On the evening of July 19th my amazing grandparents were laid to rest in their beloved Lake Michigan.
Laid To Rest
Category: essays
What Happened in 2015
2015 brought big changes including a new job and a new city.
Grand Cayman… and where I am now
Last winter I went to Grand Cayman for a week of incredible diving and sunsets. I've only just gone through the photos... You see, that was a problem I always had as a self-employed photographer. I'd work my tail off for my clients and finally save up enough money to take a trip somewhere amazing where I [...]
The Woman Behind “Caring for the Children of Africa”
Take a moment to read this piece I wrote for the VICDA website about my dear friend and inspiration, Annie Copley. I first met Annie in Nairobi in 2006 and had the pleasure of reconnecting with her back in Kenya in 2009. Since her first volunteer stint with VICDA Annie has raised over $100,000 to benefit specific projects. I’m trying to coordinate my next trip to Kenya so that I once again overlap with this remarkable woman!
Annie Copley of Adelaide, Australia first journeyed to Kenya as a GVN volunteer in 2006. Little did she know, the three months spent counseling HIV/AIDS patients in Nairobi’s slum areas would completely change the direction of her life. “This work has not only changed my life, it has become my life,” says Annie, ” I have a deep sense of gratitude today for the people of Kenya who, with their quiet strength and hope, teach me about real love, patience and tolerance.”
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Not long after her return to Australia Annie and her dear friend, Lauro Martire, hosted their first fundraising dinner at Lauro’s restaurant, East Terrace Continental. Held in November of 2007, that first dinner raised $11,000 – funds that were sent to VICDA at a time of great need, following the election violence of December 2007. With the money raised by Annie and Lauro’s dinner, VICDA was able to…
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A Lady Away
The past couple of weeks have been exciting. I've been lucky enough to book out of town work in truly beautiful locations offering the opportunity for one adventure after another. From driving around Northern Arizona for a week to networking in Toronto to family time in Michigan to experiencing history in Virginia and Maryland it's [...]
Amboseli National Park, Kenya
Amboseli National Park in Kenya was my first ever safari experience, back in November 2006. Weyn, a fellow volunteer, was planning a solo visit to Amboseli before heading home and when I got a call over breakfast letting me know that the school where I was volunteering would be closed for the next three days [...]
Lamu Island, Kenya
Most of today was spent copying my very first set of Kenya images over into Lightroom in order to back them up and to look through them with fresh eyes. When I journeyed to Lamu with Karen, Emma and Tessa in October of 2006 I was a baby traveler. Completely in awe and overwhelmed by [...]
Winter. Winta. Wiiintaaa.
Tuesday night found me boarding a taxi at the tail end of a blizzard, shedding my winter coat, and double checking to see that I’d packed enough SPF 45. My destination, you wonder? No, not a beach somewhere exotic - not even a poolside in Florida. Two Turkish Airline flights later I found myself in a [...]
Jenn Winter 