AARP at the Armed Forces Retirement Home for Valentines Day

A few select pictures created for AARP Benefits, 1-800-Flowers.com and Cheryl’s Cookies for Valentines Day. Donated cookies and roses were passed to all the residents at the home bringing them sweet and beautiful things for the holiday.

Tea Party - Better Late Than Never

During a massive cleaning of my office, I rediscovered some negatives from a self-assigned shoot to photograph a Tea Party rally in the summer of 2009 (I think) at a race track in Bay Town, Texas. Wanting to try something different, I rented a Hasselblad medium format camera and made the trek out to the rally. I seem to be attracted to the overt patriotism: flags and people dressed up as figures from American history, as well as a sense of the paranoia of a dystopian, socialist future that seems to drive much of the conversation at these events. Also to note: I shot a couple of different film stocks. One is chrome and the other was an expired batch of porta left over from grad school.[gallery]

Adoption, thousands of trees and a war hero

Saturday was a busy day. Check it out! 

black
black

C. B. Black, 66, a former letter carrier and U. S. Army Sergeant received a purple heart and bronze star Nov. 21, 2009 in Houston at the central branch of the Houston Public Library. Black had lost the medals nearly 40 years ago in a fire at his father's house where his medals were stored.

TREES
TREES

Rony Kraft hauls away two sweet gum trees as the Trees for Galveston Project gave away 2,000 trees Nov. 21, 2009 in Galveston, TX. The project is helping to replace the 30,000 tree lost from Hurricane Ike. Each resident received two trees per a person. About 500 trees were given away in the first hour.

 

TREES
TREES

Volunteer Pat Chianetta, center, holds a sapling as the Trees for Galveston Project gave away 2,000 trees Nov. 21, 2009 in Galveston, TX. The project is helping to replace the 30,000 tree lost from Hurricane Ike. Each resident received two trees per a person. About 500 trees were given away in the first hour.

 

adopt
adopt

From left, Shannon Vincent holds Spencer, 1, who he and his wife Heather, holding Sarah, 2, are about to adopt as Galveston county Child Protective Services holds a mass adoption day Nov. 21, 2009 at Moody Gardens in Galveston, TX. The Vincent's are swearing in before the short five-minute process takes place. CPS is celebrating National Adoption Month and bringing awareness to the many children in the child welfare system who need and deserve permanent, loving homes.  In the greater Houston area, including Galveston County there are more than 1,700 CPS children waiting for an adoptive home.  Most of these children are older, part of a sibling group or have special needs.  They are in CPS custody due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment by their own biological families.

 

adopt
adopt

Shannon Vincent holds Spencer, 1, who he and his wife Heather, are about to adopt.

 

adopt
adopt

Donna Venti holds Ruthie Venti, 1, moments after she was adopted by Donna and her husband Stephen.

Dusk in the reflection

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________weather_feechUniversity of Houston freshman Daniel Rojas attempts to throw a frisbee from a handstand to sophomore Edwin Castaneda as they play during a break from classes Oct. 27, 2009 in Houston, TX. They were both on an Ultimate Frisbee team, but didn't have time for practice due to their class load. The former Klein Forest high school students usually play once or twice a week at U of H. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

almedaEvon Washington has been a framer for 27 years at Heritage Art Gallery, located on Almeda. Oct. 6, 2009 in Houston, TX.

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organist91-year-old Milo W. Ford, who was recently honored for playing the organ for 70 years at the First United Methodist Church in Dayton, TX, sits before his organ, Oct. 23, 2009 at the church. He also would manually ring the daily chimes each day at 5 pm when he was 13 years old. He only stopped while attending Rice University (and would return home to play many times) and when serving in WWII for a few years and three years that he was hospitalized with TB. He also worked as janitor at the local bank as a boy...and grew up to be the bank president and serve three years as the town's mayor.

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WingsHoustonA C-17A flies past a grounded C130 airplane at Wings Over Houston Airshow, Oct. 31, 2009 in Houston, TX at Ellington Airfield.

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WingsHoustonMike Daly, with the commemorative Air Force, looks at a P-47 as it is started at Wings Over Houston Airshow, Oct. 31, 2009 in Houston, TX at Ellington Airfield. Daly said the plane is a predecessor to the A-10 tank killer, and was used in WWII during the invasion of Normandy. His uniform is from WWII-era 82nd Airborne. Daly is retired from the Air Force.

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WingsHoustonBea Uhl, standing inside a B-24 bomber, looks out on a F-18 Hornet performing maneuvers at Wings Over Houston Airshow, Oct. 31, 2009 in Houston, TX at Ellington Airfield.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________LoneStarRallyAaron Phillips dressed as "A.J. 3000 as Pimp Lucius" at the Lone Star Rally, Oct. 31, 2009 in Galveston, TX in the Strand.