Givin' Away Money - Wheeeee!

FREE MONEY--sort of. Tonight I'm thrilled and honored to help give away a total of $20,000 to a variety of charities who provide services in the fight against breast cancer.

My dear friend Karen started a non-profit organization called "Focused on a Cure" (yep, you guessed it, Karen is a photographer, hence the name) a couple of years ago and I've been able to contribute in a small way by helping to photograph their major fund raising event each year. It's always great fun, and raises a lot of money for the cause.

This year I was asked to serve on the committee that reviews the requests for funding by various organizations. What an eye-opener! I have never been involved in the world of non-profit grants, and it's much more involved than I imagined. Tough but rewarding, through this process the committee decided how to distribute the $20,000 that Focused on a Cure has raised. Tonight the recipients will gather for a small reception and receive their checks.

One thing I'm sure of, it's going to be a wonderful evening.

If you know a cancer survivor, or an active fighter...give him or her a hug. Special people, that's what they are, very special indeed.

Photographs Help Detect Childhood Cancer

OK, I know that's a scary title. And I normally like to be upbeat and positive and keep things on the lighter side. But sometimes you gotta mix a little salt with your sugar I guess, and sometimes it's important to pass along information.

I was re-reading a copy of Professional Photographer magazine today, and found an article I had completely forgotten. It was from January of 2006, and back then I wasn't blogging or didn't have an email newsletter, so I didn't share this information with the masses. As soon as I read it today, I knew this information needed to be shared.

According to the article, photographs can reveal the presence of a form of childhood eye cancer called retinoblastoma. When the flash unit on a camera is too close to the lens, red eye often results. "But with a relatively small group of children, the flash sets off a white-eye reflex, and the pupil of one or both of the subject's eyes appear to bw white in the photograph. The effect may appear over the entire pupil, or show up as white specks."

"White-eye reflex is the primary indicator of retinoblastoma tumors in children. About 350 new cases a year are discovered in the United States, almost all of them in children under age 5."

"If you do detect a white-eye reflex in a photograph of a child, it's imperative to tell the parents something might be amiss, and advise them to see an ophthalmologist-not an optometrist-as soon as possible, with copies of your photographs in hand."

Early detection translates into saved vision and lives. Tell your friends. And pay attention to your snapshots.