun today at Jeremy's football camp.  It was really hot today, but Jeremy's surrounded himself with some really good people, and the counselors did a great job keeping things fun and enthusiastic.  The kids were having a great time.  At one station, the players were being taught how to protect the football and had to run through some gates while the coaches tried to swat the ball out.  The coaches were instructing them to be serious, but the kids just couldn't wipe the smiles off their faces.  I mean, how are you supposed to when you're hanging out with your heroes?

It was great to see former KHS football stars, like Mike McNeill and Marcus Harris and good to see some of Jeremy's Mizzou teammates like Sean Witherspoon.  I gotta tell ya, I'm definitely in the Witherspoon Fan Club after watching him work with the kids today.  He's a force of nature and I can see why Jeremy considers him such a close friend, and why he had such a positive impact on the football program at Mizzou.  I'm sure he's doing the same thing for the Atlanta Falcons.  Just a top-notch wonderful young man.

Pirates vs Heaters

What a great way to spend a summer night. . . Coach Gunn's son, Connor, had his final baseball game last night so I grabbed the camera and headed over.  Nothing beats young kids playing baseball.  The clouds had cooled things off, and there was a little rain.  I overheard an outfielder asking his coach, "Why is it raining if we've got a game?"  Priceless. . .

KIBBY!!

I met up with Rachel this morning to shoot in the studio as a start to her senior pictures . . . Rachel warned me up front that she didn't like cameras and wasn't very comfortable posing.  One of the things I love about this branch of photography is getting to know the people, and trying to help them find some place where they are comfortable.  Rachel was in my class her sophomore year so I know her pretty well.  She's a great soccer player and a hard-working student.  I made the mistake of starting with her sitting in a chair.  It didn't take long to learn that "Kibby" is really most comfortable when she's moving, so we ditched the chair, put on some music and let her move.  It got fun in a hurry.  

We decided to just let things go, and she was such a "gamer".  She started messing up her hair, kicking off her shoes, and just having fun.  She had brought along this great little hat, and she liked it 'cause it gave her something to do with her hands.  I think it looks really cool, too!

Our goal before we started was to end up with 3 or 4 usable images.  Well, Rachel, you did that and more.  I had a great time and can't wait to shoot the outdoor stuff next weekend.  Love the hair. . . love the "lines". . . love the pics!!  You ROCK!!

D.T.

Met "D" this morning up at the high school for a "Senior Photo" session.  It was already warming up by 7:00am, so it's a lucky thing we started early.  What a great morning!  "D" is a natural and really seemed to be comfortable in front of the camera.  He wanted to get some pictures at the football field so we started out there.  Then we head inside for some studio work.  The A/C was on, but we were both still sweating pretty good.  It's going to get really hot today, I'm afraid.

"D" has great taste in clothes.  The blue checks were great, and the coat and tie were sweet.  

Great job, "D".  I loved hanging out this morning.  You were outstanding and I think we really nailed it.  Enjoy!

Joplin

I had the opportunity to travel to Joplin this weekend with a group from Greentree Church.  We took a trailer full of donated items and spent 2 days working on a clean-up crew.  It's impossible to adequately show the scope of the devastation, and it's difficult to find the words to explain it.  We had a group of 17 from Greentree and joined with  approximately 17 others, including a group from New York.  We spent several hours picking up debris from a farmer's hay field, clearing 30 acres, then went to some property that sat on the edge of the destruction.  Our group worked tirelessly in oppressive heat to accomplish a great deal, clearing debris from the yard and moving it to the curb (where it must be to be picked up by the city).  In spite of all this work, that left us exhausted, when you looked at the big picture, we had made no significant dent whatsoever. . . 

We traveled into the heart of the destruction, and it quite simply takes your breath away.  Had this happened to a single block or subdivision, it would have been an unspeakable tragedy, but as you drive for block after block after block, the view does not change.  I went to college in Joplin, and graduated in 1984.  There have been changes, but much of the city remains the way it was back then.  I couldn't get my bearings or "feel" where I was.  The visual cues your mind uses to orient itself are gone. . . 

We were fortunate to find hotel accommodations in nearby Carthage.  We returned the next morning for our assignment, and returned to the property from the previous day.  Again, using tractors, trailers, rakes, shovels, and hands and feet, we worked for several more hours.  Once again, the heat slowed the pace, but I marveled at the effort expended by this group.  I can't imagine property owners having to do this work by themselves.

In the afternoon, we were dispatched to Alabama street in the heart of the destruction where a backyard needed clearing.  Large trees had been toppled and piles of debris had blown in and clung to the trees.  On one hand, it was amazing the progress we made, but then again, it's just so little compared to what needs to be done.  

I'm embarrassed to say that I was glad when we called it a day.  I was hot, tired, and just plain beat.  I couldn't wait to climb in the truck and drive it home.  It was a relief to get out of there. . . but all day today, I've felt guilty for being in my air-conditioned house while thousands are still without in Joplin.  If you have been thinking about going to Joplin to help out, you should go.  Be prepared for miserable conditions & difficult and sometimes dangerous work.  But it's work that matters and work that will need to continue for a long, long time.