That little boy is Fred Strain, my grandfather. He is leaning on the knee of his father and surrounded by his brother, sisters, and mother. He is leaning on his father's knee, and his mother is seated beside him. The hi-lited faces of the older couple on the next row are his grandparents.

The date on the back of the photograph is May, 1899. Notice that my grandfather is barefooted in the image. He often spoke of the fact that they were so poor that he could not afford shoes. But, someone in the family (probably his grandfather) hired a professional photographer to capture the event of the Remine family reunion.

For me, this photograph is a priceless gift. It is the only thing that remains from that time in my family's history. Because of this photograph, I can see my precious grandfather as a child, and I can look into the faces of my great grandparents and my great-great grandparents. Over a hundred years later, I can gain a glimpse of who they were and learn a little more about their story. Because of the date of the photograph (May, 1899), more meaning from this image comes because I know that his mother died 11 months later. This is the only photograph that exists of my grandfather with all of the members of his immediate family.

I get emotional every time I look at this image and contemplate its meaning. Stretching across more than a century of time, it thrills me to know that my own unborn grandchildren will also have this image to speak to them of their own history.

I never forget when I am photographing the precious families, babies, and children that come into my studio that, through our work of that day, we are creating a part of their family's legacy. My gift of photography is an awesome possession and it is my small way of attaining a sense of immortality.

I hope to see you in front of my camera someday very soon.

Take a look
at the hi-lited boy on the front row that is leaning on the man's knee.