Give More : Hate Less

Last night I randomly decided to go up to Northside Tavern -- my favorite blues joint in town. When leaving this cat was out on the sidewalk singing the blues. When he saw me he walked over, singing the whole time, and made me a new fan. He sounded pretty good I thought, so of course I was gonna give him a few dollars regardless, but after talking to him a bit, well, the dude is a veteran of the first Gulf War. He moved here from his home state of Mississippi for the medical care he's got to have due to his health issues. His name is Jerry Spraggins and he is actually homeless right now, so after he finished singing, and I finished shooting with with my iPhone, I told him to get in my truck with me, took him to a local bunk house, and paid for his stay there last night.

My point: I wish I could make a living just photographing people like Jerry that are down on their luck in life. Photograph them in such a way that it will inspire others to give more and hate less. As a commercial photographer my mission is to sell a product, service, or personality through my work. As a human being my mission is to help people see life differently through it, and that includes inspiring others to have a heart when it comes to helping others that are less fortunate than they are in one way or another.

There are lots of ways to help others out -- you just gotta make the effort to do it.


Edit: Here is a video I found on YouTube of Jerry performing: