Elkhart photographer offering free photo sessions for foster families

ELKHART, Ind.-- Elkhart photographer, Jonathan Wohlford, is using his passion for photography and love for foster kids and merging it together.

He’s offering free photo sessions to foster families in Michiana.

Wohlford says he’s using his camera to help foster families celebrate their adoptions and create a lasting memory, all for free. 

According to the Indiana DCS welfare policy, you cannot have more than 6 kids in a household if youd like to foster a child.

Wohlford has always wanted to be a foster dad but with 6 kids of his own, he’s over the limit, so he found photography as a way to get involved.  

“I’ve always wanted to be a foster dad but we have six kids and so we’re over the limit and those kids include two 6-month-old twins so we wouldn’t be fostering anyway!  Long story short, im a Bethel nursing student and one of my professors is a foster parent and I just asked how I could get involved and i’ve always been into photography so this is where the idea came from," said Wohlford.

Talk about what the response has been with that. What have families said that youre offering these services for free? 

“Shock. I’ve had people say, ‘how much is it really?’ it’s nothing. Its one of those things where I want to bless people. I want to show God's love in a real and practical way. Ever since I was a youth i've wanted to do that and this is the way that I can do that.” 

Wohlford believes having something phsyical for foster children to have and see themselves as part of a family is important to their growth. 

“I think that they understand the psycho-social aspect of having kids see their picture in a family photo. I don’t know if the general community does. It’s huge psychologically and developmentally to see themselves as part of a family. It’s one thing to be a part of the family psychically but actually see it as they’re developing is huge for them.” 

So far, has only 2 foster family sessions under his belt with 4 more on the schedule.

If you'd like to have your family photographed you can find a link to his photography page here.