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GOING HOME!

In 2000 I left my hometown of Barbourville Kentucky and moved just a short ways to what I thought was another world London Kentucky…. yes I know some of you are laughing but to a small town county girl who didn’t travel very often that was a LONG……..way from momma and daddy and everything she had ever known especially her home. I had just turned 20 when I married my soul mate but I was still so much a kid. In my thought process leaving home was what was best for me and my family there was more to offer in a larger county than in little ole Knox Co,so Yes my hubby didn’t have to twist my arm at all to get me to move away from home. Knox Co had nothing to offer me anymore or so I thought.
15 years later I have learned just how wrong I was! Knox County helped mold me into the person I am today. In the last 6 months I have been so blessed to venture back into my old stomping ground with my job as a photographer. I have been able to rekindle some old relationships with friends I haven’t seen since High School #KCHS. I have been able to open back up lines of communication with friends I haven’t seen or talked to in forever and I am loving it! But the more I have thought about it the more I have come to realize just what Knox Co has meant to me and does mean to me now, so I wanted to share this with you.

I have heard these excuses over and over and I myself have used these excuses to why I moved away
(There is nothing for my kids and their future in Knox Co; it’s just too small of a town, nothing is here worth staying for) Well I am here to tell you how untrue those excuses are! I moved away had my beautiful family and those excuses are just excuses. No matter where you live whether it’s a small town or a large city your hometown is what you make of it. I have tried my hand at lots of different jobs and none of them worked for me. It was never satisfying for me. I longed for more. I longed for my first love yeah you guessed it photography! No I’m not going to make this post about my job but I will say it was in my hometown where I found my true calling! 7th grade Career Day at Barbourville Independent School I was forced to pick a career, I found my happiness that day but I didn’t know how that happiness would come full circle until I came back home many many years later and since I have been able to visit some of the businesses that my friends have started in Knox Co. I have seen firsthand what a small group of people can do in a small town.

A few months ago I was so blessed to be part of a Wedding that would not only launch my wedding photography but open my eyes to a new love for my hometown and the relationships that town gave me. I showed up to the wedding rehearsal to see many of my high school friends working the same event I said over and over that it was like a small class reunion. My hometown has produced some very talented people and I have to say I looked in awe as I seen everything unfold into such a beautiful wedding fit for a king and queen! I am sure the Bride and Groom felt that way, but what I was blessed to see through the lens of my camera changed my life forever! From the Beautiful Flowers arrangements to the Place settings, the hair and make-up to the music played before, during and after! This wedding was exquisite! I am still amazed and I am still getting inquires about that wedding!

I was also very blessed to be asked for my services to photograph a very special event for a beautiful young lady who lives in my hometown now. It was a dedicated dance just for her and again I stepped into that venue and was amazed at the work my hometown poured into making this young lady a night to remember.
Tonight as I write what is on my heart I am slowly reminded of what God has given me! Not just a life to live but a Beautiful life to be a part of! My love for my hometown has never been far from my heart it just took going back and seeing the good in people there to rekindle that love! In my heart of hearts I would move back in a second but my children have grew up here in London and this is their hometown I can’t take that from them but I can always go back to my hometown thanks to it not being very far away. I was talking to a few of my friends in Knox County when I said “this business would not be here if you weren’t here or if you hadn’t had the desire or dream to open up this business here” so in all honesty YOU are what you can offer your hometown & what you have to offer is up to you and if you decide to keep it in your hometown! Even though I moved away I am so blessed to still be able to work for fellow Knox Countians and surrounding areas and to be supported by my hometown is a feeling I can’t describe they have continued to pour out their love for me and my photography! They have supported me big time so thank you Knox Co for never leaving me! I Love all you have given to me! Relationships, Creativity, and a place I will always call HOME!
Jina (Gail) Smith LaFary
UnForgettable Photography by Jina
606.260.7522