On Tuesday I had the pleasure of photographing the second annual iHUG Gala event at the National Arts Club in Manhattan. For those not in the know, iHUG is an acronym for I Help Uganda Grow, a grassroots organization that has not only helped erect a school for impoverished African children in the village of Kabalagala, but does everything it can to ensure that its students are properly nourished, dressed, and healthy.
The event was packed, with hundreds of people giving up their time and money to help support the organization. My only obligation was to make sure I got a photo of iHUG’s three founding members. Supposedly, they’ve never been photographed together, which isn’t a surprise as they all pretty much live thousands of miles apart, yet manage to run an amazing charity. Paddy Luzige (left) is the founder of the New Life Church in Uganda, Joanna Breistein (middle) is a New York-based healthcare reporter who runs most of iHUG’s fundraising in the United States, and Jane Dicker (right) is the principal of the school in Kabalagala.
The three rarely meet or hangout, but in the three years since iHUG was conceived these three individuals have changed (and possibly saved) the lives of so many kids in Uganda. It was my pleasure to photograph them together.
