Finding treasures

Looking through old photographs for a friends memorial service is a solemn task but it can also be punctuated by great moments of discovery. I was digging through an old hard drive from 2004 the other day searching for any old photographs of Panda from camp that I would be able to share with her family.

I found some random photographs of her with her cabin mates waiting to go on the cruise and posing after a classic skit. Suddenly the memory of the "Fear Factor" skit came rushing back to me. Panda is pictured second from the far right (below) and she had just shoved her head into a bowl of chocolate pudding that was supposed to be some other gross thing. Thankfully I can't remember what exactly, only that the kids in the audience were howling with laughter.

That's Panda, second from the right in orange with pudding all over her face.

As I continued to look for pictures a thought came to me. I wondered if there was a chance that out of the 120 kids at camp that week if perhaps she was one of the dozen or so that signed up for a "Free Choice" photography activity that I led on the last day of camp. I found the folder and there it was...jackpot. I had completely forgotten that young pre-Panda Kathryn had been one of my portrait subjects.

I was thrilled to find these. Panda was 13 and already doing camp at full speed, making friends right and left, cracking people up and completely getting into the spirit of camp whenever and however she could. My last great find the other day was this shot of Panda and Piglet at the carnival. The colors of her hair and make-up were a fitting match for her vibrant personality.

Who knew at that time what a big part of camp she would become and how many peoples' lives she would end up touching, at camp and everywhere she went.


These photos are a treasure, and so was she.