HEAR Me Roar 2018 | Waiting to Hear - Event | Gate City, VA

The way I stumbled upon HEAR Me Roar truly felt miraculous, and I love the internet for situations like this one.

Shannon, the founder of Waiting to Hear, had never met, but we are friends on Facebook.

I was scrolling through my news feed one day, and one of his posts caught my attention because he was looking for some people knowledgeable in photography for his upcoming event, HEAR Me Roar.

Naturally, I commented on the post offering my services to his organization and I am so glad I did.

So, let me tell you a little bit about this organization.

In 2013, Shannon Ball found out that his daughter (who was almost three at the time) suddenly lost her hearing. Sarah was diagnosed as deaf and seven months later received two implants.

I'm sure that the seven months in between diagnosis and the implants were a difficult time. However, Sarah's parents choose to have a positive outlook on the situation. Rather than regarding Sarah as deaf or hearing impaired, they believed she was "waiting to hear."

From that belief system, Waiting to Hear was formed to help other children to hear.

There is only a handful of ways I know to describe the work this organization does, and that's AMAZING and MIRACULOUS!

This was HEAR Me Roar's fifth year, and although I had never been previously, I've heard this was there biggest year yet... I'd definitely believe it.

Costumed characters, volunteers, and families covered so much of the Creation Kingdom Zoo in Gate City, VA. I found myself behind trees, greenery, bushes, etc. to let others by and stay out of the way when stopping to take pictures... and that is not at all a bad thing!

Although I didn't have a huge part in the event, I'd just like to thank everyone who volunteered and came to support this organization.

You all are AMAZING! (I hate to keep using that word, but I honestly don't know how else to describe it).

Enjoy some of my favorite photos from the event, and be sure to check out the vendors I linked below!