We All Have a Story, Mary Beth: Rochester, NY Portrait Project

Mary Beth, an art teacher at Klem South Elementary, and I met after the call went out for interested participants in my personal photography project.  She was curious to know what it was all about, and truly does believe that we all have a story.  

Originally, my photography project was to have been about the stories of individuals from the Webster Central School District. Upon meeting Mary Beth, I knew my idea needed to expand. The love of her family was her focus.  Family, is her everything.  Her story began upon meeting her wonderful husband, Dino.  They have two adorable girls, Natalie and Melina and welcomed me warmly into their home to try to figure out what Mary Beth's story might be.

Always active and involved in athletic pursuits, Mary Beth shared that there was a time she was unable to be active and enjoy interests such as skiing.  She and her husband had loved skiing together and with the girls and she really missed it.  We decided that a family portrait in the snow might be just the right image to convey that family-time togetherness.  Combining that and her love of skiing sounded perfect.  The only problem was waiting for the right weather to match everyone's schedules.  I think we got it right.

In her words:

“Snowflakes are one of God’s most fragile creations, but look what they can do when they stick together.”

Every day is a lovely adventure when gratitude leads the way.  Becoming parents completely changed us. The intoxicating love that enraptured our every cell when each of our daughters was born still takes our breath away.  In a way, we've been preparing for becoming parents our whole lives and yet each day we feel a little underprepared. Facing each day with enormous amounts of gratitude for each other, for our health, and for our adventures together makes the practice of parenting feel less vulnerable.  This life is every dream we never knew we had, and these two girls completely light up our world. When we stick together just like snowflakes, love and gratitude lead the way, and we know we can handle this parenting adventure with grace.

Mary Beth Vasalos

Teacher

Klem South Elementary

To find out more about this project, please click Here and make sure to view the WHEC-TV 10 Story

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