Hello and thank you for visiting my blog!  My name is Jackelynn Noel Powers.  So you can better get to know me I am going to do a series of posts about me, stories from growing up, my family, my goals, my cat, the love of my life, Tom, and our adventures 🙂

My father although from Massachusetts met my mom while working a job that had him traveling to St. Louis.  He was working to install cash registers at the downtown St. Louis Stix, where my mom happened to be working while attending business school.  At the end of their first date he knew she was the one and was bold enough to ask her what color the bridesmaid dresses would be at their wedding.  She replied, “You’re crazy.”  Mom’s bridesmaids wore pastel purple and blue.

Ten years, 3 children, moving to Boston and back to St. Louis, my mother received the wonderful news that they were expecting baby number four 🙂 She didn’t take the news lightly and argued that the pregnancy wasn’t possible and that they should instead scan her for brain cancer… apparently baby Jackie caused headaches.

The doctors told my parents that they could expect their baby at Christmas but I had other plans and didn’t make my appearance for another two weeks.  My parents gifted me with my Great Grandfather Jack’s name and a middle name to pay homage to my tentative due date.

Throughout my whole childhood my parents instilled in us the importance of education, family, hard work, and respect to others and ourselves.

My dad was one of ten children.  He was born and raised in Charlestown, Massachusetts.  He was quite the story-teller, pool hall hustler, and very gifted at math.  His stories were always entertaining and a little unreal… however as I grow older I have found that dad really did live a crazy life and basically all the Ben Affleck movies based in Boston are legit.   Dad always worked hard to take care of us, often pulling overtime, and even a side gig here and there to provide for us, but he was at every soccer game, basketball game, and boy scout meeting encouraging us.   He taught us passion, hard-work, to finish what you start, blood is thicker than water, and to always be there for each other.

My mom grew up slightly differently in Illinois in a rural community where her father worked at the mill and their farm and her mom took care of the family.  She was the middle child and always striving for more.  After high school she moved to St. Louis and went to business school to study fashion.  My mom’s talents are endless but to name a few, she can sew, draw, design, hand letter, and teach.

She put her dream on hold to create our family and that sparked her next calling, teaching.  Throughout school when we were assigned to write about our hero, I always chose my mom and will still choose her today.  She taught us by example.  She went back to college when I was in second grade and worked at it day and night for 6 long years to earn her Bachelor’s degree in education.  She worked full-time for four of those years as well but found time to coach my soccer team, attend my field trips and class recitals, french braid my hair and paint nails.  She set the stage for my future.  She showed it was possible as long as you work hard and commit yourself.  I can’t image all the sacrifice she endured to give us everything we needed and more.  I hope to someday be as great as a mom as she is and truly think of her as a best friend.

When my dad passed away in 2003 our family was rocked.  Together we got through it though and it only strengthen our bond as a family and inspired us to be everything our parents wanted us to be.

I strive to incorporate their teachings into my everyday life and photography company.  I am passionate about producing great work, bonding with my couples, telling their wedding day story, and being there for them on their wedding day.  I work hard, am motivated, and always willing to go above and beyond.  I stay educated on current technology, techniques, and practices that may better my couple’s experience.  I know the importance of family and make sure I communicate with the couple’s family on their wedding day and make time to photograph them.  I also respect my couples’ traditions, ideas, and time by planning ahead, communicating, and recognizing when they need an extra hand.

.. More to come. ❤️