Dear friends and family…
It has been about a year since you received one of these emails from me… Well, here I go again! Last year was Nepal and Dubai with Highland Park United Methodist Church in Dallas. I traveled with them as their official photographer to capture a women and children's ministry trip.
This year it's Africa! I leave August 27, 2013! I will be traveling through Morocco first for 9 days just to explore, then on to Tanzania where the work begins! I will be volunteering about 7 months of my time to The Janada Batchelor Foundation for Children in Mwanza, Tanzania.
Some of you may recall my parents fulfilling my life long dream of going to Africa since I was 2 years old. They always promised if they could afford it someday they would take me. Summer of 2006, a few months after high school graduation, it happened! It was 16 years of anxious anticipation and wonder of what might be in store for me in Africa. It was an incredible experience I will never forget. It was in Africa that I found my true passion for Humanitarian Photography. My life will never be the same. I know that God had called me to Africa for a reason. That summer was just a taste of what's in store for me.
I met Chris Gates and his grandmother, Janada, in August of 2006 when my mom and I stayed in Africa longer than the rest of the family after our amazing Safari vacation. We helped at an all boys dorm in Mwanza painting and planting trees, etc. My love for those boys was something I had never felt before. They were the happiest kids I had ever met and they had less than anyone else I had ever met. They have forever changed me. I will always remember them and their sweet smiles and laughter. From then on I decided that when you have nothing, you appreciate everything. I want that for myself and my future family.
I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to go help Chris and JBFC, back where it all began… Mwanza, where I fell in love with Africa and its people.
Please take a moment to look at JBFC's website and read about what they are doing and donate! http://www.jbfc-
It is my hope that my images from Tanzania will draw attention to, help educate, and so assist in funding future endeavors for JBFC.
As many of you may know my goal in life is to travel the world and bring awareness through my images. Through Elisa Marie Photography with photos from Nepal, this move to Africa, and future travels all over the world, I will be well on my way.
If you have not seen the images from Nepal, you can see some on my website… www.elisamariephoto.
Follow along on my blog as I work in Tanzania and also travel through Morocco, Uganda, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Namibia, and South Africa.
Thank you for all your prayers, love, and support.
In case I've been unclear at some point...
ReplyDeleteYou're wonderful.