I knew I had the skills to tackle the job of taking the 40+ headshots for the Pageant in 2023 so I stepped up when I found out they were looking for volunteer photographers. The Headshots’ session was held in a donated (for the day) home space, where the participants were glammed up by volunteer hair stylists and make-up artists. They came to the photography room feeling so beautiful and we breezed through the portraits within a few hours.

Although it had been decades since I had volunteered with special needs individuals and I wasn’t sure what to expect, we had so much fun! And here’s what’s interesting… since I had not met the girls or their families prior to that first photo session, I had no way of knowing which girl had which condition or special need. So I just talked to them and treated them like every other young lady who I have been lucky enough to photograph. Success! The 2nd year was even more rewarding because so many of the girls remembered me and I received HUGS and great smiles again for their portraits.