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The more than 1,100 students who attended the 2009 edition of the Texas School in May contributed over $17,000 to Operation Smile! This unprecedented donation was made possible by class instructors who showed an Operation Smile video to their classes and encouraged their students to buy as many smiles as they could, challenging other classes to exceed their totals. The clear and convincing winner was the class taught by Jed and Vicki Taufer, whose members donated an incredible $7,300 through individual contributions, an auction of merchandize and a donation of private classes offered by the instructors. At the urging of Texas School Director Don Dickson, an impromptu auction of donated vendor items on vendor night netted $1,900.  Best of all, many of the instructors and students vowed to come up with ways to increase donations next year. Sounds like a great new Texas School tradition has been born, and with a little luck it will spread to other affiliate schools.

Thanks to Texas School students, instructors and vendors, at least 70 children will receive new smiles from Operation Smile. Texas School Rocks!!

A special thanks to Jed and Vicki Taufer for their fund-raising creativity on behalf of Operation Smile!

In 2005, when we heard about PPA Charities' Family Portrait Month, we knew we wanted to contribute. But October is our busiest month of the year(and typically most lucrative), so we did not have time in our schedule to hold a special photo event or offer special sittings to raise funds. So we decided to donate a percentage of our gross sales for the month of October. This total was $3,500. It was amazing to know how much we could help children around the world just by sacrificing some of our profits during our biggest month.

In 2006, we really wanted to blow that 2005 number out of the water, so we decided to run a year-round promotion to benefit Operation Smile. We started to offer "Smile Cards," which are 5x7 folded blank notecards with the client's choice of image printed on the front. On the back, we print the Operation Smile, PPA Charities, and our studio logos. 

We sell these in packs of 10, and they cost the client just $15.00 for the pack. This is a great value compared to our regular press-printed card line for our customers, and since we print them in-house, we can print them whenever the orders come in. One hundred percent of the price of these cards goes to our charity fund, which is donated at the end of the year. Our clients love these cards, and especially love knowing that they donate $15 to Operation Smile every time they purchase them. We do have a limit of three packs per client, which serves to guarantee that they do not use them as birth announcements or holiday cards. At the end of 2006, our total donation was $8,500, a combination of revenue from the cards and our percentage donation from our October sales.

In 2007, we decided to do something a little different. In addition to the Smile Card year-round sales, we opted to sell gift certificates in lieu of the October percentage donation. (we were building a new studio at the time and needed all that profit we could get!).  In October, we pre-sold 2008 gift certificates for $240 (the price of one smile). Included in this certificate was an 8x10 portrait from the session. Given that our session fee is $300, this was a good value to our customers!  We did have success with this, as some of our clients bought these as gifts for their co-workers and we gained new clients in the process. Our total 2007 donation was $6000. We had similar success in 2008 doing the same program, raising $6,500.

We can't wait until the end of 2009, to see how many more smiles we can buy for such deserving children! So far, we have raised over $5,000 . . . so we are on target to bring our total donation through the years to upwards of $30,000.

You can download templates for Angie's vertical and horizontal Smile Cards here: 

Smile_Cards.zip.

Happy Spring to everyone! I am really looking forward to the warm weather and longer sunny days. PPA Charities is very busy already planning for Imaging USA events 2010 but I wanted to take a minute and thank everyone for the amazing successes of Imaging USA 2009!

Our Family Portrait Month contributions allowed us to present another great check to Operation Smile and this is something that we know will change many, many children’s lives. We also had a rockin’ time at Alice Cooperstown in Phoenix, Arizona. Our Celebration Event was amazing! The crowd, the auction, the food, the wonderful band, what a night! I hope that you all had a wonderful time at our event and look forward to seeing each and every one of you at our 2010 Celebration.

Thank you all for your continued efforts and support of PPA Charities. Please continue to check out our website, ppacharities.com, for future events and opportunities to work with us and continue to change children’s lives, one smile at a time.

Peace, Love and Joy,

Mary Fisk-Taylor
President, PPA Charities

PPA Charities is proud to announce our partnership with Michael Redford on his 30 city tour. He is contributing $1.00 per registration, with a minimum of $1000 to PPA Charities in support of our continuing relationship with Operation Smile.

We salute Michael's dedication to raising the standards of photographers through education and also of our profession. And we thank him for his generosity in helping others.

