Lynette's blog

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 12:51:00 +0000

Its 5:30 in the morning here in PV Mexico and I just finished reading “Just Kids” by Patti Smith. The memorial poems that end the book made me get up to start writing. In my own life AIDS took a girl friend of mine, Mary Tudor, the wife of our doctor friend who delivered McKenzie and sister to my dear friend Dianne who is showing at the Soul Artist sale. AIDS comes knocking on my door regularly since my youngest brother lives with HIV and has since his youth. David has escaped the ultimate ravages of the disease but living with it is certainly not what you want for your brother or for anyone. My sorrow over what photography lost when Mapplethorpe died made me hop out of bed to try to put something meaningful into words.

The glow from the evening before I left for this trip with Doug has stayed with me thru the connective power of facebook. Reading what friends from my past and present have commented on the little video that Megan posted from the event have kept me smiling and given me a warm feeling about Soulumination. Now its not as if all the efforts that surround Soul don’t normally make me feel warmth, its just so hard to hold that feeling with the reality of the losses.

I was thinking back to my last shoot at Seattle Children’s and the amount of tears. Tears flowing onto the beautiful infant, tears that were trying to be wiped away, but 2 boxes of tissues could not begin to absorb all the anguish. The absolute sorrow that was filling the room with so much heat that it was hard to breathe left me slightly feverish feeling.

When I multiply this sorrow by the 700 shoots that Soul has recorded, I remind myself that some of our friends survive, they grow and blossom and show us that hope is indeed a part of our work. But sadly the majority end with loss and that is what we are supposed to be doing, this legacy work is not for the faint-hearted. It is such a wonderful thing that now over 35 talented photographers have realized that their hearts have what it takes to make images that will sustain memories that might help bridge and maybe even help to heal some of the pain.

I remember seeing some of Robert Mapplethorpe’s work at SAM years ago, he was shocking the world with not only his talent but with bringing the images of the gay life style into full view--never apologizing and as Patti puts it in her book, never differentiating between the beauty of his floral photos and his more provocative male images. His legacy is huge but I can’t help but morn his loss as he moved forward when others faltered. His images are often shown in the Christie’s and Sotheby’s Auction catalogs that are such a wonderful and generous gift to me from my friend, Don Logan. The prices his images fetch are high and in my heart I hope his estate benefits AIDS research.

Photography has many uses and it made me chuckle to read that when asked recently which camera to buy, Annie Leibovitz answered an Iphone, a tribute to the loss of another genius but also so very true as its definitely my next purchase and I love seeing all the images on facebook that my young mom friends post of their stunning children that were taken with their phones- tiny but powerful glimpses into their daily lives.

So with Soul we walk into one of the harder realms of photography but hopefully we do it with honor, grace and like Robert we don’t differentiate from the beauty we record in our daily work and the beauty we are called to in this much more difficult realm. We walk into sacred ground and maybe we return with a little more than we can understand or comprehend and that makes it possibly the hardest thing any of us that work with Soulumination will ever face with our cameras, but maybe the most important.

Onward in love and peace, and saluting the work of photographic genius that was lost but remains and grows by teaching us to follow the heart, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 14:24:00 +0000

I completed my business work for the year yesterday and today I am honored to be named as a Puget Sound Journal Woman of Influence and tomorrow Doug and I fly to PV Mexico, poignant time of year. Its been hard to sleep with thoughts running thru my head about how to best honor the work of Soul in a two minute time slot, but hoping I can pull it off in loving memory and tribute to my niece, baby Lanie, my best friend's son Janus and all the angel babies and wonderful parents that we have lost. Hoping that the right words will fall into place and that my own soul has the ability to stand strong in a time of bittersweet thankfulness that the judges thought the work I have started is worthy of recognition.

I will be joined tonight by family and friends and I will carry with me the knowledge that Megan is working to get the shoots set up for four more families. The basis of Soul is just such an emotional thing that we can't ever measure success in the traditional ways. Higher numbers means more loss, no money changes hands for services rendered and yet it has a power all it own. Recently while working with my clients and friends, Kurt and Leslie and their family, Leslie reminded me that the nightmare of losing all your children's photos had been a reality for her. In the fire at their home all photos that I had taken for them and all the family photos had been destroyed, she said she could replace everything else but sadly not the negatives and prints that were wiped out that day. Those of us who are parents realize that the loss of a child is the biggest tragedy in life so thankfully Leslie has her three wonderful sons, but those precious photos are now distant memories.

I introduce you today to a tiny one whose hello is also goodbye. Cameron was photographed by Kevin and we are honored that his parents have agreed to share the images. We send our deepest sympathy and thoughts of love and peace.

We also received the releases from on of the families photographed by board member Jodi. Dash is one strong little guy born premature with multiple health issues. We are thankful to his family for sharing their son with all of us and proud to have both Jodi and Kevin working with Soul to provide such beautiful images

I am finishing the writing just an hour before leaving for tonight's celebration, huge thanks for all the kind words on facebook, the flowers from Heather and Kelly, and the curly hair by Cindy Frank at Salon Metro. I will do my best to honor the work of everyone at Soul and to be grateful to a community who has supported my business for nearly 25 years. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 09:24:00 +0000

Not sure why I can't sleep but thought it might be wise to put this time to use and write this week's blog. It has been so busy that I might just be on overload from all the activity. I am hoping that the fact that I have 5 more family shoots for my business and then I am done for the year will mean some wonderfully restful nights. The fact that Doug and I leave for Mexico on Thursday for a week could also bring some welcome refreshing time before the fun and excitement of the wreath making event and the Artist Sale moves into high gear.

I am featuring the work by Margaret Vance today as we work to ensure that the attendance at the Artist Sale is in record numbers to match the record number of requests this year. Margaret's winged creatures are favorites of many and are part of my personal collection of Christmas ornaments. Mac and Lew had one of her pop up toys when they were babies and I have it stashed away in case I am gifted with grand children someday. Margaret's husband Kurt is currently undergoing cancer treatment for a recent diagnosis and is a believer in the power of prayer so please keep him in your heart.

I have lost count but I think I saw the photos for five new families to Soul move through the office this past week and I know that Leo's latest shoot is completed and ready for printing. One of our newer photographers, Michelle did two great shoots in the past couple of weeks and still managed to mail in 2 beautiful hand knit baby hats for the sale. Michael also did 2 shoots recently and they are both lovely.

The show at Annie's Art and Frame looks so beautiful thanks to Sarah who works there for her beautiful job in hanging the pieces. If you are in Ballard please drop by to see the faces of Soul. Annie's has been one of our biggest supporters, framing hundreds of photos that are part of the gifts we give. They do a wonderful job and have done it free of charge. Doug and I frame all our pieces with them and I can say they do a great job and have excellent service. They are located on Market Street on the block past the Bay Theater as you head toward the Locks. We gifted the staff with Soul tees in a small gesture of thank you for their amazing dedication to our families.

