THOUGHTS OF HOPE, ENCOURAGEMENT, LOVE, AND SUPPORT
shared by the famlies who have been photographed in Williamsburg, Virginia

My hope from this pandemic is everyone realizes how special each day is and how interactions with people impact and help us in our daily lives. I look forward to giving my students high fives and hugging my coworkers something that was taken for granted before now. Every smile or wave on my outside endeavors gives me hope that most people are good and want the best for each other. My hope also is that my [high school] seniors know how special they are and better times await them and they now know to appreciate every moment and never take for granted the simple things in life.

Relationships, love and kindness bind us together even when we have to stay apart. Together we will all make it though this uncertain period and in the process gain humility, resilience, gratitude, hope, deeper love and understanding of one another. Be gentle and kind to others as we navigate this path together but apart! 💜

"We need to extend a massive amount of grace to people because we don’t know what people are going through. There are people on both ends of the spectrum on how they’re dealing with this. There is a lot of shame and hate out there right now because of this. No matter what side you are on, both deserve grace. It’s a perfect time to say to yourself we have an opportunity to be light and shine in this uncertainty.”
- Rachel Cruz

Love the ones you’re with.

In this time of hunkering down my heart had been overjoyed to see this community come together to support others. I’ve seen more posts in social media groups on how to support food banks, non profits, local businesses and more. It has restored my belief that the good people far outweigh the selfish. Neighbors are coming together, communities are coming together and we are seeing the human race thrive despite our circumstances. As awful as this epidemic is, I’m not sure we would be seeing all this without the enormous “pause” button that has been hit. I am proud to be a part of this community. I am thankful for my neighbors. I know this too shall pass and after the dust settles, I pray we continue in our efforts to love and support one another well. A strengthened bond.

“We are the antidote to so much isolation. Developing eyes to see loneliness and hands to reach out is one of our greatest gifts to the world.”
- Jen Hatmaker

This is a terrible time in our world, but with faith, love, compassion, sympathy, empathy, and kindness we will get through this. This too shall pass.

What a wonderful day today is! Today in America families are learning to be together, to eat together, to stay together and, in some cases for the first time, to pray together. Seize this opportunity. It may never happen again. Our prayer is that we will look back on this and realize that our families are now closer, our neighbors have become friends and people we can depend on, and our lives are more precious and not taken for granted.

This isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It is about learning how to dance in the rain.

We shall pass this way just once. Any good that I can do or any kindness I can show to another...let me do it now. This is the first time in history we can save the human race by lying in front of the TV. Please let’s not screw this up.

“We are at war with a virus and healthcare troops and first responders are on the front line fighting it every day let’s join the fight by staying home.”
- Matthew McConaughey

Think positive and be positive. Whatever tomorrow brings, we will get through it.

There is an indescribable beauty in watching people across the world unite while physically distancing and making great sacrifices. Though there is also much pain, the beauty confirms my faith and reignites hope for the days to come.

Cherish today. Time is fleeting. One day we will wish that we were all together again under one roof, just like today.

We will not put any extra energy into what covid 19 may be taking from us. We choose to celebrate what it has given us - more time with family, a reminder of what is valuable to us and a renewed sense of community.

Love always wins, be faithful.

What Henry and I want our boys to remember about this time period, is not the news reports of the rising death toll or the unstable stock market; not the fact that their activities and our events were canceled. Although all of those things happened, we want Jacob and Joshua to remember our nature walks, chasing bubbles and the sound of laughter while we played Jenga together as a family. We want them to remember that when the whole world literally shut down, they were still able to connect with their teachers and church friends. But most of all, we want our boys to be thankful that they can remember how our lives changed during the year 2020, because they were blessed to have lived through it. Our goal is to help them focus on the silver lining, in spite of our circumstances; when our nation needed to most, we came together.

There is always light at the end of every tunnel. ❤️ Williamsburg!

It’s easy to only feel stress and anxiety right now. This project helps my family think of others by giving back, reminds us that we are pretty lucky to spend this time together and grateful we get to have a photo from a talented photographer. Thank you.

