Back in 2020, as Noemi shared her diagnosis and going through chemotherapy, her daughters Selena and Sierra both shaved their heads without a doubt to show their support for their mom. When Noemi shared her surprise and this touching gesture I know I want to capture their bonds especially I've witnessed first hand their love through a photoshoot prior for their four generations of women together. Thankfully, I was able to meet up with Noemi and Selena to document this moment.
.
I asked Selena what she wants to share about her mom and she said the only thing she'd really want to say is that her mom is a fighter. Noemi's journey through life itself has been hard and challenging and somehow she finds the fire in her to keep going. Noemi makes her wants to fight harder in life. And without her contributions, both good and bad throughout her life, she has made her into the person she is today and she hopes her daughter Athena can learn from Noemi's spirit, too.
[Personal Project]
You are not a work in progress, you are a work of art - a masterpiece from the start. A never-ending journey of becoming and stepping into your highest potential. It takes time, likely messy, sometimes even feeling moving backwards. Keep giving yourself space and grace - to move, to groove, to feel, to lose, to do, to be. You are always right on time.
------------------
If you've ever met Noemi Mimi Perez, you know how much of a kind, sweet, and joyful soul she is. I have been shooting for her with dance teams and personally for the family so many times. In 2020, she received a devastating diagnosis of stage 3 Angiosarcoma of the scalp, a rare and aggressive cancer with only a 30% survival rate. However, most people don't know about any of this until months later, until her friend encouraged her to share her story as people in similar situations would want to know what she was going through and it may help others going through similar situations. Throughout the whole ordeal, Noemi is still always a beam of sunshine with the most lovely smile and positive energy. Right away I know I have to do something and this is also one of the reasons I started this personal project series as I mentioned couple days ago - To share these inspiring women's story and show you how we can all glow in grace in this world despite the challenges.
.
Every journey has a lesson. Noemi has been living with autoimmune diseases (lupus/scleroderma) for so long yet not many people knew because she refused to let her disease define her because she is so many other things - A loving mother and daughter, devoted wife, accomplished IT system engineer and an inspiring realtor. When the cancer diagnosis happened it took her completely off guard. Knocked her off of her feet... She initially planned to keep this diagnosis to herself because she didn't want to be pitied by others, or feel like she was burdening anyone's lives... crazy. But the truth is, from this journey she learned people genuinely care... much more than she ever imagined! We had a gofundme (https://gofund.me/0ba6b9ca) and she was overwhelmed by the amount of support received from family, friends, and the amazing salsa community.
.
Stay tuned for more of her story, the post will be updated as the story unfolds.
Back in 2020, as Noemi shared her diagnosis and going through chemotherapy, her daughters Selena and Sierra both shaved their heads without a doubt to show their support for their mom. When Noemi shared her surprise and this touching gesture I know I want to capture their bonds especially I've witnessed first hand their love through a photoshoot prior for their four generations of women together. Thankfully, I was able to meet up with Noemi and Selena to document this moment.
.
I asked Selena what she wants to share about her mom and she said the only thing she'd really want to say is that her mom is a fighter. Noemi's journey through life itself has been hard and challenging and somehow she finds the fire in her to keep going. Noemi makes her wants to fight harder in life. And without her contributions, both good and bad throughout her life, she has made her into the person she is today and she hopes her daughter Athena can learn from Noemi's spirit, too.