On Wednesday we are attending the Women of Influence awards dinner and I will be called to do a short speech, thankfully its only a couple of minutes and will be a time when I can share a bit about the inspiration for Soulumination. I want to thank my longtime friend and hairstylist, Cindy Frank, owner of Salon Metro who is one of the artists at the sale for agreeing to come in on her day off to help me look presentable.

We are thankful to all who have signed up for wreath making and donation of greens. If you have talent in the floral arts and would like to join us in making wreaths please call us at 297-0885 or if you have greens to donate we would love to hear from you as we love having a wide variety of greens to work with and our goal this year is to make and sell 200 wreaths. We still need more people for cashiering, and other duties at the sale so if you are proficient with numbers and are careful at recording we would be most grateful.

I will write again soon as I noticed an envelope containing releases arrived this weekend and of course I will want to share the new face with all of you, in love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 17:04:00 +0000

I am heading home from a wonderful weekend at the cabin, the next visit will be after our trip to Mexico to gather greens for the wreath making efforts. I got to facetime with my girls in Turkey a few minutes ago and really love that they are together exploring the world. At the cabin were the 2 moms whose babies inspired the work of Soulumination. They helped me go over answers to possible questions I will be asked when we attend the Puget Sound Business Journal's Women of Influence event next week.

I have been pondering the information about on census of Soulumination photo shoots this year. We are already over the number of shoots we did last year and its not even mid November. I am thankful that the word is out so that we can provide our services to new families but of course sorry that the numbers are rising as the sorrow and loss is just so much. As always we move forward as gracefully as possible, learning to embrace life as it presents itself.

We are now on the real countdown to our annual Soulumination Artist Sale. We have many returning artists: Betsy Brown, Trina cottingham, Cindy Frank, Kristin House, Sophi Kollenborn, Maude May, Robin May, Kari Schlechten, Diane Shea, Patti Shaw, Sidni Sobolik, Margaret Swanson-Vance, Lily West, James Sutherland, Jane Wilson, Jenni Wilson and myself. We are welcoming Jody Cain, Patsy Thola Chamberlain, Sofia Christine, Jeannette Derry, Julia Garrels, Ginny Huber, Becky Morrette, Susanna Prince, Gretchen Quinn, Irene Shimizu, and Dianne Tudor. Plus we have the young artists joining us: Colin Baker, Brady Jurgens, Claire Aiello, Mary-Kathryn Egger, and Grant Comick.

Megan is busy booking more new families. Kevin was out shooting on the weekend, Dawn is working with a new family and just completed the photos for another, Michael just did a shoot and Michelle is going to Seattle Children's tomorrow.

We hope that this year's Artist Sale is the best ever. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 04:01:00 +0000

I have not been sleeping well lately so late in the afternoon I took a little nap and was refreshed and reading in my bed when the home phone line rang and it was a nurse from Seattle Childrens asking if someone could come to the hospital for a baby who was most likely in the last hours of life. Since it was already after 5pm, I knew the best idea was to just grab my bag and go myself. Our photographers are great and many will drop what they are doing, but it just seemed right to go myself.

The nurse who had called greeted me at the NICU desk. We went and met the beautiful baby and her parents came in minutes and I spent an hour recording their goodbyes. Its never easy working with our dear Soul children but tiny ones at the hospital can be very poignant. I send her parents thoughts of love and peace tonight and will get the disc of images to Lily tomorrow for her to work her post production magic on the selected files. I know we will have a lovely set of gifts for these special people to help them move through the days and years ahead.

Tonight I am sorry to say that I have another loss to share with the supporters of Soulumination. A dear boy, Aaron that I met on the trip to Edmonton passed away a few days age. This little charmer really was so appealing and handsome. He was an only child and so obviously loved by his parents. My heart aches and I send thoughts of love and peace to his family also. As you can see by his photos he had a special twinkle, an appeal all his own.

I had started this writing after dinner and then went to bed knowing I had to be up bright and early so that Doug and I could drive Lew to the airport for the start of her trip to Turkey with McKenzie. At about 1AM the phone rang and Mac is so sick that they have to delay the start of their travels until tomorrow and Lew spent the next couple of early morning hours changing tickets. Once awake its just hard for me to go to sleep so I finished reading a most enjoyable book, Breakfast with Buddha.

This evening I will attend a birthday party for our long time volunteer and supporter, Christa. She is asking that her friends donate to Soul instead of bringing gifts. We received a lovely donation via paypal yesterday in her honor. After the party I will drive to our cabin for a couple of days of quiet time creating a few more pieces for the Artist Sale and just enjoying the beauty of the South Sound. I thank once again all of you who have saved bottle caps and cans for my projects.

We are grateful to Soul mom Alison for her willingness to put the address labels on the postcards for the Sale. It was truly a delight to see her and Georgia when they came to pick up the cards and labels. Once Georgia's NG tube is out we will schedule updated photos. Her wavy brown hair is such a change from her straight blonde locks that its time to capture her again.

I close hoping for sleep and sending gratitude for the opportunities that life has given me and my family. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 18:09:00 +0000

Its a nice Sunday morning here in Ballard, just walked back from the Farmer's Market with bounty for the week ahead. In a few hours Lew and I are leaving for my final wedding job of the year, I am so excited to work with this wonderful bride. I have 45 more families to photograph for my business before Doug and I leave for Mexico, but that will be so much fun seeing all my young friends and their parents and means that "Fall for Soul" will be a big help for funding for Soulumination. I am also trying to finish more items for the Artist Sale as we want that to be more successful than ever since we are busier right now than usual with new families.

It takes an opening paragraph to let me settle into the main reason I am blogging today and that is to say a public goodbye to a "beloved queen". I met the stunning Priya and her family when I was in Edmonton this past spring. They are a warm, beautiful and loving family and it was a joy to work with them. They were obviously looking forward to the photo shoot as everyone was attired so beautifully and I felt so much love as I entered the hospital room. This little beauty warmed my heart and had such a regal appearance that it didn't surprise me when her mom recently wrote and told me that her name meant beloved queen. I send heartfelt sympathy to this family as we received word recently of the passing of this angel. I hold them in my heart along with thoughts of love and peace.

Its only appropriate that the latest released child that I can share is Emma who was photographed by Susan at her studio in University Heights where the beautiful Soul Collection in currently hanging. This 7 year old will soon be on our website gallery but here are some beautiful preview photos.

Hugs to Susan, Lew and Heather for all they did to make the show at UHeights possible. Also Heather and Collin, Kelly S and Sally for help with hanging the show. Its beautiful and daily many people are going thru that majestic old school building and viewing the faces of Soul.

