Spartanburg youth provides community outreach through family photographs
November 15, 2018
Jeremiah Drummond, a junior at North Greenville University, will provide free photos of families and friends who gather this Thanksgiving at the Soup Kitchen of Spartanburg, Thursday, Nov. 22, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
The award-winning project, P.A.F.T. (Picture a Family Together), was created by Drummond in 2015 while a student at Dorman High School, and a participant of the Riley Institute’s Emerging Public Leaders (EPL) program at Furman University.
Drummond has continued P.A.F.T. since that time and has expanded the program to include sponsors, volunteers from Dorman High School, and professional photographers Lee Smith, Jason Runkle and Jay Jay Ferguson.
Hundreds of photos will be taken and distributed to individuals at the Soup Kitchen. The portraits will be printed and framed onsite to enable recipients to use them as gifts or keepsakes.
Said Drummond, “After experiencing such a great turnout from the last three years, I felt like it was my duty to help more families this year. There’s nothing like seeing a family smile and allowing them to cherish that moment forever.”
Drummond can help more families now with the assistance of local professional photographers and the support of sponsors like Furman University, First Baptist Church of Spartanburg, Spartan Photo Center, Mylows Customs, Showtime Productions and ITM Talk Show.
Bands again donating their talents this year are Lovely Big O and Reggie Rocc, who will perform during the P.A.F.T. event.
For more information, contact Jeremiah Drummond at 864-205-7599, or [email protected]. At Furman’s Riley Institute, contact Melanie Armstrong, 864-921-8367, or [email protected]. Learn more about the Riley Institute’s Emerging Public Leaders program.
