Posts Tagged ‘Pittsburgh portrait photography’

A lot of you have seen me tweet and post on Facebook about #BRESMA. BRESMA is a orphanage in Haiti run by Jamie and Ali McMurtie, two local girls from Pittsburgh. Their life, and the life of more than 150 orphans in their care, was transformed drastically by the Earthquake. Their houses were destroyed, their food and water stocks were low, and after nearly three days, they were out completely. Through cries of help through social media, (and lots of reaching out for connections with Twitter), Ali and more than 50 children are safely in Pittsburgh!

bresma (Photo: Laura Petrilla)

Here is a statement from the family that Virginia from Thats Church just posted.

A statement from the McMutrie family:

“We are so thrilled to be able to share with you that Ali McMutrie and the children from the Brebis de Saint-Michel de L’Attalaye (BRESMA) orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, arrived safely at Pittsburgh International Airport a short while ago.  Jamie McMutrie will be following behind shortly.  We will release a full statement as soon as we are able.  In the meantime, thank you for your support during this trying time, and please continue to keep Haiti in your thoughts.”

God is good! While I dont know the girls personally, I do know their sister in law, and a number of their friends. And yet I still feel useless and helpless right now.

That is just a small victory in this massive war that is going on to save lives and rebuild a Nation.

So what do I see as the next step? I see massive amounts of medical support needed for a long time to come. Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti is another local organization that is doing great work on the ground in Haiti. They have doctors working nearly around the clock, and according to friends that are close to the hospital, things like morphine are running VERY short, and they are in much need of supplies.

Please consider them for your donation and keep them and everyone working in Haiti in your prayers.

To learn more, follow the hospital director Ian Rawson on the hospitals blog.

Ok, enough for today, time to get back to finishing two parent wedding albums so I can get these books into the hands of my anxious clients here in Pittsburgh.


I love Christmas time. Not only because if the real meaning, and celebration, but because I get to spend time with my whole family, and its not just dinner. It’s a chance for us to catch up, and this year, since my parents have the far for sale, a chance to grab fun photos around the farm, and log that part of the legacy in the books.

Family photos like this can be captured anywhere you would like. If there is a place that is important to you and your family, or those special in your life (i.e. friends, girlfriends, boyfriends), give me call.

Call me between now and January 22 to schedule your family portraits and receive a 50% Discount off session prices (normally $150-$300)

Phone: 724-875-5941
Email: danspeicherphoto@gmail.com

So we started with a family photo, and then I got some of my mom and sisters together, and my mom and dad.

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The three girls that never come in and out of my life :) and aren’t afraid to torture me when a new one enters.

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I love these pictures of my parents! It shows their personalities so well, and it captures nearly two decades of winters on the farm.

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Ellie and Krista live in D.C. now, so it was nice to grab a few portraits of them together on the farm.

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Krista and dad used to spend mornings rowing on Donegal Lake, but since it was most likely frozen, this was a nice fun tribute.

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Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

I just shot my first wedding of 2010 with David Burke on January 1st. It was beautiful, and a great way to kick off this great year. More on that this week…

Well the Steelers football season is over. My dreams of seeing them in the playoffs have been crushed, and no one is to blame but them. Over, done, wam bam thank you ma’am. To even hope of getting to the playoffs after loosing five, count them 1,2,3,4,5 games is just ludicrous but being from Pittsburgh our hopes were that the stars would align and we would be in the playoffs… Things started strong with a win over Miami, but with Baltimore winning their game our hopes died.

So here is to a football season gone bye. And hoping for a better season next year. For all you that still have teams in the race, enjoy. See you at the Superbowl party!

Till next time. Blessings