We are looking for help in creating a slide show disc of all our released children and adults. It is not affordable right now to print and mount all of the faces of Soul, so we need to have a slide show ready to go for the next opening which will be at Annie's Art and Frame on Nov. 12. Annie's has been our biggest business supporter in that they frame a photo for each Soul child's family free of charge. I know its important to have their customers see the true range of the support they have given, plus I want to celebrate each life that is released to us and it will also show the work of every photographer as releases are signed. So if you have a few days free and would like to help by loading in discs and creating a file of the chosen images please let us know ASAP as I will have chosen all the photos and from there we need to move forward quickly. Call 206-297-0885.

I am most thankful for all the stunning work that is coming in from our recent Soul shoots. Truly everyone is doing an outstanding job and we are receiving so many compliments from the families.

It is crazy busy here getting things in line for the Artist Sale. We are hoping to create 200 wreaths and will be offering some for pre-sale. Please call 206-297-0885 if you have greens you could donate as it will take so much to make that many wreaths. The raffle basket donations are arriving steadily and they are stunning. I think we will have at least 3 great baskets and I will donate a piece of the tin art for each basket. I have small wire and metal wreaths that I am adding to my luminarias, lights and dolls and will make a few new garlands to test market and from the garlands I will give all the proceeds to Soul. Thanks again to all who keep me in mind for bottle caps, tins, and cans, appreciate the help and support.

I send thoughts of love and peace to all, keeping in mind the artists that are busy creating for the show. I have also heard that prayers would be appreciated especially right now for a friend of mine, Kurt, whose wife is one of our artists as he is working through a new cancer diagnosis and treatment plan and also for the sweet red head, Claire who is in the ICU at Children's. Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 04:38:00 +0000

We are in a very busy time of year with all the needs to be done to pull off the Artist Sale with many new artists and lots of beautiful wreaths. We are also coming up to the opening evening for the show at University Heights this Friday evening as well as our supporter, Christa's birthday party that will benefit Soulumination.

On the Soul family front we are so busy. I had the nicest time working with Ava Grace and her family with the help of intern, Faustine last week. Charlie did her second shoot in Bremerton and today arrived a nice donation from a friend of the first family she recently worked with. Teddi did a shoot for a one year old on Saturday. Karen did a shoot of a one and a half year old on Sunday. Bryan is scheduled for a shoot on Tuesday and Jodi is working with a baby on Wednesday. Avery is scheduled for a family on November 2nd and we have 3 more new families to book.

I will post a couple of photos of our little friend Ava Grace tomorrow, but the disc is up at Moonphoto right now for printing.

I am off to gather mushrooms in the South Sound area tomorrow with good friends Sidni and Becky. The weather is supposed to be lovely, it will be nice to have some quiet time away. In love and peace, Lynette

I not only added the photos of Ava Grace but here find the beautiful work of Michael on our newly released child Gracie. We were very sad to hear that she died shortly after her shoot. We send her family all grace and sympathy as well as thoughts of love and peace.

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 02:16:00 +0000

Its been very busy here in Ballard, this week in fact the busiest of the year for my business. Megan was finishing the gifts for the family I worked with last week as well as booking a photographer for a shoot in Bremerton tomorrow. We had a little office lunch and paper wreath making work party today in honor of Diane's birthday.

Our board president, Kelly and her husband, Yom hosted a lovely fundraising evening at a dinner party at Wild Ginger on Saturday. It was great to meet some new supporters and to reconnect with a few from the past. We raised funds to help keep us moving forward and had a lovely offer for another fundraiser by an attendee for Christmas time. I am most grateful to Yom and Kelly and their friends for this support.

Our good friend and former employee, Kari dropped by to donate some beautiful items to the Artist Sale. She is moving to Anacortes but she is always a part of Soul as she was one of our first volunteers and she lead some wonderful work parties, the Artist Sale and has been by our side from the beginning. I wish her well in her new home with a fine man by her side.

Lew, Heather and Susan are working to put together a lovely evening when we have our show event at University Heights a week from Friday. It is on the 21st from 6 till 9 and we have many beautiful portraits hanging in the halls.

We are thankful for all the work done by past board member, Bettijean Collins on the new piece we are having printed to accompany the ask to local businesses. We are excited to have this coming together.

I have to go do the dishes and be ready for my Saturday bride's phone call to finalize the details of this weekend's wedding. I am so excited to record this one as not only is the couple wonderful but my Lew is in the wedding. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 17:39:00 +0000

I was slow posting last week so maybe I just hit it today before my wedding shoot. Its fun to think ahead to the next hours as Sarah will be my assistant, Megan is in the wedding and Lew and Mike are guests. Lets hope the rain holds off enough for some outdoor photos.

We received the releases today for a Legacy photo shoot that was done by Amanda. This young mom has stage 4 breast cancer and we are honored that we had the chance to work with her and her partner and their three children. Amanda did a lovely job of capturing the beauty and depth of this family.

Thanks to my friend Sidni for her generous donation and to our long-time supporter, Christa Nielson for her generosity in asking her friends to donate to Soul at her birthday party. I also want to mention the family who ordered 8 tee shirts, we worked with their son recently while he was at Seattle Children's and we are honored that they will be wearing the Soul tees.

Please keep us in mind for greens for the wreath making workshops before the Artist Sale. I told our board that I would be sure we produced 200 wreaths as we need the money for your work and they seem to sell very well. It will take a lot of effort and a lot of greens. If you have floral or wreath making talent we would really love to have your help in constructing the wreaths, please call 206-297-0885 to sign up for a spot. we are working Nov 28, 29 and 30th from 9 til 9. We need skilled help for the actual wreath making but can use clean up and go-fer help too.

Also, we need to expand the take from the sale in other ways so again I am reminding you that we are looking for artists to donate a piece of two to the sale. We are not talking about expensive items but would love great quality earrings, pottery, leather goods, handmade books, handmade dolls, almost anything that has the feel of the normal items we carry. My friend Sasha is going to make spicy mustards, my friend Patsy is making the most incredible tiny pincushions and knitting scarves, Patrice is doing needle felted mushroom ornaments and hopefully some of her delicious truffles. My friends joining in to help the cause, please consider doing the same and maybe asking your artist friends to consider this option for supporting a cause that comes straight from the heart.

I close with a thank you to Leo for his latest efforts for a new Soul family---incredible photos as always. Please keep today's pictured family in your hearts. In love and peace, Lynette

Its a crazy busy week for me and lots going on for Soul. We have a number of new families that our amazing photographers are working with in the next few days and into the weekend.

Tuesday Lew spearheaded the hanging of the show of the Soulumination Collection at University Heights. This is happening thanks to our amazing photographer, Susan Doupe who has her studio in this building. We give huge thanks to Heather Baker and her intern, Kelly Senegor, daughter of our board President, Sally Elliott, Soul mom and Doug, my husband for all the hard work of hanging the show. There will be an opening on October 21st in the evening and I so hope you will attend.

We had our yearly review for Megan the young woman who has done a great job of running Soulumination for the past year. We are changing her job title as we have been giving lots of thought to how the work here in the office is not the true administrative type of work. She is called Program Director as she really is hands on every day working with our families and with the photographers as well as all of the referring agencies.

