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Become an Operation Smile Studio Today. Change the Life of a Child Tomorrow!
Donate by December 15 to be listed on PPA Charities' Roll of Honor

PPA Charities has dramatically expanded its commitment to its charitable partner, Operation Smile, by asking all PPA-member studios to stand together with fellow members to save the smiles of children around the world by becoming an Operation Smile Studio.

For a donation of $240, you can become a 2010 Operation Smile Studio, which proclaims to your clients that you are part of an international commitment by PPA Charities to support the life-changing work of Operation Smile, the highly regarded Norfolk, Virginia-based charity that provides the gift of surgery to precious children suffering from facial deformities.

Your donation of $240 will make it possible for Operation Smile's volunteer medical professionals and support personnel to perform a single surgery that will transform the life of a deserving child born with a facial deformity, such as cleft lip or cleft palate.

Make your $240 donation (or more if you can) by December 15, 2009, and you'll be listed on PPA Charities' Roll of Honor as an Operation Smile Leadership Studio. (If you have already donated $240 or more through Family Portrait Month, you will be listed on the Leadership Roll.)

A message from Bert Behnke, Executive Director of PPA Charities:

Hey PPA Charities friends,

I leave for my mission with Operation Smile on November 3, and I'm putting out a challenge. Let's see how much we can raise between now and while I'm there through November 14. I'll be posting daily updates on PPA Charities Facebook Group, Twitter, and I'll even try some YouTube.

You know it only costs $240 to change a child's life, so let's change some lives! Go to www.ppacharities.com, hit the Donate Now button, and kick in what you can. $240, $24, $48, $96...let's do it in increments of $24 or $240 (and put a note in the message line about why you're kicking in).

I will personally e-mail all of you from Paraguay with some photos while I'm there, and I'll tell all PPA Charities friends how much we raised and who helped. For those of my friends who may try to hide from this appeal, I WILL FIND YOU!

Come on, let's change some lives!

Bert Behnke,
PPA Charities Executive Director

Dear PPA Member,

I believe that when you give from the heart, you get back more than you expect. I hope you've experienced something similar from the last couple of Vital Signs articles about working and marketing with charities. As we've shared some new ways to give, hopefully it has sparked new marketing ideas for your business, too.

This week, we've gathered even more marketing (and giving) ideas. You'll be able to take at look at how some PPA members combine their marketing efforts with local charities for a good payoff--financially as well as emotionally. Whether you make your charity marketing efforts an everyday part of your business or just for certain occasions, I think you'll get back more than you expect.

Have you experienced that, too? After last week's Vital Signs article, I received an e-mail from a PPA member who gives from his heart with his photography, helping military families. I'd love to hear what you do within your own community. Drop me a line at caprigliano@ppa.com.

Cheers,

Christel Aprigliano
Director of Member Value & Experience

Dear PPA Member,

I think that this is probably the most difficult introduction that I've ever written. I have so much to say, yet I can't seem to begin.

So, I'll begin this way. Heroes walk among us every day. Some you'll readily recognize: those in the Armed Forces (or who have served), firefighters, police officers. There are also heroes, however, who make a profound and lasting difference, but do so quietly. These are the invisible heroes, and they are everywhere--especially in the photographic industry.

Bravery comes in many forms. I'm in constant awe of not only those who put themselves in harm's way to protect others, but also those who willingly open their hearts to others, even when the circumstances cause their own hearts to break while they are helping.

In the midst of mourning, a group of heroes emerge to give families lasting images of their children who will never grow older. They are the photographers who volunteer for the Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep Foundation. This week's Vital Signs shares information about what they do--and how you can get involved.

These photographers are my heroes.

Cheers,
Christel Aprigliano
Director of Member Value & Experience

Dear PPA Member,

They line the hallways and stairwells of homes, in carefully placed groupings or ramrod single files. Images of children--showing the progression of time, special moments and, often, exuberant joy--are some of the most touching photographs. Whether formal or candid, you can almost hear someone say to these kids, right before the button is pushed: "Smile!"

What if the child couldn't smile?

This week's Vital Signs shares important information about a wonderful opportunity to bring new clients to your studio (or bring existing clients back). Hopefully, it also inspires you to reach out and look at what you can do on a larger scale. Whether you go through Operation Smile and PPA Charities or through your own personal choice of charity or organization, you can use your talent and give your own gift to the world.

The majority of our Vital Signs articles are about making sure that you stay successful in business--and much of the time, they are about staying financially successful. Sometimes, though, it's good to think about success from another point of view. Hopefully, this will inspire you...to inspire others.

Cheers,

Christel Aprigliano
Director of Member Value & Experience

On November 8-10, Jed and Vicki Taufer are hosting their workshop, "Selling the Experience" at Haven, their educational facility in Morton, Illinois. This class which normally goes for $1499, will be offered for only $1000, with $500 being given to PPA Charities!

Registration and full information is available at www.vgalleryhaven.com. Class size is limited, so don't miss this opportunity to grow your business while helping PPA Charities.

