As a photo organizer, I’m fascinated with photographs. I delight in helping people manage and truly enjoy their photos again as they remember the stories of a special event or milestone. Over the years, my methods have evolved from scissors, glue and construction paper art projects to professional Photoshop editing in timeless archival-quality photo albums. But this fascination, mixed with how God has wired me and my background in interior design would not have culminated into a business if it weren’t for the way both Lyn and Brett encouraged, guided, and inspired me over the years. They challenged me to dream bigger, and helped me to uncover and realize my God-given potential in all facets of my life.
I made my first archival-quality scrapbook album after returning from my first rēp venture in 2004. Lyn gave each of us on that team a beautiful (blank) album to fill with the photos and memories of our two week experience in South Africa. I loved putting together that album almost as much as the trip itself, and out of that, a creative calling was born. Since then, I’ve collected and compiled photos from every rēp trip. I’m passionate about chronicling our collective history because our photos are visual memorials. They point to the miracles we’ve experienced, the lives that have been transformed, the companies that have impacted their communities and nations, and the many ways that God’s moved in our midst. God has used the written word to tell stories that he wants us to remember, and I believe we can partner with him to use photos in a similar way.
Photos not only tell the stories of our lives, but also help to remind us who we are. If we can look beyond the funny hairstyle or dated outfits of our past, we are able to see who we truly are: full of power; great love; kind-hearted; a force to be reckoned with. We can pull out photos from our childhood and be reminded of who we were created to be: fearless; full of adventure and mischief; overflowing with dreams of the future. One of my favorite albums is from a trip to Cape Town in 2005. As I look back at each page, it takes me through a range of emotions remembering the amazing ways God knit us together, and seeing the incomparable worth in each person. At the back of this album, I saved the affirmations that had been written for me on the last day of that trip. I strive to create albums that affirm loved ones through photos and the written word.
Through my work, I have the opportunity to go into a stranger’s home and see their most intimate moments. Inevitably, deeper sharing takes place and I’m given the opportunity to encourage, bless, speak truth, and even pray. At the moment I’m organizing 30+ years of photos into albums for a client whose adult children have never seen a family photo album. Together we’ve poured over thousands of photos, and it’s truly become a journey of thankfulness and praise. As I put together albums I am reminded to fix my thoughts on what is “pure, lovely and admirable” (Phil 4:8) so the God of Peace will be with my clients as they think about their stories.
I am very grateful to be able to launch a business that weaves together the experiences I’ve had with the skills that God’s given me to be able to do work I’m passionate about. It is a joy to help affirm individuals, couples, and families as they come to recognize their undeniable worth through images that reflect the the beauty and wonder of the way God created us.