The Reach For A Dream Foundation organised a day out for 13 of their benefactors. The girls were collected from various hospitals in disadvantaged areas and treated like princesses for a day. Grant Johnson was there with his camera...
When I received the circular email asking for sponsorship, I volunteered to take pics of the day's events, along with fellow photographer and friend Gavin.
They started out with a dance class in Nia (non-impact-aerobics) Studios, and were then chauffeured to a nearby high school courtesy of the local Harley Davidson Chapter. Most of the girls loved it, but a few opted to follow behind in the saftey of 4-wheels.
They were then all treated to a hand massage, manicure & full make up before getting dressed into a ballgown.
This was followed by a belly dancing demonstration and another chance for the girls to get dressed up and try it out for themselves.
Finally, the girls were all given a tiara, a wand & a sash and the opportunity to pose on a throne and have their photo taken.
Then, whilst all the girls were enjoying lunch, it was a mad dash to the local photographic shop to have 1 photo of each girl developed and inserted into a (donated) frame. The girls were then each presented with their own framed photo as a souvenier for the day.
The rest of the pics are intended to be used for promotional purposes to attract future sponsorship.
What is Reach for a Dream?
"The Reach For A Dream Foundation, an organisation that has brought hope and healing to countless young South Africans, believes strongly in the power of dreams. It encourages children of all income groups and of any race, colour or creed between the ages of 3 and 18 years to use their dreams to fight life-threatening illnesses such as cancer and leukemia, cystic fibrosis and muscular dystrophy, kidney failure and HIV infections."
(Quote from the Reach for a Dream website)
Images and story copyright to Grant Johnson. All rights reserved.
View more images by Grant Johnson (aka The Mule in the Pool) at his flickr page.
Want to volunteer? Visit the Reach for a Dream Foundation website to find out how you can become involved.