In the mist of everything going on around us we have found the little things like an small act of kindness at the store, dinner together, walking together the most uplifting kind of moments, we have learned as a family that we can make a difference and we look forward to see the “new normal” come back bc we know so much will change forever but we will always remember families came together at this time like not ever before and that gave us strength.

When there is so much worry and such tragedy happening in our own community and worldwide, it was a such a great opportunity to have a window of excitement and neighborhood spirit. Also, what a great way to capture a time in our life that we spent as a family keeping each other safe and making so many family memories. Thank you so much!!

In this difficult time, we remain strong, resilient, and creative. This pandemic will test our discipline, promote compassion, inspire altruism and support our love for one another. As humans and as Americans, I know we will persevere.

“Every weird and wonderful way we are living our lives right now will be emblazoned in our memories. It’s all currently changing the DNA of our life story. There’s some magic in that.”
- Jill Krause

“Friends are like the pillars on your porch - sometimes they hold you up, sometimes they lean on you, and sometimes it’s enough just to know they are standing by.”
- John Sarris

Sending love, hope, and peace out to all.

Lets pray for those who are vulnerable and those already affected from virus. Lets pray God have mercy on all and stops the world suffering

Thank you so very much for bringing joy, organization, and families together during this crazy time. With so much uncertainty in the world right now, it is so precious to see someone giving so much to others through their art and concern for others. Keep up your incredible work. You are making a difference in so many lives

“When this is over, may we never again take for granted — a handshake with a stranger, full shelves at the store, conversations with neighbors, a crowded theatre, Friday night out, the taste of communion, a routine checkup, the school rush each morning, coffee with a friend, the stadium roaring, each deep breath, life itself. When this ends, may we find that we have become more like the people we wanted to be, we were called to be, we hoped to be, and may we stay that way — better for each other because of the worst.”
- Laura Kelly Fanucci

Lets pray for those who are vulnerable and those already affected from virus. Lets pray God have mercy on all and stops the world suffering

“Whoever loves much, performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is done well.”
- Vincent Van Gogh

Darkness cannot derive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that.

We pray for an end to the Corona virus pandemic. We pray for the elderly, compromised and vulnerable. We pray for so many families who have lost jobs and loved ones. Please keep our son in your prayers, who has a compromised immune system, and for all those who are at risk.

No hand shakes; just hand washing.No hugs; just heartache as mounting milestones are missed. Social distancing, yes, but social caring, too. When this pandemic passes, I feel hopeful that kindness will prevail, they we will remember our connectedness, that we are all in this together. We need each other.

You never see a rainbow unless you’ve gone through the rain.

Love is the greatest and most powerful emotion to get us through our uncertain times!

I know that during these hard times, we are all struggling, and it is so great to see glimmers of “light” as you are creating with this project. I know that, as hard as all of this is, if we can all keep it up, we’ll get through it - together (although apart)!

A photograph. A moment. A memory. These are a trinity of promises for memories yet to come. The sun that set to diffuse golden light across a landscape will rise tomorrow. We will gather again as friends. We will travel to enrich our eyes, engage other cultures, and gain our experience. And when we look back, we will be surprised by joy brought to us in small gestures by friends and neighbors through these dark days, like a candle lit in a storm. One does not harvest Sunday from seeds planted Saturday. One must water and weed and wait. What we do today is not an end but a beginning. Children close by. Being home to create a home. Giving to others who need more than we. Our effort today will ensure a better world tomorrow. In the seasons to come, we will see the growth that we planted and nurtured: family, friendships, faith, hope, love. Thank you, Deb Schwedhelm, for bringing us together, despite our separation. Thank you for reminding us to think of others. Thank you for uniting us as a society, as friends, as a family and creating a keepsake for us to cherish always. A photograph. A moment. A memory.

Person by Person. Family by Family. Community by Community. Region by Region. Country by Country. One step at a time, we will get through this together and become a Healthy World once again!”

In the midst of turmoil and difficulty, God always has a plan. Although many only see the darkness in this time, we have already seen the light of the Lord shine through in people helping people, families reconnecting, and some getting rest that was probably far overdue. What will get us through this won’t be distancing, stimulus packages or vaccines, it will be love: both from our Lord and toward others in ways that glorifies Him.

