ASILOMAR STATE PARK

I’m long overdue for revisiting work I never shared, especially essays which highlight the important work of fellow nature nerds at a state park that got me through COVID and the early years of single motherhood. My mom introduced me to the magic of weekly restoration work when I was a kid, at which point I realized how much I love volunteering with retired science teachers. I don’t rank natural beauty according to how dramatic the views are, but Asilomar State Park is one of the more incredible parks I’ve had the pleasure to live near and I hope to continue adding to this gallery as a tribute to it. For now, this shows a glimpse into a morning we spent clearing invasives and prepping endangered seedlings to transplant. I’ll add more as I shift though what I’ve documented.

Spay Panama

Don't get me wrong.. I love shooting weddings. I’m always honored to witness vows and moments reserved for that day alone but if I had to choose whose story to tell with my camera, it would be those who can't afford to pay me for it. 

I was fortunate to spend part of December working with an incredible non-profit, Spay Panama, that travels through the country as a pop-up vet clinic to rural areas that may otherwise go years without vet care. Offering low-cost sterilization to pet owners in hopes of curbing the number of animals that would likely starve, the organization is due to a generous retired canal worker, Patricia Chan. 

This shows part of my time spent with the crew after a tired bus filled with medical equipment, veterinarians and volunteer techs carried us through the mountains to a schoolyard in El Valle. Between street dogs we rounded up ourselves and pets brought in by village residents, over 450 animals were fixed in just two days.

I used to volunteer as an O.R. assistant at a spay clinic in Wisconsin with lofty dreams of becoming a vet, so it was great lending a hand doing similar work when I wasn't documenting it. If you would also like to help, please follow the links to donate. This year Spay Panama celebrated 100,000 operations and have started averaging 20,000 surgeries per year. They've won numerous awards for transparency and utilize resources efficiently.

CLICK HERE to make a tax deductible donation to Spay Panama

CLICK HERE to "Like" their Facebook page

George & Friends

“I can fix anything but a broken heart.”

— George Fabian

George will be the first to tell you that he tries hard not to work hard. Or at least these days. Cleverly disguised as a cobbler's workshop, Park Street Shoe Repair is more of a clubhouse for his charming friends and adoring customers than what the neon sign implies. But leather work didn't always come second to socializing at 609 S. Park.

I met George for the first time through a desperate attempt to get my sandals patched just hours before I left for Nicaragua. "I can fix anything but a broken heart," he said when I walked in. "When do you need it done by?... You need it right now don't you?" He fixed them on the spot, but like most customers, it's not the speedy service that keeps me coming back. It's more that even though I feel like I'm crashing a fellas poker night when I walk in the door, there's enough witty banter and crows feet in the room to make anyone feel at home.

The shop takes me back to Harland's Citgo station in Mt. Vernon where I used to get bottles of Ting as an eight year old kid. My Grandparents lived nearby and the garage had it's own version of this scene as I'm sure service stations around the country did. Instead of shoe polish it smelled like motor oil but the vibe was the same, a conduit to the past where the same folks do the same thing in the same space for decades. It's just refreshing to find a corner of the city that feels protected from constant change. That said, I got a different answer to my plea for shoe help when I stopped in last.. 

"Jentri, I'll tell you what you can do with that pair. Walk out the door. Take a right and walk two blocks down to the lake. Throw them in. Leave them there."

Willard & Pearl

I used to grow food for the architecture school at Taliesin. There were several perks to offset the guilt I felt for my Carbon-heavy commute, one being a small town fix I got every time I made the drive. Mazomanie, a sleepy town between Madison and Spring Green got most of my attention, especially after I met who I now consider my pseudo grandparents. With my actual grand-folks long gone, I may have been a tad excited when I spotted Willard on the sidewalk, who not only agreed to let me take his portrait, but introduced me to his lovely wife, Pearl. This resulted in several years of friendship, one I know I shamelessly forced upon them despite how much they shower me with praise, homemade wine and garden treasures.

“I can remember when houses in Mazomanie were selling for 3- and $400... It’s very strange how things have changed in the years that I’ve been alive.”

— Willard Schumann

Ginnie & Lynne

These beautiful women care for each other the way we wish all mothers and daughters could. One in her late 80's and one in her early 60's, they entertained me in their east side home one afternoon, giggling while they shared family stories and hysterical examples of how they're every bit as flexible as they were as young girls. 

Check back for the audio component as they share more about Ginnie's life, from being raised by a French mother to her days performing in Baraboo, WI.