From Corvallis, Oregon, comes a new, "green" way to help a charity:

With purchase of Urban Forest book, tree lovers support urban forests, and are entered to win a $1200, framed, signed, limited edition photograph.

During the month of April, in celebration of Arbor Day (April 24), award-winning photographer David Paul Bayles offers an Arbor Day Giveaway of a $1200 signed, framed limited edition photograph from his book, Urban Forest, Images of Trees in a Human Landscape.  Anyone who purchases the book before May 1 is entered into a drawing to win the photograph. A portion of all proceeds will be donated to the non-profit organization TreeLink to plant trees and support urban forests.

Urban Forest, published by Sierra Club in 2003, was acclaimed by numerous respected publications including Los Angeles Times, Sierra, Nature Conservancy and Audubon Magazine. Christian Science Monitor selected it as one of the top seven photography books of 2003.

Renowned photographer John Sexton wrote: "David Bayles' photographs in Urban Forest speak eloquently with a quiet intensity. The book explores the concept that the natural world exists not only in the wilderness, but in our everyday urban surroundings. These thoughtful photographs cause the viewer to pause and consider the delicate balance between human activity and the natural environment."

David Paul Bayles, environmentalist and former logger, has been a professional photographer for 25 years, with photographs in exhibits and collections in the U.S. and Europe. His photographs explore the relationship between people and nature, particularly our connection to trees. In the preface to Urban Forest, he emphasizes the importance of trees in our towns and cities. "Tree-lined streets and garden spaces have been woven into a living fabric that shades and soothes our souls. In a real biological sense, trees are our home. That is the deeper meaning of the urban forest."

Bayles is donating a portion of the sales of Urban Forest and the Arbor Day Giveaway to TreeLink, a non-profit organization dedicated to urban forests across the United States and Canada. TreeLink serves tree professionals such as arborists and urban planners and helps community groups raise funds for their own tree planting projects through TreeLink's funding branch, TreeBank, supporting education and grass roots efforts to restore, plant and care for urban forests.

To be entered in the drawing to win the photograph for the Arbor Day Giveaway, a signed copy of Urban Forest or a signed copy of Urban Forest paired with a special edition print from the book, may be purchased by midnight April 30, 2009. Read more about the book and the Arbor Day special, view selected photographs and place an order at http//:www.urbanforestbook.com

Permission to re-print:
Journalists, newsletter publishers, bloggers and others: You are welcome to reprint this article and send it out to your lists. Please include the contact info for ordering and note that the chance to enter the drawing for the free framed photograph ends April 30, 2009.

Need an image? jpeg images are available by contacting David at david@davidpaulbayles.com

Photos courtesy of David Paul Bayles

Last October, nearly 350 Professional Photographers of America (PPA) members in 41 states and the District of Columbia joined PPA Charities' Family Portrait Month, an annual, national fundraising effort to benefit Operation Smile--raising the total donation to more than $150,000.

On January 10, during PPA's Imaging USA convention in Phoenix, Arizona, PPA Charities presented a check for $50,635.21 to Operation Smile at Alice Cooperstown. The check was presented to Beth Marshall, Operation Smile Senior Executive Advisor for Latin America and Caribbean, and Carmit Bachar, Operation Smile Celebrity Smile Ambassador. Bachar, an American singer and dancer, is best known as a member of the pop group, The Pussycat Dolls. In addition to serving as a Smile Ambassador, Bachar--born with a cleft lip and cleft palate--participated on an Operation Smile medical mission to Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

Colorado photographer Sandy Puc' (Expressions by Sandy Puc') has designed a marketing campaign to promote studios nationwide, raise funds for charity, inspire photographers, and help photography studios bring in money during the lean months of the first quarter. Participating studios receive a complete marketing campaign with marketing tips.

The National Charity Model Search will select "America's Cutest Kid." Participating photographers will submit portraits of children, ages 18 months to 14 years, to determine the city winner. City winners are determined by online votes. Each vote is $1, and proceeds from votes benefit Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS.org). Photography and model industry experts will determine the contest's national winner.

The national model winner receives a $5,000 US Savings Bond and a Canon PowerShot G10 digital camera. The photographer who submits the winning portraits earns national recognition and up to $10,000 in prizes including a Canon EOS 5D Mark II kit with EF24-105 f4.0 L IS.

For more information, visit www.sandypucmodels.com.

Take a look at the smiles that are created when you participate in Family Portrait Month. By participating in this charity event, you help PPA Charities raise funds for Operation Smile, allowing them to continue their work with children around the world.

Since 1982, more than 115,000 children and young adults have been treated by thousands of volunteers worldwide and thousands of healthcare professionals have been trained globally. For as little as $240 Operation Smile can change a child's life by giving the gift of a surgery. Revenue in excess of surgical costs is invested into our sustainability programs, empowering our partner countries to treat more children on their own and making your investment go even farther. In as little as 45 minutes, one cleft lip surgery can change a child's life forever.

For More information, or to participate, visit www.PPACharities.com.

Slideshow prepared by Angie Weedon for PPA Charities.