Photographs are memories, snapshots in time. They remind us of friendships, love, and relationships. But what happens when we lose those closest to us? The photographs end, and we are left with only memories we’ve made throughout our lives together.

“Some people come into our lives, leave footprints
on our hearts and we’re never the same.” ─Flavia Weedn

As photographers, we have the ability to capture these precious memories. The mission of The Jeremy Project is to photograph those who are facing life’s challenges, to create memories of loved ones, and to celebrate life. This not-for-profit organizations was founded ten years ago by a nurse and mother, Darcie Deneal, who lost her teenage son in a car accident in 1998. Darcie’s understanding that, “no family ever has enough photos of a child they lose,” is what inspired her to begin this important work.

Darcie works with two other photographers in the St. Louis area, Martha LaFata and Debbie Windus, to fulfill the requests The Jeremy Project receives. Together, they work with four area hospitals photographing children with special needs: still born babies, babies who may never leave the hospital, and children whose condition prevents them from going to a portrait studio. They also create portraits for families who may have a parent with failing health. Together, they have photographed approximately 90 families during 2011.

I asked photographer, Martha LaFata to share some of her thoughts and experiences with us. Martha, the mother of three daughters, was widowed many years ago, thus giving her an understanding of loss. But she believes, “The loss of a child must be one of the hardest things to bear.” While photographing these delicate circumstances, she takes extra care to be as unobtrusive as possible.

Each session has its own challenges and we never know exactly what to expect. I try to be very understanding of the family. We do our best to hide the equipment of the hospital room with a simple black backdrop. We do a great deal of retouching in Photoshop and try to minimize the tubes, etc. without changing the reality of the situation. Black and white photographs have a timeless quality and also make the retouching of difficult skin tones much easier. I am always touched to see how much the mothers and fathers love their babies, no matter their condition. It is this love and tenderness that I try to capture. Within that context, we make the most beautiful images we can and provide memories for those families, particularly in the case of still born babies. Even if these images aren’t looked at often, the families know they have them, they are a validation that their baby existed.

During her husband’s illness many years ago, Martha took photos of him with their daughters. She also had a family portrait taken to preserve their memory of the time they had together as a family.

I know how precious these photos are. I also know that the kindness and support of others helped get me through. Working with The Jeremy Project makes me more appreciative of my family, and gives me tremendous respect for the nurses and caregivers who deal with illness and loss on a daily basis. I am touched particularly when photographing older children with life threatening illnesses. One session that stands out to me was when I went to the home of a young girl named Victoria and did a portrait of her and her family. She was suffering from cancer and, while it was clear that her parents were very stressed and concerned, she had this wonderful glow and spirit and smiled throughout the entire session. I think of her courage and strength.

In early 2011, The Jeremy Project held an exhibit at a local art gallery in St. Louis to raise awareness for their work, and to celebrate ten years of capturing memories for families.

Everyone was so supportive and it was great to pull together images from all the years, and remember all the stories that went with the images. The images we showed were ones that would be easy for people to see.

Martha, Darcie, and Debbie don’t often hear from the families they help, but they know the families appreciate the work that goes into creating the photographs of their precious children.

When I work on the images, I find it very satisfying to be able to produce a beautiful photograph under difficult conditions. Just knowing that I can give something to these families is gratifying.

With local sponsors, funding from hospitals, grants and donations, they are able to provide these families with a disc of these memories and several 5”x7” prints to treasure forever.

Martha has since remarried, and enjoys the support of her husband, Paul, and her daughters. She does some work as a portrait photographer, but says, “The work with The Jeremy Project is far more rewarding, and is my main focus.”

We want to thank Martha for taking the time to share her work with us.