We were very sad to receive the news that the family Bryce was to work with this weekend had to cancel due to the child taking a turn for the worse. Its one of the hardest pieces of Soul, getting used to the idea that even the best laid plans are often dashed in times of urgent medical situations.

I want to give a special thanks to Denise Stuesse, Soul mom who makes each and everyone of the bracelets that are given to moms....she does each one with care and love and we are so very thankful. Every box that contains a bracelet has a tiny photo of her with Blake under the lid explaining that they are made by his mom. It is the ultimate in giving back and we couldn't be more thrilled to have her as our devoted volunteer.

Big thanks to my clients who have recently donated to Soul when they pick up their photos, I am most grateful for their generosity. We still have a few spots open for Oct/Nov for family bookings for my business in the promotion called "Fall for Soul". I am donating $65 for each family shoot booked by a returning client and $100 for new client bookings. We have many already booked so that will help Soul stay on track to serve every family who requests a Soulumination shoot.

Heather and Kelly are rockin' their new officer standings with Soul, its great to have their support.

The days are flying past as we head toward the Artist Sale. Please save your greens for the wreath making extravaganza and if you are an artist or crafts person or know someone who would like to donate a piece of two to the sale please let us know. For instance if you know a jewelry maker, potter, knitter, who would be moved by our work please ask if they would donate an item to the sale.

Must get back to editing, like I said its been crazy busy so this post which would have usually been a Monday missive is now finally going up on Friday. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 21:30:00 +0000

Its another beautiful day in the NW and I just took a peek at the photos that Michelle took for a family from Alaska. It made me smile and got me excited to write once again about the work of Soul and all that is happening here in Ballard. Michelle did a great job of capturing this child, her twin and parents.

We have had three other recent shoots by Teddi, Cami and Natalia so I should see images from those shortly. I couldn't be more pleased with the recent work by our talented staff of volunteer photographers, truly its beautiful to watch this unfold.

We are most excited with our newly elected President, Kelly and VP,Heather. They are working to get us moving forward on many fronts and have been tirelessly composing a letter for us to present to companies for possible backing either thru funding or in-kind donations.

We have sold tee shirts to 2 more families and I think we will see orders for a few more very shortly. The tee project is a good one and the shirts are such a good quality that I will vouch for them. I know own 2 long-sleeved and one short sleeved in the women's size small, so they run a bit large. I wear mine regularly on my business shoots and they get lots of compliments so consider one for your fall wardrobe please.

Llewelyn is working with Susan Doupe to get the show up in University Heights next week. Angie and Heather are helping and maybe Sally will come and give a hand, my sister in law is really great at hanging art. We will be part of the University Art Walk so join us on October 21st to view this show.

I am booking nicely for my "Fall for Soul" idea in which I will donate $65 from each returning client who books with my business for a shoot in October or November and $100 from each new client booking. We will use funds from this to help with our administration costs so that your donations go more directly to the work with our families.

Lots of prep work is going into the Artist Sale right now. I personally am working hard to have lots of product ready for sale. Its again the first weekend in December here at the studio in Ballard, so mark your calendars and tell your friends as we have many new exciting artists this year.

Watch facebook for our new video testimonials project. We will ask you to record your thoughts about Soul for this if you are willing so think about what Soulumination means to you. We are looking to find support in capacity building for Soul and this little project to let our supporters know what is at the heart of Soul is the first step in the grassroots building toward that goal. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 04:18:00 +0000

There is a lot going on this week for Soulumination. But with all I have to share I want to start by honoring Soul parents and our friends, Susan and Andrew Tarling. I met this couple and their son, Brandon (pictured here today) shortly after the article came out in People Magazine in February of 2005. I flew along with my daughter Llewelyn to take photos of Brandon at his first birthday. Our ties were formed then and have grown strong thru their visit to the opening celebrations at St Marks Cathedral that year, a second shoot with Brandon in Vancouver and sadly thru this death and his mom's visit to our 5th Anniversary and a lovely lunch visit with them and Sarah and her twins here at our place in Ballard. Susan makes all the beautiful birthday cards for our new families, she organized my trip to Edmonton this year and she and Andrew hosted me during that stay. She has encouraged her co-workers to purchase and wear our Soul tees, shown below with some of her co-workers. We are so very thankful for their support. I know I have written about this wonderful family many times but in signing all the birthday cards that Megan handed me it seemed important to write about them again as the cards are truly beautiful works of love.

Last year our volunteer photographer, Tara Clark did a project called "Give Everyday in May". It raised a lot of money and awareness. With this economy being challenging for funding this year, I have launched a little fundraiser for Soul that maybe I should call, "Fall for Soul". During the months of October and November I will donate $65 from each shoot for returning business clients and $100 for new business clients who book family or senior photo shoots during those months. I had already had a fair number on my books but will donate from those too of course. I am very pleased with our adminstrative staff here at Soul and will earmark my donations from this little advent specifically to this part of our work so that donors funds can be used even more directly for the work with families. I have been working very hard the last few months and always donate to Soul but I feel I have enough energy to gear up for fall and give even more to Soulumination.

On Tuesday we have our first board meeting after our yearly summer break. It is time to welcome possible new members and vote in our new President, Kelly McNelis Senegor and Vice President, Heather Baker. We have a number of people confirmed to visit and consider the board, we cross our fingers that some or all will join us. To date have Jodi Rosen, Pat Fallon and Anne Cunningham attending the meeting as possible board members. We know that committing to any board is a big step so nothing is for sure yet but we are hopeful. The great thing about Soul is that whether or not people take a place on the board they stay involved and available to help and that is really the key to our strength. We say farewell but not goodbye to Matt Kochel, Randell Walton and Amy Humphries, all who have served us with care and compassion. Randell of course is staying on as one of our photographers, I hope Matt will agree to again greet at the Artist Sale as he generously has offered to come when I call and Amy has already agreed to stay close when needed.

I hope you have noticed our new project on facebook, the short testimonials that we are presenting almost daily. So far their are short and moving pieces, most under a minute, from our TIPS intern Hannah, our supporter Sidni, Soul mom and photographer Jodi, Soul mom Maryann, Soul sister Margo and our own Megan. Many more to come. Please visit our page and 'like' us and encourage your friends and family to do the same at: http://www.facebook.com/Soulumination. It is very important that we broaden our base of support and social networking is vital in that process, so please 'like' us and encourage your family and friends to do the same. We hope to make a presentation of many of these brief and powerful words that we will show at the Artist Sale on December 3 and 4th. Thanks to board member Lori Sawyer for loaning us her little video cam and to photographer Karen whose we will borrow next.

