Welcome to People of Peace. This semester I am taking portraits of students, faculty, staff and alumni of William Peace University, which will more often than not, be paired with a brief interview, quote, story, etc.
The inspiration for this project comes from the highly successful Humans of New York blog, also known as HONY. A photographer named Brandon started HONY in 2010 and his vision has now become a New York Times Best Selling book, among other accomplishments.
HONY is not only a blog, it’s a home for the network of people who have compassion towards others. If you read the comments on any of his pages, you will see the amount of understanding and empathy HONY followers have. In fact, HONY fans from across the world often start fundraisers for some of Brandon’s subjects; the most recent fundraiser reached over one million dollars for a middle school in Brownsville, NY. My only hope is that People of Peace can bring our campus community together in the same way HONY has brought the world together.
Enjoy!
Emily Banegas, Class of 2016. I asked her what not many people guess about her if they didn’t already know her and she told me she’s very involved on campus. I then asked her why she chose to be as involved as she is.
“I want to make this the best experience. I want college to be the best experience – that’s the only way to get it, and I am getting it.”
Kay Savage and Sarah Edmonds, Class of 2018.
“Student Council is actually going to a convention on February 27th that’s going to talk about sexual harassment and places you can go if it were to happen on campus. There’s actually a couple cases that have happened this year and they’re just kind of looked over because [William Peace University] is not as big, so people just don’t think it happens.”
I asked what advice they would impart on a large audience.
“Just be aware of your surroundings.”
Luis Gomez and Enrique Ochoa, Class of 2017.
“Who’s taller?”