At 10:30 am, after riding her bike in our driveway, Caroline got to play tag with her Daddy...on a Tuesday. I’m trying to hold onto these sweet moments that would never have happened without a quarantine. The silver lining is we get to be with our family on a Tuesday morning ❤️ I keep thinking that right now I would be missing this or looking forward to the weekend so I could experience this if I was at work. We are the luckiest...even on quarantine!

This too shall pass” and it will make us stronger as a country, neighbor, friend, family. Always look for the silver lining. ❤️

“We must accept finite disappointment but never lose infinite hope.”
- Martin Luther King,Jr.

”May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.”
- Nelson Mandela

Often when you think you're at the end of something, you're at the beginning of something else. When things seem bleak, look to the good and welcome new opportunities you might not have considered.

It is so important for us to remember that we are all experiencing these strange strange days. And your project (if you want to call it that...I’d call it a gift!) is the perfect way to do this. However, more importantly in sharing your gift, you have allowed us to reach out and help others. To think of others first is truly a beautiful gift you have and are sharing with us!

Staying positive doesn’t mean you have to be happy all the time. It means that even on hard days you know that there are better ones coming.

All things being equal, our family would have been apart this week with 3/4 of us in NYC touring college campuses and 1/4 holding down the fort and attending college courses in Williamsburg. All things aren’t equal though. NYC is under siege and 4/4 of us will be together on our porch, arms around each other, extra grateful for our family, health, and the opportunity to have this moment in time memorialized in a photograph. May this picture be a reminder of the blessings that are found when things aren’t equal... and we’re together instead of apart.

As soon as this is over, we will be better people! Nothing good comes easy. Stay safe and up!

This has been a scary, challenging time but it has been amazing to see our community come together like never before: people rallying around small businesses, offering help to the most at-risk groups, and doing small acts of kindness to cheer others. While many people could be thinking of themselves, they are really looking out for others. It brings a whole new meaning to #WMBGkind!

While we find ourselves isolated, we can look and go outside to see spring around us - a time of hope and newness. Prior to this shutdown, we were hustling and bustling from school, work and activities. Now despite our isolation from others, we are making connections with neighbors we didn’t see before due to all the running here and there. We are strengthening our family time. We are learning flexibility, getting to those to-do lists and hobbies we had let go by the wayside. We are exercising - something hard to fit in before. We might just come out of this healthier!

Pray that all mankind looks for the good in this time of despair. Rather than bemoan the fact that we are quarantined, let's try to spend quality time with our family, catch up with friends, make that phone call you have been putting off or write a letter for someone to excitedly retrieve from their mailbox! Share your strengths and passions through volunteer. Maybe this is a donation or maybe you write a get-well note to an unknown patient in the hospital to lift their spirits. Rather than critique our leaders hope and pray for strength in their leadership. Be proud and thankful for those men and women in the medical field who are braving this storm care for their patients and for each other. Thank your neighbor for checking on you. Check on your neighbor. These times are undoubtedly straining and scary but looking for and finding goodwill help ease your pain. Find the good wherever you can. Look for the good. Create the good. Carry the good into our future. We are all in this together.

As we all live this weird new normal of a collective solidarity- nationally, globally, and in our little communities, Love is everywhere. That we can collectively be patient, respectful, and willing to make the many little (and big) sacrifices that are part of this pause, That is Love. In the Zoom school classes, family chats, and virtual happy hours with friends, I see Love.

As we enter week 4 of our stay at home order, I realize we’ve been given the time to do things we always put off doing—cleaning those closets, the attic, the garage. And as we do that, we come across memories of times spent with family, during holidays and sporting events, or looking at years of mementos from our lives over the years. It gives us a chance to reflect and appreciate the lives we’ve lived and what awaits us when we emerge from this cocoon of isolation. We will appreciate our family, friends, and freedoms, and hopefully, be much kinder and understanding. That is what I hope to gain from this experience. And my wish for everyone is to be a much more appreciative society.

I actually feel guilty about this but honestly…I have found such great joy in being with my family during “stay at home.” Our lives are so busy that “family time” is often something I have to purposely fit in. Now, every moment is filled with our voices and it is beautiful.

