Long Beach Neighborhood Breakfast

Once again, "We Love Long Beach" organized a free community breakfast for neighbors to come together and get to know each other. This time is was in the community of Wrigley in Long Beach.

As WLLB says, "We want to give you the opportunity, in a safe and friendly environment, to get to know your neighbors better. (There will be free pancakes, sausage, eggs, fruit, vegan delights, orange juice, and coffee.) Also face painting for kids and a live DJ to set the mood. Remember LB, community is the home that WE build together, valuing our differences and the common good, to make Long Beach a great place to live."

What a concept. Getting to know your neighbors. I am close with the neighbors on one side of my home but I don't know most of the people who live on my block. We all come and go but never get the chance to really know each other. This organization plans these events so you get out of your house and talk to the people who live in on your street or around the corner. Just think if all communities did this. Wouldn't it be great if we all came out of our houses and met the people that decided to live in the same area as us?

I was invited to photograph the event and it was a pleasure to do so. It was heartwarming to see everyone coming out together for a common goal...to get to know each other. If you live in Long Beach, please visit their site and become part of the community. I would also suggest you reach out to other organizations in your area that brings neighborhoods together.

Thank you "We Love Long Beach" for all of the hard work you do! This city is lucky to have you.

Here are some pictures I took of the event. To see more, click HERE

Long Beach Skate Park Opening

I was asked yesterday by "We Love Long Beach" to photograph the opening of the Michael K. Green Skate Park. It was a wonderful event! It was great to see all of the kids come together for a great cause in the community.

We Love Long Beach (WLLB) is a non-profit (501c3) community organization founded by Scott and Robin Jones in 2008. As fourth generation residents of the City of Long Beach, the sibling pair started the organization after extending a breakfast invitation to fifty of their neighbors. It was a free breakfast in the park with no other agenda than for neighbors to have the chance to get to know one another.

I've been taking a lot of Long Beach pictures and Scott and Robin reached out to me to photograph their participation in this event. I am so glad they did! I will continue this partnership with them so they can share images with each community in Long Beach with the goal of bringing all communities of the city together.

For the most part, I usually wander around and take pictures of things I find interesting. Like fences, birds, trees, open fields, the road, bird feet, etc. The shots I've taken of people are usually candid and they don't know I am taking their picture. I just capture a moment in time without them knowing.

This is the first time I set out to take action shots of kids and some posing for the camera. The energy at the event was so positive so it was easy for me to snap away, observing the kids anxiously awaiting the opening of the park. I hope I captured that with these photographs.

Thanks to "We Love Long Beach" for including me in the opening. I look forward to more events soon. Here are some pictures from the day. For more, click HERE