Megan has 2 new families booked for this week. I don't have the exact number at my fingertips but will check with Megan and make it current for the next blog but we are over 700 shoots for Soul since our beginning. Life move is meaningful ways. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 20:45:00 +0000

Its a beautiful day at the cabin and I have a few more hours to myself before the drive back to 'reality' as my husband would say. Its the busiest time of year for my business with family and senior shoots colliding with weddings----very exciting and fun. I get to see many good friends this time of year and am regularly reminded of the passage of time since this week I work with a graduating senior whose parents wedding I photographed. Here at the cabin I ran into Kelly Chandler whose wedding I shot and who now shoots for Soulumination. She and her family were staying with another bride of mine from 19 years ago. I feel so lucky to have this job. ****Making an addition tonight to the blog I wrote earlier at the cabin, because when I arrived home a family from Camp Agape released their photos that were taken by Kurt. Sopia is in glasses on the far left and will be featured soon in our gallery. Just had to share these joyful photos.****

This is also the time of year that Soul moves into high gear in the area of board organization and funding plans. We have our first meeting after the yearly summer break and we will vote on incoming President Kelly McNelis Senegor and Vice President Heather Baker. Both women have been already working hard to be on top of all there is to do in running this non-profit. I thank outgoing President, Matt Kochel for his 2 years of service. Meeting Matt and Celina the night that they said goodbye to their twin infant daughters was a powerful evening and they are certainly a part of my heart and soul. Photographer, Jodi Rosen was by the office this morning with all four kids to drop off her latest shoot from a family that is at Ronald McDonald house. She has agreed to attend the next board meeting and we are hopeful that this will begin a long tenure on our board. We need to build a broader base of support and are so thankful to all of you who have stood by our side. We are launching a little video testimonial project on facebook and we may very well call on you for a few sentences about what Soulumination means to you. We are grateful to Lori and Karen for offering to loan us their flip cams so we can move forward on this with good equipment. The idea for this little project came when I worked with 2 wonderful clients last week and I shared with them that I have a dream of finding funding by a donor to cover the cost of our administration, leaving only the actual funds that go directly to the work with the families for us to raise. Both Bettijean and Laura had great insights and through their willingness to chat after their shoots this little grassroots video project came about. Already our TIPS intern and my good friend Sidni have shared their thoughts. Hopefully we will have a new little video up each day for a while and then move into posting new ones a couple of times each week. They are short and they are from the heart, take a peak. We are also working hard to increase our presence on facebook, if you haven't 'liked' us already please do at this link: http://www.facebook.com/Soulumination. We have set a goal of 1000 likes so please let your friends know about our work and encourage them to connect with us. Funding is weighing on my mind these days so please mark your calenders for the Artist Sale which will be the first Saturday and Sunday in December. We will be working to create twice the number of wreaths as we have sold out each year. If you have greens to donate please let call 206-297-0885. I know Diane has some great new artists all lined up and we are going to feature some young talent. Grant will be returning with his amazing pipecleaner creations and we are adding Claire with her photo cards and Brady with his duct tape wallets and hopefully a few other young people. I am working with all the cans and bottle caps that so many of you have shared with me. We are also working to make the check out system work more smoothly. Keep my pal Austen in your heart, she is moving through her weeks of chemo with grace and determination and it will be good when she is ready for her donor cells. That woman has a beat on all this and is truly giving cancer the heave-ho. Our little pal Georgia is working through some new medical issues and she is another fighter that would love to have all the good juju, prayers and support heading her way. Now to the beach to enjoy a little more sun and the quiet of the sound before heading to the excitment and bustle of the city. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 15:21:00 +0000

Hello to all of Lynette’s readers, I’m Hannah, Soul’s TIPS intern for the summer. I spent a wonderful two months and sadly am finished as an intern and soon headed back to school for my senior year at Holy Names.

I worked this summer on making gifts, updating the database of all Soul shoots (so many!), and doing various art projects and small tasks. Most recently Megan and I went over to Moonphoto to put some finishing touches on the exhibit. We had a blast attempting to hang the photos just so with me inside the very small display case and her outside using hand signals to straighten the photos, that is until we realized I could hear her through the glass.

One of my favorite experiences of the summer was certainly Camp Agape. Working in the office I see all of the shoots that come through, but seeing the kids in person makes the gift-making process so much more personal. I also loved that I got to spend time with Lynette seeing her shoot and interact with the kids.

Thursday was my final day as an intern and, though I will be back soon to volunteer, I cannot believe my time there has ended. The spectacular women at Soulumination have become my friends, and I’m so thankful that I was able to have this experience.

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 04:43:00 +0000

Next Monday the blog will be by our TIPS intern, Hannah, but I needed to write tonight. I have been putting this entry off for a few days as its always hard to say goodbye to a Soul friend.

On Sunday Torrey's life ended. She was the mom of two amazing children, a wife, and friend to our board member and photographer, Heather. We felt so blessed to have her at our fund raiser at Paint the Town. So tonight I bid her farewell and I will hold her in my heart and we all send her family thoughts of love and peace.

She is pictured her in the photos taken by her friend Heather.

In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 05:15:00 +0000

Our intern Hannah is working on a blog entry but I just had to move forward with one myself. Around 1pm Megan got an email about an urgent shoot and since its my day 'off' and I was only doing all the editing from Sundays wedding I jumped up and packed my bag only to find out that the shoot couldn't happen right then but maybe tomorrow. Right at 5 pm Megan came up to my living room where I was still editing and asked if I could go this evening. I dropped everything and headed to Seattle Children's SCCA floor. Often when I go to Children's I get my security badge from the man whose wedding essentially launched the idea of Soulumination since at that time his wife was working with the Palliative Care Unit and I offered my service when I heard about their work. I always like catching up briefly with this kind man and it was fun to hear that his daughter is starting first grade soon. Coincidentally, it was my mentor from the same unit that is now called Pediatric Advanced Care who sent this referral.

I made my way to the SCCA floor and met another wonderful family. The parents and sister were out chatting in the hall while my 'client' was finishing up with a visit from friends. From the moment I dawned my camera gear it was obvious that the teenage sister of the client that I was to work with was really interested in photography.

When I entered the room it was to meet a very handsome teen and I went right to work as it was obvious that he was tired and this shoot needed to be quick and efficient. I loved hearing about his 'Make A Wish' experience and chatting while gathering shots of the two sibs and then the entire family. Once I had recorded all I needed with the sister I asked her if she would like to use one of my cameras and together we worked with her brother and parents for about 5 to 10 more minutes. At that point it was time to let the young man rest and I was out the door. As I packed my gear I let the sister see the images she had captured and it was obvious that she knew how to handle herself with a camera. I felt it was such a wonderful thing that she is the artist behind some of the images that will be part of her family's precious memories. I would love to have her become one of our interns but I think the drive from her home is just a little too far to be reasonable. I will hold this family in my heart as it truly was one of the most special half hours I have spent this year.

I share today images from Camp Agape that were captured by Bryce. Meet Robert and his sister Juliana. He will be on our website gallery soon. Bryce dropped off another disc for a new family this weekend and he said it was also a meaningful shoot for him as he was able to use his Spanish language skills along with his camera acumen.

