I’m not sure if many of you realize, but I have a full-time job aside from photography. I’m a proud employee of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau. My CVB family is so supportive, and you’ll see many of them and their families featured on my blog. Among so many other things going on in this great city, one of the events we produce is the Music City Walk of Fame. Think Hollywood stars in the ground, but the difference is that this one is geared toward musicians, singers, songwriters, producers and anyone with a musical influence on Music City. We hold induction ceremonies twice a year. This is a look back at one of my favorites from November 2009…

We are holding our next Walk of Fame Induction Ceremony TOMORROW, May 15th at 2:30pm in Walk of Fame park – behind the Hilton/in front of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. If you have the chance, come out for this free (yes, FREE) event. Tomorrow we will induct Bill Anderson and Keith Urban. This will mark stars number 49 and 50. Some of the previous inductees have included Reba, Martina McBride, Elvis and Jimi Hendrix. That’s right. It’s not just about country music, people! The photos below mark the induction of Dolly Parton, Charlie Daniels, Kid Rock, Ernest Tubb and Tootsie Bess. You never know who you will see at one of these events. I personally plan on stalking Nicole Kidman with my camera tomorrow. What.

Come see us tomorrow! Or next time you’re in downtown Nashville, take a walk in Walk of Fame park and get a photo with your favorite star. Cheers to Music City!

Today marks the one year anniversary of the devastating flood that hit Nashville. The anniversary of the havoc that was wreaked on my beloved city. The anniversary of precious lives that were lost and homes destroyed. I took these photos a couple of days after the rain stopped. I stood on the pedestrian bridge downtown for some of them; others were taken in a friend’s neighborhood in Bellevue. In the days that followed the flood, we just showed up and offered to help. That’s all we knew to do. I quickly realized why I love this city. The flood crushed our homes and our neighborhoods, but it didn’t crush our spirits. I’ve never seen volunteerism at that level. I’ve never seen a community come together to help friends, family and complete strangers begin to rebuild their lives. We didn’t get national media coverage for very long, and I’m convinced it’s because we stood together. You didn’t hear about looting or chaos like you often hear of when natural disasters strike. What you heard about in the local news was story after story of community, of encouragement, of renewal and of hope. Looking back on the past year, I’ve never been so proud to be a Nashvillian.