Our first ROHP session was everything

we had hoped for and so much more.

On November 4, we had our first Ray of Hope Portraits session with Kinsley and her family. It was such a dark and blustery day, but from the moment Kinsley walked in the door with her family, it was pure sunshine.

She started by putting on her beautiful Barbie dress, followed by some glam time by one of our wonderful volunteers. Although she was a bit nervous at first, she warmed up as we played with confetti balloons, danced with bubbles, and threw confetti in the air. She loved her makeup kit so much that she carried it around with her and continually put more makeup on herself and the crew members.

Halfway through, Kinsley changed into her personalized Kinsley t-shirt, and we changed the set to a backdrop of hand-painted, inspiring words put together by two amazing volunteers. Kinsley painted some artwork on canvases and danced to “Baby Shark” with her brother.

It was such a special morning with her family. Her mom has responded with the kindest words, writing, "Words can't even begin to express how thankful we are for this opportunity that was given to Kinsley! My heart needed this right now, and I believe she did as well. The smile on her face during all of this melted my whole heart. I've never seen her so comfortable with strangers before, and you guys made her feel so comfortable and special. I can't thank you enough. You guys are doing an amazing thing, and I can't wait to see all of the other families that get this opportunity!"

Kinsley stole our hearts that day. She cried when it was time for her to leave, and the rest of the team held back tears for most of the morning.  

Special thanks to…

We couldn’t do these sessions without the help of volunteers.

A big thank you to Sarah Christian, Allison Foxworthy, Carol Thompson, and Jorden Cage who assisted in some or all of set up, tear down, glam squad, and hand-painting the inspiring words backdrop.

Thank you to Jessica Healow, founder of Hood and Pine Boutique, an online custom-made t-shirt and sweatshirt store, who donated the custom-made t-shirt for Kinsley. Give her Instagram and Etsy Shop a follow!

Thank you to Paige Winsor, founder of Winsome Parcel, for donating your luxurious bath and body products to the moms of our ROHP children. What a gift!

And thank you, Hillary Steffen at Threaded Joy, for creating beautiful, personalized items for Kinsley in her ROHP goody bag.