I began working with Vashta several years ago at a restaurant here in town. She was all young and fresh out of high school, and I was all...well...younger than I am now :) For all of you restaurant/bar employees out there, those shifts get looooong. And sometimes boooooring. This girl made those kinds of shifts fun :) We laughed
crazy hard A LOT and griped about customers and coworkers together
**insert PSA: Servers and bartenders complain....sometimes. About customers and coworkers mostly.....sometimes. Take no offense. It's more of a pastime to make the shifts go quickly and seem more entertaining. As long as you're nice, courteous, and respectful, you need not worry! Oh, and please leave a nice tip. These are truly some of the hardest workers you will ever meet. Well, some of them!** After a few years, I left the restaurant industry to raise my babies and pursue my long term goals, Vashta had a baby of her own, and she moved back up to Pennsylvania to raise her daughter.
In March of this year, Vashta had a seizure. While in the hospital, the doctors discovered a large tumor in her brain. Ten days later, they were performing brain surgery, where they removed most of the tumor. Less than a month later, the pathology came back as being
Anaplastic Astrocytoma Grade III brain cancer. She began localized radiation treatments to the brain, as well as oral chemotherapy Monday - Friday for six weeks. Once finished with that round, she was able to sneak in a visit to Louisville with her family.
This is where I come in :)
A few years ago, before Vashta moved away and before I was doing photography full time, I did a very quick session with her and her daughter one afternoon.
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| Circa 2011 |
When I heard she was coming back to Louisville for a week, I knew I needed to get both of them back in front of my camera. And better yet, her fiance' flew into town right before the session. So what I thought was just going to be mommy-daughter portraits turned into family portraits :) Perfect.
If there is anyone in the world who could fight this, it's this woman. Her spirit, her attitude, her drive, and her motivation will get her through this ailment. No doubt in my mind. Fight like a girl, Momma. Fight like a girl.
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| I've always joked that this could be my baby. But seriously, you guys. She could totally be my baby!! |
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| Oh, her laugh!! I am laughing right now just thinking about it!!! |
*I found out at the end of the session that these two have set their wedding date for this October! They haven't had any engagement pictures done yet, so we had to snap a few (despite his hatred for modeling!).
Update:
Vashta's tumor has not responded to the standard treatment and has now come back full force. She is in need of a new treatment that very few places offer. Please show Vashta and her sweet little family your support and
donate to her treatment, if at all possible.
