Our first billboard is up!! | Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Have you ever had a dream? Sure you have! But, have you ever had a dream, that seemed so far fetched and wild, and you thought could never come true? BUT, eventually, it did? Can you believe it?
Well, I had a dream....several years ago, to use my photography skills for something good. To have the ability to 'give' it away to those who needed it more than me, who couldn't afford it or who would never have them done otherwise. The far fetched dream of starting a non-profit came true. With some hard work, persistence and some help from those who believed in what I was doing, we got that coveted 501(c)3 status.
Then I had another dream, to use this non-profit to do something amazing.... photograph women who were undergoing treatment for cancer and had lost their hair. My husband thought I was nuts, people looked at me like I was crazy and I'm sure wondered, "what woman will ever think about having a portrait done without her hair?" WELL, almost 60 Bold and Beautiful women later, here we are at almost the conclusion of this project.
At the beginning of this project, I thought of ways we could use these images to bring awareness of these diseases to the community... and I dreamt of someday having these women's faces on billboards throughout the community! WOW! That would be cool, for these BRAVE women, to be on a billboard, 30 ft. tall and 60 ft. wide, showing the city what cancer looks like, but how beautiful they are! Some real "In your face" images... stark, provocative and real... but beautiful.
Yesterday, we saw the first step of this dream coming true. Our first 'teaser' billboard went live on the south side of Lansing!! Adams Outdoor has generously offered us space on some of their billboards throughout the month of October. What I thought was a far-fetched dream, HAS become a reality. I actually cried. To see all of this dreaming and hard work come to this.... is very moving for me. To see these women, who have 'bared' themselves through this project, getting the publicity they so deserve, thrills me. To see the community come together to help promote this project through the print media, radio and now these billboards, is humbling.
I am so thankful to these women who have shared their lives, feelings and this most intimate journey through cancer. I am so grateful that you chose to trust me with your appearance and your feelings. I will forever be changed and my life and career will never be the same. Thank you for helping this dream to come true. Thank you for being a part of such a moving project. I know our community won't be the same either.
Dreams do come true. Don't ever think that they won't. Work hard. Invest yourself. Pray. Ask for help... and be thankful.
Labels: bald woman, bald women, Be Bold Feel Beautiful, breast cancer, breast cancer awareness, Non-profit, Terri Shaver, The Oldham Project
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