We received the most wonderful thank you notes today from a new family who was photographed by Scott, the family was signing his praises and they seemed to love the handmade gifts, plus they kindly included a donation check. We also received a check from our longtime family doctor and an order for two tee shirts. We are really thankful for this generosity as funding has been a bit slower for the past month and of course we want to be strong and able to fulfill each request.

Last week Megan and I met with our incoming board President and Vice President, Kelly and Heather. They still need to be approved by a vote of the board at our September meeting, but in the mean time they are busy working on strategy to move us forward with some possible grants and new fundraising ideas. I am most grateful to have their talents on our side. Feeling blessed, in love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:12:00 +0000

I usually update on Monday, but McKenzie arrived Sunday evening for a little visit and I have been busy with her and her friends. Its quite wonderful to have both girls home and all their pets. We feel fortunate to have had this time together. Mac is a great chef and we had the pleasure of a number of dinners she created for us and for her good friends.

I am posting a couple of new releases. Kennedy opens the blog. She was photographed by board member and incoming vice president, Heather Baker. She is quite the cutie and its so sweet to see her blooming in the flower pot.

The second family features Kyle, a new adult to our legacy project who was photographed by Nancy. The images are lovely and we are so thankful for her help with our work.

We enjoyed the help from volunteer Ryan, he is off to college next week so yesterday was his last day. Our intern thru TIPS, Hannah is doing a grand job and will be writing the blog next week. Courtney was in last week working on gifts while Megan was away and we hope to welcome Faustine back soon. The help from these amazing young people is so appreciated.

Diane hung a small show for us at Moonphoto in Greenwood. Take a peak if you are in the area. The photos are from the beginning of our journey. We would like to hang a few more shows so let us know if you have any possible places that would be interested. We are eager to get the word out as we have had many requests and funding has been a bit slow.

Had a lovely chat with our supporter and photographer on the East Coast, Sarah Mattingly. Sarah works with me at the NTSAD Conference. She has been a real asset to our work and a rock for me personally.

Now time to get back to editing of the work for my biz from today's shoots. I am so thankful for the families that have allowed me to photograph for them as their children have grown up. Its an honor and pleasure to watch the young people move into their own and really start to make a difference in this world.

In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 20:26:00 +0000

Its a very busy time of year for me as its the height of wedding season, lots of my clients are doing their yearly photo sessions and Soul has had so many requests lately. We had a great time at Camp Agape again this year and worked with 17 families with a total of 19 Soul Children, their parents, sibs and assorted aunts, uncles and grandparents. It rained the entire time we were shooting but the photos really reflect so much happiness. Its a truly rewarding outing and we are honored to be a part of such a meaningful camp experience for the families. I am thankful for all the help from photographers Kurt and Bryce and office staff Megan and Hannah.

I share today photos of a new adult to our Soulumination Legacy Project. Michael called us himself to request a shoot with his two sons. It is rare that the patient is making the request so it was especially tender. He will soon be on the gallery so you can read his story there. He was recorded by Dawn and we all feel the photos are very special. We received a lovely thank you card from Michael the same day as the releases we sent. Again it is rare that we hear directly from the person we are working with so enjoy these photos and know that this kind man has touched our hearts.

We are enjoying new office help from my long time friend/client, Ryan who is a high school senior from Bellevue. He will be with us for a while this summer and its nice to have a male point of view for a while in the office. We are most thankful that he has offered his services.

We have received a few donations in the past few days in our mail. I am hoping it signals a return for some regular gifts as we are very busy and it has been a bit slow on the funding side of Soulumination.

One more gift arrived in memory of my father-in-law which of course touched me deeply. I am now the proud holder of Tom's stamp collection thanks to my sis-in-law Sally who chose them to give to me as they distributed more of Tom's possessions.

We are working hard and feeling like we are serving many. We are still looking for more places to show the Soulumination Collection, if you know of any business that would be willing to support in this way please let us know. We are happy to show any number of pieces from 1 to over 100 so we can be flexible as to where and when we we can show. Please also let us know if you have business or corporations that might be willing to consider supporting our efforts and we will send them a letter in the next months as we are hoping to expand our base of support.

I must get back to editing the wedding photos so I close as always, in love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:53:00 +0000

The thunder and rain this morning will hopefully give way to sun as the crew here at Soul is getting ready to drive to Gig Harbor for our day of photographing the families at Camp Agape. A number of the campers are returning so it will be wonderful to see friendly faces and meet those who will be attending for the first time. We have received support from our friends, Nanette and Ranjiv to underwrite our work with these children and their families who are fighting cancer. This will be my 4th visit and I will be joined by Kurt who has been with me the past two years and Bryce who joined us last year. We will each work with about 8 families and Megan and Hannah will handle all the organization and paper work. We are delighted to be staying for dinner this year as its the first day of camp and we don't want to miss any late arrivals. Shown here today is our pal Emily and her family at last year's camp.

This weekend I had the pleasure of working with two wonderful men at their wedding in Roche Harbor. It seemed like a magic day with the sun and loving families and friends surrounding them, but for me maybe the best part of it all was the kind and respectful attitude of all the vacationers who happened along during the ceremony. It brought tears to my eyes as I realized that when I started photographing weddings the atmosphere was so different and now I see the opening of hearts. I especially loved the two little girls in beach attire that came up to the grooms after the reception as we took a few more photos on a dock outside of the tent. The girls told the men that they thought the ceremony was just beautiful.

Keeping the families in Norway in my thoughts--- such unbelievable loss and grief. I hope they have many wonderful memories that will help them through this tragedy. Its hard to think that as possibly one prejudice starts to fade, other hatred rises to such horrific heights.

In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 23:37:00 +0000

This time of year it seems there are so many chores woven into the week on top of shoots for my biz and weddings that I don't have much time to be at my desk and write. So today just a quick update.

We received a most amazing letter from an RN at Seattle Children's following an end of life shoot by Kevin. "I am an RN in the NICU at Seattle Children’s Hospital. This week, I had the pleasure of working with Kevin while photographing an infant and her family in an end of life situation. I would first like to thank you and Soulumination for providing this incredible service to our little patients and their families. The memories that you have provided to this family will be cherished forever. I am in complete awe of your organization and the work you do . . . thank you to you and your volunteers for making this possible.

Secondly, I would like to thank Kevin for his outstanding photography and professionalism. He was extremely flexible and came to the hospital twice at the family’s request. He was professional but also exhibited a “silent compassion” to the family during this difficult time. His calm and gentle demeanor made his presence less obtrusive while the family grieved for their child. Thank you, thank you so much, Kevin, for the photography and memories that you provided to this
family. "

I am so thankful for the amazing talent that works free of charge for Soulumination. Megan currently is working on the gifts for a shoot done by Cami and the photos are really wonderful.

