In 2022, I embarked on my very first campaign "40 Over 40", where I photographed 40 women over 40 in a course of a little over a year.

I thought I was looking to empower women, but instead I was the one forever changed by their stories of overcoming adversity and hope.

I was hooked.

In that time, I realized that my personal journey is tied in to my work as an artist.

This is round 2 of my campaign series, discovering my purpose and helping uncover yours.

My personal journey as an artist is the filter with which I photograph my clients. It is not about reinventing yourself. It’s about reflecting on what your story already is.

My work strives to uncover, discover, reclaim the person you are truly meant to be.

This is me at my last event in 2023 with my mom and brother, who have both passed away. Photographs and stories we create will be treasured by our loved ones.

It has been about 30 years since I have been professionally photographed probably because of my modeling experience when I was younger and it kind of detoured me from getting back into it just because of the harshness of the business itself... yeah. It's taken me 30 years and I'm really excited. I'm glad I did this and I'm ready to do it again.

As women, as girls, we are taught to be what other people are expecting of us. We are taught to show up with a certain look or show up with a certain set of behaviors or show up with a certain intelligence or lack of intelligence and it's our job to be seen as the things they expect and the hardest thing about becoming your own woman is learning how to be who you are and show up in that in a really authentic way. That has been my challenge for this experience is to let myself be seen in a way that reflects who I am genuinely and authentically without the guard that happens when I can just be what someone else thinks that they should see.

I’m excited to be a part of showing that women over 40 are strong, beautiful, vibrant, and truly alive.

As a breast cancer survivor, mom, widow, and new grandmother, I’ve lived a lot of life so far, and look forward to all that remains to be experienced for me into the future.

I’ve always been the person behind the camera, capturing life experiences… this would flip my standard script and give me the opportunity to see myself as I am.

I received a diagnosis of Parkinson’s a few short months ago. You’d think I’d be sinking into despair at the thought, but I am actually more energized and determined to proceed with my life of promise and possibilities! I am more alive now than I’ve been in years, attuned to my inner self and desires! No, this is a time to celebrate and continue dreaming!! It is not a time to give up! This is why I want to participate in this project, to show, as C.S. Lewis said, “You are never too old to set another goal or dream a new dream.

We don't think of ourselves enough to just have a portrait of us for ourselves. The main reason I'm having a portrait taken is that right now I feel healthy and I want to have a picture of me for my family for my memorial. I was just at a friend's funeral and it was a lovely picture of her - a portrait of her - and I wanted something similar for myself.

When Marj showed me the back of the camera and I saw some of the shots that she had taken of me I got really emotional because I haven't seen myself that way in what seems like forever. I don't have time to do the beautiful hair and makeup that they did and pose in the way that she helped me pose so I got really emotional. Time right now isn't something that i have much of and it felt really special and it's something I'll be able to show my kids down the road and they'll be able to remember me that way also.

Sometimes as we age and go through different seasons in our life... we become a mom, we become a wife... sometimes we lose our own selves and I think it's really important to hang on to the girl inside and own who you are authentically through all the seasons of youf life.