Photographers from Across the Country Provide Smiles
In October, participating member studios of Professional Photographers of America (PPA) joined together for "Family Portrait Month," a national fund-raising effort to benefit Operation Smile. Nearly 350 photographers from 41 states and the District of Columbia participated in the campaign. On January 10, during the PPA Imaging USA 2009 convention in Phoenix, Arizona, PPA Charities presented a $50,635.21 check to Operation Smile. The reception and check presentation was held at Alice Cooperstown. During the four-year partnership, PPA Charities has raised more than $150,000 for Operation Smile. (Visit Operation Smile for the full release: www.operationsmile.org/media/news/photographers-from-across-the.html)

Last October, nearly 350 members of Professional Photographers of America (PPA) in 41 states and the District of Columbia participated in PPA Charities' Family Portrait Month, a, national fundraising effort to benefit Operation Smile, making possible a donation of $50,635 to the charitable partner of PPA Charities. This donation raises the amount that PPA Charities has contributed to children's charities to more than $150,000.

On January 10, during PPA's Imaging USA convention in Phoenix, Arizona, PPA Charities presented the 2008 donation to Operation Smile at Alice Cooperstown. The check was received by 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. Ms. Bachar, who was born with a cleft lip and cleft palate, participated on an Operation Smile medical mission to Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

PPA Charities' over $50,000 donation occurred during a time when many were toning down their charitable donations. In fact, during a four-year partnership, PPA Charities has raised more than $150,000 for Operation Smile...translating into helping hundreds of children and young adults.

PPA photographer Graham Wilson of Colorado was the largest donor to Operation Smile through the 2008 Family Portrait Month campaign, raising $10,000. By generating the largest donation during Family Portrait Month, Wilson won the chance to photograph an upcoming Operation Smile international medical mission.

Operation Smile has posted an item about PPA Charities' efforts on their website; you can read it by clicking here.

Happy Holidays everyone! Thank you so much for your continued support and contributions to PPA Charities. We are all looking forward to Imaging USA 2009 in Phoenix, Arizona. As usual we will kick off the convention with a party and a fabulous auction. This year should prove to be even more amazing with the addition of so many fabulous speakers not to mention the lovely and talented Anne Geddes. We plan to not only auction off VIP seating for this event but will offer many, many other awesome items.

We are all excited and anxious about all of the changes that we are witnessing in our lives. It has been a very interesting year for so many of us. The climate is changing not just outside, but also in our businesses, our country and our world. Change! Change! Change! It has become the buzzword for 2008/2009 and I do believe that change is good. However, as we get so caught up, wrapped up and consumed with all of the changes in the stock market, gas prices, political offices, etc., there are thousands and thousands of children in this world that will not witness any of these changes, not care about any of these changes, and not enjoy the long term benefits that many of these changes will inevitably bring.

At PPA Charities, it is always our mission and responsibility to share the message of charitable giving. We are still proudly affiliated with Operation Smile and again this year we will present a check to them at IUSA. This money is only possible through your tireless efforts and hard work throughout the year, specifically Family Portrait Month. We anticipate that our BIG check may not be quite as big this year, however, it will enable Operation Smile to CHANGE so many children's lives. For this we are so grateful and indebted to all of you that took your hard earned creation fees, sale proceeds, etc. and joyfully gave it to PPA Charities so that we could pay it forward.

So, in this state of perpetual change, please remember that simple check, donation and contribution will create more change than we could ever imagine. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for helping us make these type of changes, change these children's lives, change the map of their futures. Thank you and bless you.

Peace, Love and Joy,
Mary Mary Fisk-Taylor
President, PPA Charities

Happy Fall everyone! Thank you so much for your continued support and contributions to PPA Charities. We are all looking forward to Imaging USA 2009 in Phoenix, Arizona. As usual, we will kick off the convention with a party and a fabulous auction. This year should prove to be even more amazing with the addition of so many fabulous speakers not to mention the lovely and talented Anne Geddes. We plan to not only auction off VIP seating for this event, but will offer many, many other awesome items for winning.

This year we will also host a Golf Tournament on Saturday morning. This should prove to be a great and relaxing way to gear up for a great show. Please plan on coming out early and joining us for both of these exciting events.

Our relationship with Operation Smile continues to grow each year and they are so appreciative of everything that we have done for their organization. Our Family Portrait Month was a HUGE success again last year and we were able to donate $52,000 to Operation Smile. We know that this will change the lives of many children.

PPA Charities hosts a "Celebration" event Saturday evening before PPA's Imaging USA (the national convention in January) officially begins. The celebration event will take place at Alice Coopers Town in Phoenix, just two blocks from Convention Center and features fun, fellowship, and food. The evening kicks off with a VIP Cocktail Hour from 8-9pm. VIP Cocktail Hour tickets are only $35 and include hors d'oeuvres and open bar. The doors open to all convention attendees at 9pm, and the fun continues with the live/silent auction, the check presentation to Operation Smile, and music and dancing.

