FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 1, 2023
Springfield and St. Louis, Missouri: As part of On Angels’ Wings (OAW) SNAP program (Supporting our Network of Area Photographers) — which is funding by a grant from the Hospice Foundation of the Ozarks — the organization honors photographers each year through it’s Very Important Photographer (VIP) award. VIPs are those volunteers that go above-and-beyond in their dedication to the organization and the families OAW serves. The VIPs who did so in 2022 were awarded in February of 2023; they are as follows:
Rebekkah LaWall
Simply You Photography
Springfield, MO
Rebekkah is dedicated to providing the families OAW serves with a priceless gift. She did the most sessions in the organization’s Springfield chapter in 2022 — far surpassing the minimum requirement — driven to never leave a family without pictures. From birth loss to NICU to journey sessions, Rebekkah is a ray of sunshine in a dark place to the families she serves.
Photo by Sonder Collective
Melissa McCraw-Hummer
MMH Photography
Studio Share 417
Springfield, MO
Melissa came in strong in 2022 as well, with the second most sessions for the Springfield area, also over double the minimum requirement for the year. She too is dedicated to making sure no family goes without and OAW has seen countless instances over the last couple of years where she has made time to provide a session to a family in need where there seemed to be no time available.
Jessica Mulcahy
JS Photography STL
St. Louis, MO
Jessica smashed 10 years of records for sessions done by a single photographer in one year, doing over 60 sessions in 2022, a number few volunteers will ever come close to in their entire time serving the organization (except maybe for Jessica in 2023)! With her help, we were able to launch a program to serve the children and families in the St. Louis Children’s Heart Center, with Jessica providing sessions there twice a month, typically for 3 to 6 kids each visit. In November 2022, she arranged for Santa mini sessions in the Heart Center, doing 17 sessions there in one day! This is on top of her single-handedly running Santa mini sessions for the rest of our St. Louis recipients (as she has for the past 3 years) at her own studio.
Ariel Ferman
Artistry By Ariel Photography
St. Louis, MO
Ariel is young, but that doesn’t stop her from being completely dedicated to On Angels’ Wings! At one point in 2022, she did 5 sessions for the organization in the span of less than a month! OAW has seen this commitment to serve families in need with her talents consistently for nearly 3 years. For Ariel, 2022 proved to be one of the most difficult years of her life personally. Despite hardship, she remained open, receptive, and loyal. OAW is grateful for her heart to serve.
Jessica Glunt
Glass Elephant Photography
St. Louis, MO
Jessica Glunt has gone above and beyond the call to do images for families in need (far surpassing the minimum required number of sessions last year). Also in 2022, Jessica dedicated much of her personal time to help develop processes for OAW, including the development of a system for the organization’s photographer mentorship program so it could finally launch (after years of trying) in January 2023. Additionally, Jessica helped the Executive Director plan a last minute Wave of Light event in St. Louis in honor of pregnancy and infant loss awareness month, and then led the sweet and intimate event as a representative of OAW all on her own. She is helping to make the organization’s St. Louis chapter a much more functional area of service when the board can’t always be the feet on the ground there.
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On Angels’ Wings is a Missouri non-profit organization that seeks to improve the mental health and wellness of families with medically fragile children (regardless of race, ethnicity, class status or orientation) through therapeutic photography and grief recovery services, free of charge. oawphoto.org
Hospice Foundation of the Ozarks is a Missouri non-profit organization that awards grants to organizations which are involved in end-of-life services and education. The Foundation supports hospice, palliative care, advance directives, grief and bereavement services, educational programs and other activities which nurture informed personal choices and respect for diverse cultural identities in the end-of-life experience. hospiceozarks.org