This time has forced my family to pause, actually to stop. We were all frightened at first but then something amazing happened. We spend quality time together every single day. We play, we listen, we laugh, we cry, we love. We look forward to the day when life goes back to ’normal’ but in the meantime, we will embrace each moment of our time together (the good, the bad, the ugly).

This porch photo project is amazing! It is small acts of kindness that will help us make it through this difficult and strange time. Thank you for touching so many, and giving us something to look forward to! My hope for this time of isolation is that we reconnect with our family, truly understand the need to help those less fortunate than ourselves, and emerge stronger once this is past us. Blessings to you and yours!

It’s so easy to get discouraged day-to-day because of the uncertainty of when life will get back to normal but then a neighbor goes to the trouble of setting up a bear display every day that brings joy, or a child whizzes by on a bike with a dinosaur helmet, a neighborhood records how many loops they do so they can equal their loops to cans of food to donate, & numerous other actions that are happening during this time and you breathe a little easier because you remember that the certainty we can count on, is that there will always be good. ❤️

I hope my kids remember our daily dinners together. I am thankful for the time and resources to prepare meals for them. I hope my husband knows how much I appreciate him making lunch for me during my nth Zoom call of the day. I am thankful for his continued support before, during and after this crisis. I hope my parents STAY HOME, stay safe and stay well. I am thankful my brother and his family are close to them to provide help and stability. I hope the world learns how to heal itself during this temporary reset. I am thankful for healthcare workers, essential personnel, and everyone who have put the lives of others ahead of their own. I hope this portrait makes us smile in the future when we return to the new normal, and we laugh at pink hair, shaved heads and extra pounds. I am thankful for having such a talented, creative and caring friend in you, Deb.

"Sometimes when you’re in a dark place you think you’ve been buried, but actually you’ve been planted.”
- Christine Caine

Not all storms come to disrupt your path, some come to clear your path.

In hard times she had learned three things...
She was stronger than she ever imagined,
Jesus was closer than she ever realized, and she was loved more than she ever knew.

We have three young kids, a young marriage, and one kid with disabilities. We have a parent with mental health issues. We are learning so much from this time- most specifically, how we CAN rely on each other as a family and how we WILL mess up and we WILL remain strong and work together to fix it. We have learned that we love each other and I've learned that watching my kids together is more amazing than anything I've ever seen. As parents, we've been shocked at how our children love BIG and WELL with each other. We've also learned how much they really do repeat what they see and it's been a goal to work on improving what we show and teach them. This challenge is REALL. But God's got us, and we've got each other.

"The only difference between a student and a master is that the master has tried and failed many more times than the student has even tried.”
- Author Unknown

Rest easy as best you can with those you love and remember generously those who suffer more greatly than you. All will be well and we shall meet again soon.

"Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver."
- Barbara De Angelis

We have never been more proud to live in the neighborhood of First Colony. There's always been a great sense of community here, but it's during these challenging times when it really shines. We've had an outpouring of outreach to assist neighbors and our community. So many have reached out to neighbors to offer assistance and support. We're truly in this together, and will come out the other side even stronger.

Although these are scary and uncertain times I like to think of them as a period of growth and change. Sometimes change is hard, and sometimes people won't change unless there is no other option. I am hoping that this is the start of a great wave of change for the world. When we realize how close we are really are to each other, how interconnected each person is to the larger picture. How what we do affects every person around us. It's a time to learn selflessness, charity, and quiet. Although we don't know what the end of this tunnel looks like, my hope is that this time will change the world for the better for my daughter.