Mark your calendar now to attend the PPA Charities' Celebration on January 10, 2009, in Phoenix.

Here's an example of how eager photographers are to help when they are simply asked to support a worthy cause: At last year's Make More Money Conference in Memphis, PPA Board member Carol Andrews, who is also a board liaison to PPA Charities, challenged her sales program audience to make a difference in a child's life by donating to Operation Smile. Carol hoped to raise $240, enough to fund one cleft palate operation. Instead, she raised nearly $500 in 5 minutes!

Hats off to Texas School Director Don Dickson, who put his hair on the line at the School's final night party. Don volunteered his head to be shaved for a $5,000 donation to PPA Charities. The nearly 1,000 students in attendance quickly met the challenge, and Don's hair was history (thanks to the stylish efforts of Kansas photographer and former salon stylist Quinn Hancock).

A challenge has been issued: The members of Virginia Professional Photographers Association (VPPA) challenge each and every other state organization to do hold a photographers auction or similar event during state seminars and conventions. The time commitment is minimal, the fun is boundless and the change that can be made is endless. It's true...they raised over $7,000 in less than 45 minutes!

It began February 29, 2008, when the VPPA gathered in Portsmouth, Virginia, for their annual membership brunch, during which they held a photographers' auction (all of the proceeds benefit PPA Charities this year).

Seven local studios volunteered to be auctioned off at the brunch. Each studio agreed to be a mentor for the winning bidder: they would spend one day with the winning bidder at their studio, or the winner could come and visit the mentor's studio. This decision was completely up to the winner, although the date had to be mutually agreed upon.

Nothing motivates people like a challenge. In October 2007, PPA Charities Trustee David Grupa and his good friend David Jones were presenting a program to the Twin Cities Professional Photographers of America (TCPPA). After asking the audience to support PPA Charities, he blurted out this challenge: "If you can put $500 on the table before the end of the night, I will let you shave my head at the next meeting!"

Dave left the meeting with his hair intact, but TCPPA President Mark Kiefer called a few days later, asking "How serious were you about the offer to shave your head?" They chatted about ways to raise money and came up with an idea: Since there are no entry fees on the TCPPA level, members entering the November print competition were challenged to donate $25 per case to PPA Charities. At that rate, 30 cases would bring $750. If that goal was reached, Dave's previous offer would stand.

PPA Charities would like to thank the following individuals and groups that have so generously supported us with their time, talent, and treasure during 2008!

