SPARK IS STARTING IN NEW JERSEY!
When I first moved to Brooklyn, I was so intimidated by the big bad city and wondered if I was actually crazy to try and establish a photography business in the most competitive city in the world. But then I started to make friends and little by little, the city wasn't so scary anymore. One day, over a delicious bowl of Pad Thai, two of those friends and I were lamenting how hard it can be on our faith during the wedding season.
We frequently have to miss church on Sunday due to weddings, and while we LOVE what we do, we were really drained spiritually and physically. Together, we started SPARK: Turning Darkness Into Light - a weekly get together for female Christian photographers to focus on faith and community. (Read more about what SPARK is here!!)
Caroline & Amy made sure we met almost every week for 3 years including some really fun quarterly events like this cherry blossoms shoot! We even hosted a free workshop to share knowledge and experience with photographers who were just starting their businesses! With anywhere from 5 - 20 people meeting each week, the city started to feel smaller and smaller, and eventually, it felt like home.
Of course, NYC is just a passing through point for many . . . people come, people go. Caroline recently moved to California, and many of our friends (myself included) moved to New Jersey. With so many of us now located in New Jersey, it only makes sense to move SPARK here as well! Even though I grew up in NJ, this state is HUGE. We invite you to help us make it feel a little smaller! :)
NJ SPARK will be hosted every week on Wednesdays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. by Amy Rizzuto, Mekina Saylor, and myself, Cassi Claire. The plan is to alternate locations between Bridgewater and Morris Plains, so you'll want to make sure you're on the email list for the latest info and addresses!! If it's hard for you to attend on weekdays, we've also got some super awesome quarterly events and shoots planned! We'd LOVE to meet you, so send me an email (cassi@cassiclaire.com) and we'll make sure you get the latest updates.
SPARK is honestly too awesome to fit into a blog post, so if you're interested in learning more, save-the-date for the Launch Party next week! It'll be on Wednesday, January 13th from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. (so you can avoid traffic on the way there and home!) in Bridgewater, NJ*. We'll have yummy food & drinks and the photo booth will be set up, so we're encouraging cocktail-cute attire. It'll be a super fun time to get to know each other before we kick off our series on the Fruits of the Spirit and how we can apply them to life & business. We cannot wait to continue building our community and faith in this awesome state!
Share this post if you know someone who might like to come! :)
*The party will be hosted at a private residence in Bridgewater, NJ. Email Cassi for the address: cassi@cassiclaire.com
PS: We are focused on spiritual growth in God. You totally donβt have to have all of your spiritual beliefs figured out to come, but you should know that we talk about the Bible, what it means to be Christian and we spend time praying for each other! <3