Featured Family Stories

12
Jun

A Vintage Portrait of My Mother at Twelve Years Old

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All of the events that happened and choices that were made to get me to where I am today amaze me. This is a photograph of my mom at 12. As her daughter, I can see all the weight of her future in this image. This was before JFK was assassinated, before she protested Vietnam, […]

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10
Jun

My Grandpa’s Photos Prove That Roadtrips Run in the Family

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I just can’t help dreaming of road trips; it must be in my blood! That’s my Grandma Jeanne and my two aunts heading out west in the late 40’s. My grandpa Aug took tons of pictures, a need which I also seem to have inherited. The thing that strikes me most when I look at […]

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08
Jun

Getting to Know My Mother’s Love Through Old Photos

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My mom was diagnosed and hospitalized with schizophrenia when I was very young. She remained hospitalized until passing away 10 years ago. I didn’t know her as well as I would have liked, well not in the traditional sense, but I knew her well through stories shared in my family. The few childhood memories I […]

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04
Jun

My Grandmother Had a Twinkle in Her Eye, Even in this Old Photo

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This week was my MeMe’s birthday. Here she is, young and beautiful, with her sister. MeMe passed away in 2001 at the early age of 61, just a couple of weeks after she was diagnosed with Leukemia. I’m a photographer, so photos are a big part of my life. I don’t have many pictures of […]

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31
May

A Beautiful Family Photo Reminds Us to Dance for Decades

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My Great Aunt Chita in London, circa 1931. She was an aerobatic dancer and performed on tour through Europe with her husband Carlos. Together they danced for decades and eventually opened their own studio in San Diego. She lived such a bold, adventurous life well into her 90’s. But that manicure though! ~shared by @caseydevin1986 […]

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30
May

Taking Flight With A Vintage Photo: My Pop the Pilot

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My Pop Jon on his first solo-flight, Hemet, CA airstrip. For a short period of time he was the youngest solo pilot in America — I believe he was 14, which makes this 1968 or so. He went on to become a career pilot with Skywest airlines (just retired this past December). I’ve always been […]

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29
May

One Old Photograph of my Parents Proves that time stands still sometimes

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Here are my parents during their honeymoon in the Albanian Alps around 1989. The strange thing is that the picture is in black and white because color photos weren’t used until after the fall of the communist regime in the 90s. Until then, TV, photos and movies were in black and white. I was always […]

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28
May

My Father’s Old Photos Make Me Feel Close to Him Again

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This is my favorite photo of my mom and me. So glad I found it when digging through hundreds of old negatives I found at my parents’ house. It was made by my father in a hotel room somewhere. At first glance, it appears to be a mother-daughter image, but I think it expresses more […]

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27
May

Memories Matter and our old photos are a ticket to the past

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Cheers to summer! Go make memories with those you love. This is a photo of my husband, his brother and two cousins around 1968 or 1969 in the back garden of his uncle’s home. When we met, my husband told me all about this amazing garden. He shared how much he loved it and the […]

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20
May

A Larger-than-life Love Revealed in a Tiny Old Photograph

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My dad carried this picture of my mom in his wallet (circa 1939) for all of their 61 years together. Mom gave it to me when he died in 1999. It’s sepia-toned and about 1×1.50 inches in size. I love this picture of my mom, who will be 98 this year. She always wore hats […]

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