We first met Abbey and her family shortly after moving to Florida thirteen years ago. They also had just moved into Gulf Breeze, so our families became fast friends. In December 2012, Abbey was diagnosed with aplastic anemia (AA) and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) and was to receive a bone marrow transplant at UAB with her sister Kelly as the donor. She and her husband now reside in Panama City Beach, Florida, so moving five hours away and commuting has been a challenge. Abbey’s story and testimony have reached so many in a short period of time (read full story here, at Abbey’s Road on Facebook).
Abbey had to undergo chemotherapy before receiving the bone marrow transplant, and eventually lost her hair as a side effect to the treatment. I knew I wanted to photograph her after seeing a picture she posted on facebook sporting a beautiful, bald head. I borrowed a few fancy dresses from friends and headed to the Hope Lodge for her fashion shoot! I hope she enjoys these images of her beautiful self to look back on for years to come!