We are missing the presence of Faustine as she is not available till August to come intern with us. She added a wonderful touch and we are very thankful for her efforts. Hannah, our TIPS intern is doing a great job.

We are working toward some shows of the Soul Collection. Annie's here in Ballard will be hosting a show in November, one of our photographers is working toward a show at University Heights, next year we will have a show at Glazers, but if you have other ideas of places to show we would be interested in pursuing those options.

We have been blessed to have the support of my clients and friends and many people who have been touched by the work of Soulumination. With the change in the economic climate we have to be mindful of keeping ourselves fully funded so that we can fulfill all requests. We have a couple of fundraisers in the works and we are now receiving the confirmations from our artists for the sale in December. If you know of any possible grant opportunities or corporations who might be interested in backing the work of Soul please let us know.

Diane and Megan have been working to find a photographer for a family in a small town in Texas. When we receive out of state requests we have often had success in locating a photographer and making it work out. Our work in generally in the NW but we like to think of ways of helping if there is even a remote change of finding someone. I am proud of the resourcefulness and dedication.

Now back to work, in love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 13:57:00 +0000

I know that good leadership often means being calm and purposeful, organized and straightforward. I struggle with all that since I am very emotional, tend to be distracted by noises, 'shiny objects', and any notion that pops into my brain. I do have a clear sense of purpose however and thankfully I seem to be able to gather amazing talent around Soulumination to make it move forward. Where I am lacking it seems we are gifted with people who fill those voids. I can't thank Megan enough for her organizational skills, she truly will help Soul move forward stronger and better prepared for the scrutiny that comes when applying for grants. Diane is working to make the Artist Sale even better and I marvel at her sense of purpose and her ability to bring artists together without bruising egos. Our TIPS intern, Hannah, along with Faustine have added the youthful spirit that always refreshes.

I realized yesterday that keeping high spirits while dealing with grief is often hard for someone like myself. With each new face that is added to the Soul family my heart breaks a bit and its not easy to connect to lighter feelings. I took some time to quietly reflect on what helps me come back to center and that is often some little delight.

Wonderful things were presented to me shortly after I came to this realization. As always I need to trust that if we do the right thing then good things happen. First of all I saw an email from our contact at the new Swedish Hospital in Issaquah. This person described how beautiful and touching the photos were that had been on display. Next Megan told me that she and Hannah had delivered the photos and gifts to two families at Children's last week and that unlike the normal routine where the packages are left with the unit coordinator, they were asked to take the gifts directly to the families. They got to meet our newest teen who had been recorded by Christine and the family that Jodi had recently worked with. Megan beamed as she described the encounters and told me how touched both families were, plus it let Hannah see first hand how the work of Soul is so appreciated.

Finally this morning I awoke early and went to get this laptop that has allowed me to take Soul and my duties anywhere there is internet connection. I brought my thoughts of Soul and the laptop to bed waiting to start writing until Doug was awake and heading out to work. As I opened my email there was a letter from an RN at Children's who had been with Kevin on his recent end of life shoot. I share some of the words that truly gave me that renewed since of purpose:

"This week, I had the pleasure of working with Kevin while photographing an infant and her family in an end of life situation. I would first like to thank you and Soulumination for providing this incredible service to our little patients and their families. The memories that you have provided to this family will be cherished forever. I am in complete awe of your organization and the work you do . . . thank you to you and your volunteers for making this possible."

She goes on to write specifically about Kevin: "I would like to thank Kevin for his outstanding photography and professionalism. He was extremely flexible and came to the hospital twice at the family’s request. He was professional but also exhibited a “silent compassion” to the family during this difficult time. "

And so it goes, as I bend with the wind of all that comes before this little non-profit, sometimes I get blown into a realm of sorrow but then comes the reminder that this grief is not truly mine, but keeping the work flowing and heartfelt and touched by many caring hands is my responsibility and my honor. In love and peace, and with gratitude for the talent and generosity that have come together to make Soulumination possible, Lynette

Opening this missive with the first "angel baby", the beautiful, ever inspiring, Joey.

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 01:26:00 +0000

We are moving forward in our mission so beautifully and again today I have 2 more new faces to share, Cashius and Taylor. Cashius opens this post and he was photographed by Leo. As you can see he is breathtaking and the work by Leo records him beautifully.

Taylor was photographed by Dawn and she is obviously a beauty with style and flair. Dawn seemed to capture that spirit with ease. I couldn't be more proud of the talent that has come to work with the Soul families. Both Taylor and Cashius will soon be on featured in our gallery where you can read about each released child and adult.

We do not every expect our families to sign releases but we are so grateful when they do. We are experiencing the same slow economy as the rest of the country so it is great when we can share the photos to show that your donations to Soul are being used frugally and wisely. Please let us know if there is a business that you think might want to help back our work financially or if you know of any grants for which we might apply. Diane is working hard to make this years Artist Sale the best ever and I am working hard to create things that I think will sell easily but we can't cover the expenses from this one fundraiser. We hope that more donations trickle in from the newsletter but with all the requests we need to be sure we keep pace with funding. I have to say that even with wise words from my friend Mark Hamby, I did not understand all that it takes to fund and operate a nonprofit, but its certainly a journey that I could not even attempt with out hundreds of friends and supporters.

I had the privilege of viewing Sacha's most recent shoot. It was an end of life situation and I have to say she did an outstanding job. The little boy and his loving family are achingly sweet. They show love and sadness and joy all together in the most touching set of photos. My heart goes out to them and I am so thankful that they requested this second shoot.

Its only a few weeks till Camp Agape. Megan, Hannah, Kurt, Bryce and I will all be going to work with the families. We are so thankful to Nanette and Ranjiv for making this possible again this year. Their financial support means so much to us and to the families at the camp.

Well the sun is out, I need to ride that bike before today's shoots. I start with one of my former brides and her 3 great sons and then I get to photograph our own Sarah with husband Steve and the fetching twins. I am so excited to see all of them and to observe Ruby's crawling. Tanner will no doubt have some smiley faces to win me over even if he doesn't show the quick motor skills of his wiry sister.

I am honored to attend mini-retreat poetry meditations from time to time that are put together by the gifted poet, Elizabeth Austen. I have shoots on the days of the July retreats but thought I would share a poem she sent:

The Gift

I will not die an unlived life.
I will not live in fear
Of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
To allow my living to open me,
To make me less afraid,
More accessible
To loosen my heart
Until it becomes a wing,
A torch, a promise.
I choose to risk my significance;
To live
So that which came to me as seed
Goes to the next as blossom
And that which came to me as blossom
Goes on as fruit.

—Dawna Markova

Hoping to open myself in ways that allow growth and let my heart take wing. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 16:52:00 +0000

I don't normally post twice in one week but we had another stunning set of photos released and I wanted to share the work from Natalia's first shoot with Soul. We think this little guy, Daniel is a stunner and we are most thrilled with Natalia's work. In the near future his story will be up on our gallery.

