At the end of 2016 I had talked to the amazing illustrator/Drawn Well owner/all around bad ass, Lisa Troutman, about drawing a wall for some fun photo sessions that I was planning. After the initial wall was drawn the Presidential inauguration happened, chaos ensued and I felt the strong need to take some actionable steps forward. I asked Lisa if we could expand the wall and make it something more political + loving + uplifting + hopeful + inclusive so I could do some more photo sessions to benefit organizations that are working hard, and have been working hard for years, to bring positive change to our nation. Lisa said YES, without any hesitation, and got to work making this incredible, beautiful wall, affectionately referred to as the Wall Of Love.
Then the community stepped in. I originally had set aside two days to do photo shoots all day, with all of the session fees going straight to the ACLU and Take Action Minnesota. Those two days filled up so quickly that I added two more, and my entire February was spent hanging out with amazing families and kids and adults that feel like big kids, creating photos that added a little bit of hope and happiness to our lives, without neglecting the political atmosphere that we all found ourselves in.
Together we raised thousands of dollars that I was able to pass on to organizations with a proven track record of being amazing at what they do. It’s also undeniable that we also lifted so many spirits and together we created a safe, fun space where we could celebrate so much positivity and the most incredible community in the middle of a political atmosphere that was weighing so heavily on all of us.
