Last week I had the opportunity to shoot a small surprise party for none other than my Junior High Jazz Band instructor: Mr. Freeman. A few weeks back I received a call from his daughter (who was about 9 or 10 when I last saw her and is now in college) about a surprise party and I was surprised myself. I haven’t really been in contact with the old Marysville Junior High Thunderbirds crowd, but I have a lot of fond memories of Junior High and playing bass in Jazz Band. Mr. Freeman was probably one of two teachers that really influenced my life in a positive way so it was an honor providing some photography. And yes, he was very surprised.

One of the reasons our recent car wreck hit home so hard is because of my friend Koti. Many of you know and love Koti as the charismatic and super-talented musician. I had the amazing privilege of being in a band with Koti a few years back. Playing music with Koti was a big part of my life until we moved to LA and I learned and grew a lot from Koti. I continue to learn and grow but the big difference is that Koti was paralized in a car accident on July 28th. It doesn’t seem fair and I’ve struggled a lot wrapping my head around the whole thing, but every time I’ve visited with Koti since the accident, I come away motivated because of who Koti is; his attitude and how he lives life.

With that said, the real reason for this post is to invite everyone to attend a benefit in Koti’s honor this Saturday evening in Bellevue. Dinner will be prepared by Chef Steve Cain, Executive Chef of the Waterfront Seafood Grill and Koti’s good friend Nick Thune will be making an appearance as well (you might have seen him on with Jay Leno).

“Extraordinary measures for extraordinary need.” is the idea. Suggested donation is $500 per plate. I’m so excited to see Koti and the love that surrounds him as well as be a small part of the event photographing the evening. - Images circa 2004, taken by Nick Onken.