Guest blogger Kim Young is chief connecticator at the forest &the trees, whose mission is to help organizations of various models move from connections to partnerships to community. “Connect converse, partner, grow!” is her mantra.

Could one picture be worth at least eight meals for the hungry?

It could be if it were taken with a mobile phone and submitted to the Mobileyes Against Hunger project to raise money to help the North Texas Food Bank feed the increasing number of children, seniors, families and individuals in our DFW community.

One good idea often begets another. And such was the case with an article local photographer Margaret “Peggy” Wolf read in the New York Times about the great response the newspaper had from readers to its cellphone photo solicitation. Last Thanksgiving, Peggy had started the Living in Gratitude project, which gathered donated prints from noted local photographers and auctioned them at a special gallery event that benefitted the North Texas Food Bank. So the idea of cellphone photography really resonated with her.

And so did it with Julie Boehm-Turley and Paige Phelps of the North Texas Food Bank, as well as with local art director Jen Maki and Kim Young of the forest & the trees. So brainstorming sessions were held and the result was Mobileyes Against Hunger. The concept was to engage the creative artist in everyone and put out a community-wide call for people to express themselves using their mobile phone cameras, and then to Share a Photo and Buy a Meal!

Bones, by Les Fincher

The group of volunteers went to work hoping to turn the concept into a fund-raising reality before Thanksgiving. A logo was designed and a website built – www.mobileyesagainsthunger.org. The decision was made to have a minimum requirement of $1 donation per photo submitted (and additional donations encouraged). Because of the buying efficiency of the North Texas Food Bank, every dollar donated can buy the equivalent of FOUR meals, so every photo submitted to Mobileyes Against Hunger could provide at least one meal for four people. BUT, because of the just-announced-and-very-generous-and-historic gift of the Estate of Harry Fagen,  every dollar donated on behalf of the North Texas Food Bank by Dec. 31, 2010, will be matched, AND it’s buying power will increase to EIGHT MEALS! The deadline for photo submissions was set for midnight, Nov. 17, and the submission page on the website was set up to accept up five photos per single transaction. Those who submit photos will be able to see them on the Mobileyes Gallery page.

AND, a special collection of those judged most creative and expressive by a panel of local photography pros will be professionally printed on high quality museum paper and made frame-ready so that they can be auctioned off during a special gallery exhibit event this Sunday, Nov. 21, at the Janette Kennedy Gallery at South Side on Lamar. Talk about truly unique gifts that REALLY give! The gallery exhibit and auction will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and a canned good is suggested for admission. There will be wine, hors d’ oeuvres and live music. Many thanks and much gratitude goes to these sponsors who have contributed to making the event a reality: South Side on Lamar Public Improvement District; Chef David Anthony Temple; James Neel Music House; NXM Group; Stoney’s Fine Wines; Two Sisters Catering; and White House Custom Color.

The short timeline between the first brainstorming sessions and Sunday’s exhibit and auction night was a challenge. But the response to the first Mobileyes Against Hunger has been very positive, and the organizers are proud to note that yes, indeed, one photo can be worth at least eight meals for the hungry!

Brainstorming has already started for next year, so be sure to keep those Mobileyes clicking!

For more information: Kim Young at [email protected]