How it All Began

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

It’s hard to believe Debbie and I have only known each other since the summer of 2004. She was one of the first women I met when we moved to the Coachella Valley and she crawled right into my heart and has been there ever since. We have had many, many good times filled with laughter, fun, social events, dinners out, staying in, just being together. When she was diagnosed with cancer I was in shock. What could I do to help? As the “friend” of someone with cancer I, like Debbie, learned an immediate lesson in powerlessness. I wanted to fix this. I wanted to change it. I wanted to wish it away. Instead, I gave her rides to and from City of Hope, I visited her (in between her naps) during her chemo treatments, I was a shoulder to lean on if she needed it. Hah! If you know Debbie…well, she’s not much of a “leaner”. She’s more of a “doer”. And so whatever she needed to do I did along with her.

 During her time of treatment I learned a lot from Debbie and about Debbie. The way she handled herself and her treatment and recovery plan was no less than inspirational. In the midst of all she was going through she always found time to help others. She’d been pushed to the edge and found out she could fly. It was like I saw this blossoming of Debbie and yet, something more than Debbie. Maybe something she would have never found if it weren’t for her diagnosis of cancer. Before she lost her hair she was given a book called “Turning Heads” that was filled with images of bald women and each of their stories. When she finally did lose her own hair, to me she was more beautiful than ever. I wanted to capture that beauty in photographs for her just like the women in the book. We would do our own photo shoot! Without knowing it we started to plan our very first Turning Heads photo shoot with our very first supermodel. Turning Heads was born in our hearts the day we made the decision to do that shoot of Debbie. At the time we had no idea how important it would be to us to share that with others.

Since that day we have found many other supermodels eager to share their own story and to find out what it’s like to embrace the beauty of this very moment, whatever it holds. You can check out our Supermodels Galleries, see their photos and read more about them here.