These are strange times, indeed. Right now, we are in a place we never imagined for ourselves or others. COVID-19 has put immense pressure and stress on every family in our community, across our country, and around the world. Unbelievably, many families around the world are faced with terrible loss and grief, while many others must deal with personal financial uncertainty or even put themselves at risk to help and care for others. As this chaos swirls around us, and our daily routines have been upended, we as a family have tried to find some small ways to foster gratitude and thankfulness for what we do have right here, right now. Sometimes it’s as small as taking a moment to appreciate the beauty in nature on a daily walk. Other times, it’s just a moment of fleeting joy in a loved one’s smile. These times have shown us that there are many things, both big and small, that we should be thankful for. In the rush of our daily lives before COVID-19, we often did not see this. When our current reality starts to feel too surreal and overwhelming, and the panic of all of these new uncertainties sets in, we have learned as a family to try to manage our fear and emotions by truly living one day at a time. As cliche as this may sound, it has helped us. And when one day at a time itself feels too overwhelming, we shift to making it through just one hour at a time. Certainly, we as individuals and as a family have been and will continue to be changed by all of this. It is our hope, however, that this global tragedy can change how we as a community, state, and nation address inequities and that it will force us to honestly search for solutions that provide for the people with the least amongst us.

Even when we are all being told to isolate, I’m seeing so many wonderful things happen in the midst of these tumultuous times. I’m seeing neighbors dining together in cul de sacs six feet apart. I’m seeing neighbors giving away possessions to help others. Neighbors are offering to go to stores and run errands. You are offering to photograph lots of families. There is so much kindness being brought about in the midst of fear, and I pray for this to continue throughout the world once we are on the other side of this. Thanks for bringing more light into the world in a dark time!

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
John 15:13

These days of working from home while parenting two very little ones are so challenging, and we miss our out of state family tremendously. We are finding hope and inspiration in watching how adaptable and optimistic the kids (ages 1 & 4) are. They are observant little people who find joy in exploring the explosion of springtime in our little yard oasis. April is such a beautiful time in Williamsburg and we feel lucky to be able to enjoy it up close at this new slow pace.

We have been using this time to reconnect as a family. To slow down and breathe. We have been finding other ways to reach out and connect with friends and family. Our kids have thought of tangible ways to help others. They made craft and goodie bags for their friends and have been writing letters to uplift them. Helping elderly neighbors get food and supplies when needed. We encourage everyone to find out of the box ways to help others while still practicing social distancing. It has been wonderful to see everyone pitch in to help others, Americans taking care of each other!

It’s not what we have in life but who we have in our life that matters. Choose Joy!

Pray that all mankind looks for the good in this time of despair. Rather than bemoan the fact that we are quarantined, let's try to spend quality time with our family, catch up with friends, make that phone call you have been putting off or write a letter for someone to excitedly retrieve from their mailbox! Share your strengths and passions through volunteer. Maybe this is a donation or maybe you write a get well note to an unknown patient in the hospital to lift their spirits. Rather than critique our leaders hope and pray for strength in their leadership. Be proud and thankful for those men and women in the medical field who are braving this storm care for their patients and for each other. Thank your neighbor for checking on you. Check on your neighbor. These times are undoubtedly straining and scary but looking for and finding good will help ease your pain. Find the good wherever you can. Look for the good. Create the good. Carry the good into our future. We are all in this together.

It seems fitting that as we figure out what "normal" looks like in a pandemic, we are able to experience spring. We have just been through winter, the season where nature stops and hunkers down and we all endure the cold, the dark, the dreary. Now, we are seeing the natural world coming back to life--the daffodils have given way to tulips, the white cherry blossoms have passed the torch to the pink ones, the azaleas and dogwoods are building to their peaks, and each day we can see more and more green covering the tree branches. Let's not forget that after this winter of our journey through the unknown of a terrible virus, our spring is waiting for us. Our families, our schools, our businesses, our neighborhoods, and our societies will all emerge to bloom and grow again. Let the beauty of nature's spring around us remind us that our spring will come, too!

We have a print in our kids playroom that says, “one smile can change someone’s entire day” — and that has really encouraged me during this time.

You only have to restart something you give up on. That was a workout quote but it seems to fit now. If we stick through this we will get through this.

Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. James 1:19

Thank you for this opportunity! Even though we all have horrible haircuts, we are very thankful to have this chance to capture our family unit. This is our first time having family pictures done!

In this difficult and challenging time of covid-19 I am focusing on the blessings coming out of it. Families are spending more time together, taking life slowly, focusing on what is important. Kindness is being shown by many. Pollution has lessened. And in what feels like an impossible situation, I remember God can heal this and He can end this. Luke 37 reminds us "for nothing is impossible for God". Blessings