I looked at the calendar and suddenly realized that we only have 3 days left until 2016! And as I thought about if I would have any regrets this year, the only thing I could think of was to spend my last few 2015 days giving to others. In that spirit, these next three blog posts will be dedicated to giving.

Each day I will choose one person from the comments to receive a care package from me, including a costume from my collection, a hand-written note, and a little something extra to brighten your new year.

These are the main ways that I chose to give back this year.

1. Made donations to campaigns. Some of them include a campaign to end gender-based violence, and another was to help a small village in Uganda plant ginger to grow a sustainable income.
2. Donated time to a cause I care about. I spent time at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary this year to help rescue and take care of animals in need.
3. Initiative. I started a photography school in India called The Light Space to benefit survivors of human trafficking abuse.
4. Donated prints to various charities. One was to a print auction for the foundation BeyondBlue – the money goes to helping people who suffer from anxiety and depression to help prevent suicide.
5. Created educational content. I love releasing videos so much! And in doing so, I can only hope that they have been helpful for someone in some way.

But we’re entering a new year. A new phase. This is how I want to give back next year:

1. Start a new section of this blog dedicated to making it easy and efficient for YOU to donate your SERVICES to raise money for a cause I care about deeply. We don’t all have money to spare for any cause we care about, and I want to make it possible for anyone to support a charity.
2. Donate 5 prints next year to important charitable causes.
3. Conduct 3 photography workshops to children in hospitals to help empower them to tell their stories.
4. Visit at least two animal sanctuaries to give my time to those adorable little creatures.
5. Create more educational content for free.

To enter the giveaway to receive a free COSTUME + Surprise, just leave a comment below answering…

How are you going to give back next year?

Have you been able to give back this year?

This is the dress that I’ll be giving away for today’s contest! Winner will be chosen at random and notified by 12pm PST on Wednesday, December 30th. This dress is actually more purple/maroon but can very easily be changed to a vibrant red (or almost any other color!) in Photoshop if need be. It flows really nicely and I’m quite sad to see it go, as I’ve been using it to shoot with for the past 3 years! Time to give someone else a chance to play!

Love and hugs!

We have made great leaps forward during my last trip there and are almost ready to open the doors to the first class of 15 students. I am partnered with Blossomy, the amazing organization that I work through in India, as well as New Light, an organization in Kolkata to help survivors of human trafficking. The partnerships are in place, a location is rented, a curriculum has been set, we are securing the main instructors, and we will open doors officially in October 2015. Now it is time to fill the space…”The Light Space”, to be exact…a play on our partner organization’s name, New Light, and referencing the safe space that these individuals will have to create in.

We are looking for donations to run the school, as using our limited budget for equipment would deplete it quickly, and we need that money to go toward payment of instructors and rental fees.

What we need (any brands, new or used!):

DSLR Cameras
Lenses
Batteries/Chargers
Memory Cards
Tripods
Camera Bags
Laptops/Chargers

If you would like to donate, email me for an address.

My assistant will be gathering the equipment. This address expires in May, so please ship donations before MAY 2015. I will be sending HUGE THANK YOUs to everyone involved. And really, truly, thank you for aiding in the fight against human trafficking and for your generosity. Even if you cannot give anything at this time, thank you for reading and for spreading the word. You are light.

For any questions regarding donations, you can contact me through my website at:

www.brookeshaden.com/contact