In doing what I love every day, I’ve been so fortunate to meet and work with some of the most amazing people + organizations of Portland who are truly changing lives.  {And I say that with zero concern for my hip factor when I consider how corny that may sound}.

As many of you know Loaves + Fishes is one of them.  I have photographed with them for four years now and could spend days happily going door to door with their volunteers, documenting deliveries + gratitude + stories.   In total, they provide more than 5,000 meals a day to local seniors through their 34 dining centers and home delivery.  And recently, Dave’s Killer Bread stepped up and made a commitment to donate over 800 loaves of bread a week to their centers.  If you haven’t had his bread, it is da bomb and so packed full of nutty goodness, eating a slice or two a day is probably the equivalent of running 3 miles a day.   And for some of these sweet folks pushing through their 90’s with humor and health intact, that’s saying something.

So a few weeks ago, we packed up the van with meals + Dave + his bread and made a few deliveries.

It rained sideways on Saturday.  Then as if on cue, the sun came out and cast a halo over our corner of Portland….

I am a storyteller with a camera.  I am an avid seeker of faces, places and experiences.  So if there are no people to be found, I love the exploration of the spaces they inhabit, poking around through all the nooks and crannies that define it and make it meaningful to someone somewhere, documenting the things they have left behind.  The stamp, or in this case, stickers, that say, “Once upon a time, I was here”.

This past Friday, I was given a unique opportunity on behalf of Dive Bar Shirt Club.  A site that celebrates all the beauty of…well….dive bars found all across the country.   In a city increasingly over run by hipster hangouts that require a PhD in fashion just to step across the threshold, the comfort of come-as-you-are corner bars can be quickly overlooked here in Portland.  Of important note however:  in googling my destination for the day, I came across an article that indicated a certain magazine with the words Play + boy in it had listed this place as one of 10 Great American Dive Bars.  For spam purposes, I think I’m going to regret including that little bit of trivia but found it interesting nonetheless.

Welcome to Billy Ray’s.

What I love to do in between doing what I love to do.

There was lots of love in the room last Thursday at the Oregon Humane Society celebration of pet and people heroes, hosted at the historic Governor Hotel.  With 350 attendees, they raised over $125,000 in less than an hour.  And amongst the five Diamond Collar honorees, all of whom make amazing contributions on behalf of fuzzy faced friends, was one who really touched me.  Maty, a three legged Australian shepherd, who once “worked” as a blood donor dog, but now [amongst other things] is a nanny dog to ferral kittens.

Hmm.  I wonder if she can come help nanny my 3 year old and 7 year old kittens of the two legged variety.

Check out this link to read more about the event and the pets + people who were honored.  And note that with the exception of Maty and Midnight, who were both recognized, all of the animals shown below are currently up for adoption at OHS!  Speaking from personal experience, pets can make life-changing companions…and occasionally, nannies.

Welcome to the world Mr. Jones.  We are so lucky to have you [and your little blue bunny hat] in it.

I toured West Side Portland last weekend with a 10 year old birthday girl and her friends (limo and funyuns and cupcakes included!) teaching them how to turn off auto flash and work the macro button on their cameras. We also met a very patient man and his dog, who can sing on command.  And a bride and a groom out for their own photoshoot.

The birthday girl wants to be a photographer when she grows up.

Her father’s an accountant.  I’m sure he’ll straighten her out.