MENTOR NEEDED
Bridges is looking for a mentor for Hamilton Middle School. We need someone who can volunteer 2 to 3 hours a week from February to June. This is a wonderful opportunity for anyone of the dozens of Seattle based folks who have been through our mentors workshop to work with a very talented teacher, Sharon Greenberg and an international group of sixth and seventh grade students. Sharon’s class has been working on digital stories about water quality in their school, documenting the lives of students from the hill tribes of Thailand and a school mural project led by a Mexican muralist. Please call Kathy @ 275-3247 if you are interested or have any questions.

DANI WEISS, BRIDGES MENTOR continued
Everyone seemed to become more attached to me and me to them.

The most rewarding part about the program has really been the little steps of progress. Sometimes, I hear the kids say, “Cool, Bridges” when I walk into the room. I run into some of the kids in the neighborhood and we are excited to see each other outside of the classroom. Another great step has been watching their progress and excitement over their profiles, story topics, and just their own personal growth.  They are learning to produce images, small films, and think in a story telling fashion. We have a long way to go to educate these kids about the world around them as well as their own neighborhood. But if this changes one student’s outlook and perception of the world through photography then it is all worthwhile.

Dani Weiss has been a professional photographer for over 16 years. Her travel and journalistic assignments have included political protests, drag-queen performances, raucous concerts, and multi-cultural events. Dani is also well known for her beautiful nontraditional wedding and portrait photography as she pushes limits and use instinctive shooting methods to capture events and people.  For more information about Dani and her photography please visit her website at www.daniweissphotography.com