• PPA's Photographic Exhibitions Committee (PEC): For every entry into the International Print Competition (run by PEC), participants are offered the opportunity to donate to PPA Charities. All proceeds go to the charitable fund. Thank you to all participants who donated to PPA Charities. The Charity received over $1,400 from this year's contestants!
• Marathon Press, the PPA Board and PPA Staff: Without their support, Family Portrait Month could not have been such a success for PPA Charities.
• Terry Farmer; Springfield, IL: For your outstanding success with the Family Portrait Month promotion. Congratulations on winning the Operation Smile Grand Prize mission trip to Bolivia. Look for Terry's article in our newsletter and at the Marathon Press webinar archives.
• To our top donors during Family Portrait Month:
  • Diamond Donors gave $5000 or more
  • Terrence Farmer - IL, Angela & Matt Weedon - TX, Doug Peninger & Rick Gibbons - NC
  • Gold Donors gave $1000 - $4999
  • Kathleen Walker - CA,Charlene McKay - CA, Wendy Newman - AZ, Heather Bush - LA
  • Chris & Dawndy Bendet - MO, Sam Puc - CO, Steele Images Studio - CO, Jenny Schomaker - AZ
  • Silver Donors gave $500 - $999
  • Studio 441 - NC, Ed Pedi - MA, Kirk Baxley - GA, ultra-spective photography - CA, Bruce Boutet - MI, Jason Gallus - MN, Anne Grant - NC, Stacey Burke - PA,
  • Karen Bernard - RI, Susan McKinney - TX, Corri Robinson - TX, Jamie Hayes & Mary Fisk-Taylor - VA, Renee Dabill - MN, Brandon Mulnix - MI
• To the nearly 400 PPA studios who participated in Family Portrait Month 2007 and helped us donate $52,000 to Operation Smile.
• Judy Grann and the gang at Successware for their sponsorship of the 2008 Celebration Event in honor of their 100 best clients.
• PPA's vendors and members who donated items to our 2008 Auction:
  • From PPA and the PPAAffiliateSchools
    • The Illinois Workshops Full Scholarship with Meals and Hotel
    • NEIPP Scholarship for Tuition up to $500
    • Scholarship and Board to the Texas School
    • Full Tuition to the 2009 Bahamas School
    • Full Scholarship and Meals to the Triangle Institute
    • PPA Membership Dues
    • Imaging USA 2009 Registration
    • Reserved Seats at the 2008 Canon All Convention Party
    • Reserved Seats at the Howard Schatz IUSA Super Program
    • Reserved Seats at the Kodak Post Awards Ceremony Party
  • Marketing/Photography Instruction from Photographic Instructors
    • Sarah Petty's Meaty Marketing Audio CDs
    • ProTechniques DVDs from Eddie Tapp
    • DVDs on Lighting and Copyright from Jack Reznicki
    • A Seat in Helen Yancy's In Studio Class and her DVDs
    • A Three Day Seminar with Doug Box
    • Carl Caylor's Secrets of Natural Light DVD
    • A spot in Jeff & Julia Woods' EXPOSED Workshops
    • V Gallery Evolution from Jed & Vicki Taufer
    • Ron Nichols Retouching Palettes
    • The "I Want it All" basket from Tim & Bev Walden
    • Sam Puc' offers her Marketing Packet
    • Digital Wake Up Tour DVD from David Ziser
    • Art of Photography Marketing Kit from Hayes & Fisk
    • The Senior Collection DVD from Mary Mannix
    • Lori Nordstrom's Designer Collection Templates
    • Registration to Light Pro 2008
    • CD Marketing/Promotion set from Rick Avalos
    • Gavin's Creative PhotoShop Actions & Tutorials
    • Pro4uM Membership from Kirk Voclain
    • A Day with Dennis and Lori Craft at their Bear Creek Studio
    • BootCamp In-A-Box from Mitche Graff
    • Ralph Romaguera's DVD Set
  • From Our Exhibitors and Vendor Friends
    • Hundreds of rolls of film from Eastman Kodak
    • Larson Enterprises Gift Certificates
    • ProSelect Production Software
    • Production Music
    • Dahle Paper Trimmers
    • Gina Alexander Janie/Photo Handbag
    • Tamrac Aero Photo & Adventure 9 Backpacks
    • Simply Canvas Gift Certificate for Canvas Prints
    • Rice Photo Supply Shopper Bags with Logo
    • Gift Certificates from White House Custom Color
    • Tamron's SP AF90mm, f2.8 1:1 Macro Di Lens
    • Tamrac's Velocity 8x Sling Pack
    • Optio 60 Digital Camera from Pentax
    • A Basket of DVD/CD Folios from Neil Enterprises
    • Designer Website Template, Setup & Hosting from Tafota Marketing
    • Collages.net 10x10 Premium Leather Album, 7x7 Book & Cards
    • One Year lease from SuccessWare
    • NIK Software Pro Suite
    • GW Moulding frame and Gift Certificate
    • OnOne Software set of Actions & Tutorials
    • 10x20 Scenic Muslin from Backgrounds by David Maheu
    • Tenba Roadie Case from MAC Group
  • Other Fun Items
    • A Photopoly Game, A Fly Rod, Autographed Photo of Antoine Winfield, Howard Schatz' hand-signed H2O Coffee Table Book, One Night Stay at the Marriott, Lunch with PPA President Jack Reznicki & CEO David Trust, a Family Pack from the Florida Aquarium, A Week at Deep Creek - featuring the Workshop Facility of Jim & Ann Monteith, Autographed Photo of Arnold Palmer, a Gift Basket from Lisa Jane Murphy, Harmon Killebrew Autographed Baseball, John Woodward's "Contemplating the Temple", and a collector archival print from Joyce Tenneson - "Suzanne in Contortion".
• White House Custom Colour's Mike Hanline for his annual sponsorship of PPA Charities.
• To heroes like David Grupa (TCPPA) and Don Dickson (Texas School) who raised over $10,000 by getting their heads shaved to raise funds for PPA Charities.
• The Twin Cities (MN) PPA for their continuing support as an affiliate who raised over $11,000 for PPA Charities in various events.
• To friends of Harvey Goldstein (60th Birthday) and our beloved Buddy "Keep Grinnin" Stewart (sympathy) who donated in their honor.
• Our friends at ASP who included PPA Charities in their annual art auction.
• Ralph Romaguera, Kodak and many of the 2008 PPA Degree recipients who raised over $2000 from degree photograph donations.
• Carol Andrews who challenged her audience at her program at the PPA Marketing Conference to make a difference in a child's life and ended up raising almost $500 in 5 minutes!