Operation: Love ReUnited
This all-volunteer organization helps military families capture memories to last a lifetime.
by Julie Steed
A surge of adrenaline hits as you see your spouse and rush to greet him after being separated for months. Or maybe it is your turn to say good-bye. Either way, the last thing on your mind is your camera. These moments of raw emotion cannot be recreated. But thanks to Operation: Love Reunited, they can be preserved in photos.
We talked to Tonee Lawrence, Air Force spouse and founder of OpLove, and two of the more than a thousand volunteer photographers.
MSM: How did you come up with the idea for Operation: Love ReUnited?
Tonee: My husband deployed in 2005, and when he returned, I had no one to take photos of ME. I only have pictures of the kids with their dad. I researched for about eight months to find if there were any organizations I could join. There weren’t, so I put the rules in place and got busy.
MSM: Can you tell me about a particularly romantic OpLove photo shoot?
Tonee: One session that I had was with an officer in the Army. He and his wife had just found out they were pregnant and he was set to deploy. The images are so romantic—the couple is really in love! There’s nothing like a soldier passionately kissing his beautiful wife goodbye.
Gina Geigley, Gina Geigley Photography, Navy Spouse
MSM: How long have you volunteered with Operation: Love ReUnited?
Gina: I found out about OpLove when it was just months old in early 2007. My husband had just left for a yearlong deployment to the Middle East and I had this overwhelming urge to be knee deep in the organization. I immediately contacted Tonee and told her that I wanted to help.
MSM: What is your most memorable OpLove photo shoot?
Gina: A wife contacted me to do a maternity session of her first baby to send photos to her Marine in Iraq. Weeks later she went into labor and her Marine was just days away from arriving. I was fortunate enough to photograph their baby’s birth. Three days later, I was with mom and baby as they awaited his unit’s arrival.
Breezy Cranford, Breezy Cranford Photography, Navy Spouse
MSM: Why did you decide to volunteer with OpLove?
Breezy: When I heard about this organization, I thought it was great. I would love to have photos of my entire family at our own homecomings.
MSM: What is your most memorable OpLove photo shoot?
Breezy: The ones when a father gets to see his baby for the first time. I have done several of those sessions and they are so heartwarming.
Check out more photos from Operation: LoveReUnited at www.milspouse.com/oplove
Photographers of Operation: Love ReUnited are strictly volunteers and are not compensated for their time or work. Visit oplove.org for more information.