Come One, Come All to the Carnival! It was a beautiful night under the stars on the Wix Lounge SF balcony. All were gathered to support and raise money for buildOn. There were carnival games, carnival themed food from Straw restaurant, and plenty of incredible raffle prizes from SF area vendors and beyond! Here’s what went down:

My incredible cousin, Theo Brassard, is the proud owner and master dog lover/handler/behaviorist of Refined K9. In July she asked the studio to tag along at her Yelp advertising shoot. A bunch of her wonderful clients were there with their incredible dogs – all of whom Refined K9 has helped master their aggressive tendencies. It was unfathomable to think that many of these dogs could not be within 5 feet of other dogs before they worked with Theo and her crew. Here’s what I saw that day:

I truly believe in affordable photography for all. This has led me into fantastic opportunities to work with all sorts of incredible people and most recently, wonderful non-profits. buildOn is a national non-profit that “breaks the cycle of poverty, illiteracy, and low expectations through service and education.” They pair domestic community service with international education based services and programs, such as building schools in countries like Malawi and Nicaragua. I had the opportunity to attend two domestic San Francisco Bay area service projects to document the great work the buildOn students are accomplishing in our area. Let’s take a look!

buildOn volunteers at MOCHA:

The Museum of Children’s Art is a space in Oakland for little ones and their families to get creative and messy while creating amazing art. The buildOn student volunteers helped these youngsters and their families fully enjoy the space, whether it was reading to them, building with blocks, playing with playdough, or painting. Everyone had a blast.

buildOn volunteers at the Black Cuisine Festival:

This festival is hosted every year in the Bayview/Hunter’s Point neighborhood to benefit the Dr. George W. Davis Multipurpose Senior Center. The Center provides much needed services to area seniors, which allows these folks to receive in-home care and meals. Without the Center, these seniors would loose these services and most would end up in hospitals. The festival celebrates soul food and the culture of the Bayview/Hunter’s Point. buildOn students were on hand to man the children’s play zone. Bouncy houses, cotton candy, and carni-style games complete with raffle tickets for fun prizes – I had to restrain myself from jumping in!