We are welcoming my business admin woman, Kelly to the list of volunteer Soul photographers. She has been taking classes and from some recent work we know she is ready to take on the roll for Soul.

I was thinking that some of you might want to know ways that you can help. I am going to list things both big and small and hopefully you will find something that fits your skills, talents or ability:

** We need a volunteer bookkeeper that knows data entry and can work efficiently with Quicken. We are hoping for someone that can give time one day a week to keep the books up to date. It would be grand if the person lived nearby so that transportation isn't an issue.

** Greens for the December wreath making efforts. We are going to try to double our output so we will need more greens. If you are thinking of cutting back pesky but beautiful evergreens maybe consider doing that in late November so that we can put them to good use. If you know anyone with a tree farm, we would love their trimmings.

** If you have beads or buttons in a stash and aren't going to get to using them we would make them into garlands that we will sell at the Artist Sale.

** If you know of any grants that we might apply for or any corporations or even small businesses that might consider donating we would love to know about them. We are planning on drafting a letter that we would send to try to get our foot in the door for funding. We are busier than ever and we need to stay funded so that we can answer each and every request.

** We want to set up a number of smaller shows in the fall, not only to educate the area about what we are doing, but also it would help promote attendance at the Artist Sale and also show the corporations that we approach that we have a great mission. If you know of any possible places that would be willing to host a show please let us know.

**If you knit and would be willing to make a baby sweater, hat, scarves, gloves etc for the artist sale we have lots of beautiful yarn that was donated by Tea Cozy Yarn shop here in Ballard that you can use. Just call the office at 297-0885 to make a time to come pick up some yarn.

** If you know of an artist/craftsperson who would like to donate a few items to the artist Sale we would be delighted. We are not looking for artists to have a table as we are nearly booked for those but rather we would love to get an item from many artists who would be willing to let us sell their creation and let us keep 100% of the proceeds. I feel there are a lot of people out there that would like to help but don't want a table, so this is a way to help Soul without asking much of one person. For instance a great friend of mine from high school is making the coolest tiny felted pincushions and is giving them to us to sell for Soul. My brother donated a number of beautiful seed necklaces which feature a lovely seed from Australia.

** on a more personal level you all know I create a lot of items for the sale and I am one of the artists that donates 25% of my sales to Soul, my goal is to personally raise Soul more than $2K from my sales alone. I am still in need of colorful non-flattened aluminum drink cans (Hawaiian brands, V-8, Peace Tea, Fresca, Squirt, Arizona, imported beer are some of my favorites. I would love it if you would save them for me as I want to create 100 strands of the lights that were so popular last year, which means I need to have 7,000 pretty little pieces all cut out and ready to go. So if you would be so helpful I would love to reuse your cans. I am also looking for interesting bottle caps, would like more Full Sale ones in the blue and green colors, but truly any interesting graphic can be good. I do have plenty of Corona caps so those are the only ones that aren't needed. You can drop them by the studio and if no one is here they can be dropped over the fence in a garbage bag.

** Mark your calendars for these years Artist Sale and tell your friends. Its the first Saturday and Sunday in December, 3rd and 4th....tell your friends as its our biggest fundraiser and we are looking to have an even better sale this year. We will need the greens for the wreaths the Sunday or Monday before that, which is November 27/28.

** Your donations, large or small are always so appreciated.

I am off to another location wedding this weekend and will be so excited to have Lew along with me again. I feel so lucky to have her with me right now. Now I better get ready for the family shoot that is walking into my courtyard shortly. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 22:20:00 +0000

After one lovely wedding in Eastern Washington with daughter Lew as my assistant I am excited for another trip to Idaho on Saturday to work with yet another bride. Its so great that Lew can work with me sometimes as her style of photography has come to work so well with mine. What a journey this work with a camera has been, from the girls inspiring me to them working by my side.

I share today two new faces to Soul. Baby Alyizae who was photographed by Leo. Sadly her introduction is also our memorial to this stunning baby. She passed away in April.

I also share the handsome little guy, Mateo who was photographed by Kelly. His mom recently referred other families so we are honored to have worked with him and now be moving forward thru his mom. Both Alyizae and Mateo will soon be featured in our gallery section with bios giving information about their lives.

We are excited to have our TIPS intern, Hannah starting her work with us today as well as having Faustine continue her work with us that started a couple of weeks ago. These young women will help us in so very many ways.

I thank our friend Susan Tarling, mom of Soul angel, Brandon for the new handmade cards and envelopes. They are beautiful and will be used in many ways as we are always needing appropriate thank you cards. She slipped in a tin and some bottle caps that of course amuse me endlessly.

Please let us know if you have any ideas for places to show the beautiful photos of the Soul Collection. We are looking to mount a number of smaller exhibits starting in early fall to promote our mission. In love and peace, Lynette

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Johnson) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 15:44:00 +0000

Today I share another stunning new face to Soulumination, Loken who was photographed by Tara. She worked with this beautiful family a few months ago and we will be adding his photos and his bio to our gallery very soon.

It was a weekend of memory and legacy for me and my family this weekend. We are blessed that are losses can be celebrated as long lives that were filled with love. Saturday morning, Doug, Lew, Nando and I headed to Sequim to take my family out for Father's Day Brunch and to celebrate May/June birthdays. I wish my sister Patti could have been there. We are most thankful here at Soul for Patti's generosity and we recently received a donation in her honor. Also, my brother David could not attend as he lives in Australia, but he recently donated a number of beautiful seed necklaces for this years artist sale. We had planned on visiting my mom's grave after our meal but what I didn't know was that her headstone is now in place. It is stunning with beautiful flowers twining round her name and the words "Our Beloved". McKenzie and I had picked out the design but I didn't know that my sister in law had completed the order and the installation. It is perfect, plus the birds soaring overhead, the lambs next door and the view to my mom's crabbing grounds and the Olympic Mountains makes this resting place one that is surely fitting.

After Doug and my dad visited a friend of dad's in a rehab center while Lew and I shopped for food for my dad's main companion, one persnickity little cat we drove on to Port Townsend.

Yesterday we placed the ashes of my in-laws, Tom and Lainie Johnson into the water near the lighthouse at Fort Warden. Tom and Lainie were unique and well-loved individuals. They meant the world not only to their family but to many friends. They will be celebrated forever as people who made a difference in meaningful and sometime humorous ways. I am showing a few photos from yesterday and you will see Tom's little companion, Beau, the little poodle who was Tom's pride and joy at his retirement home. Lew had written some words of thanks to her grandfather which she shared with us. I was moved by her depth of feeling. Many of us shared funny stories of Tom and Lainie which made the occassion very special. The five children Tom and Lainie raised are all major players in my life and each and everyone has aided me in countless ways with Soulumination. Through both obituaries, Soulumination has received funds that have helped us so very much in moving forward with our work. Rest in peace Tom and Lainie.
In love, peace, and thankfulness, Lynette