Memory Care Photos - StoryPoint God & Goddess Sessions

From a very young age I learned to not only respect my elders, but to fully appreciate them. My grandma was my absolute idol. There was nothing she couldn’t do. She passed away in 2020, and I have missed her every day since then. I wish I had more images to look back on—but photos are something that many senior citizens, especially those in memory care facilities, don't invest in. My grandma definitely did not have her own goddess session!

I’m a photographer by trade, and I was approached to photograph residents in a Memory Care facility. Although my own grandma did not have dementia, my husband’s Grammy did. The twist on these sessions was that each resident would be either a God or Goddess. Karin, the activities director at StoryPoint in Urbandale was a dream to work with. My trusted make-up artist and dear friend, Alyssa Lloyd, came to pamper the residents before their photos with blush, eyeshadow, and lipstick. Some of the men even opted for a bit of rogue or a sprinkle of glitter. At the facility, I was able to set up different stations and bring although a clothing rack, floral clips, and even crowns for the residents to choose from. Alyssa helped residents choose their best colors and the residents were able to choose one of three set-ups in the adjacent room. The room at StoryPoint was lovely and allowed for multiple set-ups—including in front of the brick fireplace, a white bookcase, or in front of a black patterned backdrop that I had brought. I used my professional lighting to illuminate the residents. Karin and the staff at StoryPoint then gifted the images to the residents’ families for the holidays.

I believe that the residents impacted me just as much—if not more than I impacted them! That’s saying quite a bit because for some residents, this was the first time they ever had their photos taken professionally. While photographing, I showed some residents the back of the camera, and they and tears in their eyes saying how beautiful they felt.

I left feeling fulfilled and wishing I could have stayed longer to hear their stories and gotten to know more about them. One couple was married for 43 years and the way they looked at one another—you could immediately tell they were still as much in love as they were all those decades ago when they said ‘I do’ and sworn their love to one another. I also had the opportunity to photograph several service members and thank these brave veterans for their service. Others proudly represented their hometowns or talked about their teaching career. I even learned a few swear words in Polish from one resident. A few residents had family members visiting at the time of our sessions, so I encouraged them to jump into photos too if they were available and interested.

This session was a dream and really filled my heart. I'd love to expand this service offering to other facilities as well as make photographing at StoryPoint a yearly event. This is also a subtle reminder to you to call your grandparents and go visit them. Take photos with them and listen to their stories. Ask them questions about what it was like for them growing up. Time {and memories} are fleeting.

It was especially important to me that I treat the residents with dignity and respect during our short time photographing together, but also during the editing process. I took the extra time to review the stickers on their wheels or cosmetic editing with clothing. I believe the extra time was well worth the outcome and the gift that me and StoryPoint provided the residents and their families.