It fascinates me that there are a lot of pro bono projects on my list of favorites. As our rhythms emerge from the pandemic, the PTA of my daughter’s elementary school wanted to send their 5th graders off to middle school in style. I got the call asking for some headshots and my imagination went into overdrive.

We could have run this the standard way and put each kid in front of a standard background, but I wanted something different. These kids and this community have loved and served my daughter Julia so well over the last nine years and I wanted to make this extra special and make it a community project. So I let the upstairs hall at Pembroke Elementary act as the background. They spent the last four years there and it’s the place from which they would be launched into the new adventure of middle school.

I also wanted to get an insight into the real kid in front of the camera, and I figured that having me behind the camera (an adult some of them barely knew) would be <ahem> less effective. So I asked the teachers to send down a kid in turns and let them bring a friend. Getting them focused on their friend as I took the shots helped each kid relax and interact; and a rhythm started: “Eyes on your friend – eyes on the lens.”

But then I actually sat their friend down behind the camera, showed them the shutter release and let them take a few shots. Some of them were unsure and very respectful of my equipment, but they eventually got the hang of it and felt a little of the thrill I feel when I get a shot. Others really owned it and felt very comfortable. Either way, the results were fantastic.

Slowly, the whole thing came together. 38 youngsters who have conquered one season of their lives and are looking confidently into the next…

And it couldn’t have been done without a great team of teachers – both General and Special Ed – who guided them through 5th grade. They were fun to pull in – especially when they thought the photo session was just for the kids.

It took some doing to break into the busyness to get Mrs. Crocker, the principal, to step in front of the camera. She has set the tone for inclusion that made Julia’s career at Pembroke even possible. She leads the school with great clarity of purpose and love for each student. She made the way for Julia to be a part of this place – even when many in central administration said it was impossible.

I wanted to do something that really caught the personality of this incredible woman, so I took advantage of the two classes coming down the hall for Art class. I paired a long shutter speed to catch the movement of the kids with a pop of flash on Mrs. Crocker to freeze her in the image. It took a couple of tries to dial it in (the kids didn’t mind), but we nailed it together.

This is the woman we saw so many years ago, determined to advocate not just for Julia but every kid in her building. The last two years of the pandemic have added to the care in face and silver in her hair (she freely admits it and wears it proudly), but the same message remains in her countenance:

These are my babies – even after they leave me. Do not mess with them.

Her confident bearing and joy in the midst of the occasional chaos of energetic kids (and some parents) is the thing I will miss the most. Bon voyage, Pembroke. Thanks for the memories!