I Had a Dream Project features inspiring individuals through exhibits, film, and photojournalism feature stories. 

I Had a Dream Project’s subjects are complex and passionate individuals, so devoted to their cause an outsider may deem it as obsession. That’s a good thing, because they’re redefining our nation’s social structures, actively pursuing positive change led by example. How else would we move forward if not for individuals like these? Although the subjects are all different ages and backgrounds, they each tell a unique story with a common theme based on the very roots of the project’s message, turning adversity into inspiration, inspiration into creation, and creation into cooperation, so life can be more meaningful for all of us.

The first subject is Christian Hageseth who I met for only minutes years ago but left an imprint on me since.

Christian has the incurable, degenerative Parkinson’s disease that I wrote about in his feature story, "I Had a Dream to Redefine What it Means to Have a Degenerative Disease." Because of his positive attitude and determination, he’s doing better than the day he was diagnosed.  He’s climbing mountains, teaching elderly people about the mind-body connection and sojourning to Uganda to help people with Parkinson’s disease who have no access to medication – all the while not taking any medication himself.

The second subject is Mike Prysner, an American veteran who is still grappling with moral injury from the Iraq War.  Mike is also a political activist and the writer and producer of the independent political documentary series The Empire Files with Abby Martin. 

When I met Mike last summer in Los Angeles to interview and photograph him, the first thing that I noticed about him is that he is ahead of his age and his time.  He thinks quickly, speaks quickly and is overflowing with ideas and passion on what kind of world we can create beyond war.

Throughout the process of creating Mike's story, "I Had a Dream...To Tell the Truth About War," I witnessed Mike’s guilt and shame from his participation in the Iraq War.  I believe that he feels that he can never be forgiven for following military orders of interrogations, raids and deportations of Iraqi families that left him with no choice but to tell the truth about war rather than bury the memory.  

And although the Iraq War is over, I know it’s still an open book for Mike and the thousands of other soldiers who were deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Iraq war has been the catalyst for this former soldier to disclose the truth about war.  Since Mike’s time in Iraq, he has participated in leading some of the greatest anti-war movements, saved soldiers from being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan through his “Our Lives Our Rights” campaign, and has been a voice for not only soldiers who were once isolated like he was, but for all people, worldwide, to understand our connectivity.  His political activism has spilled into the deeper pool of human rights, where he became a worldwide speaker, writer and crusader for global equality.

The third subject is Kaylee Rogers, an Irish girl who teaches people through her beautiful voice when she sings that autism is a gift.

It all started two years ago when Kaylee shocked the world with her beautiful choir rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”  Since then, Kaylee’s voice has been heard around the world by millions of people through her videos and on stage, including this year on Little Big Shots with Pentatonix. 

Kaylee is a student at Killard House School in Northern Ireland, who has autism and ADHD.  Often described as “shy” in real life by the people around her, Kaylee’s mother Tracy says she has never been shy when it comes to singing.  Anyone who has heard Kaylee sing knows that a star has been born.

When it comes to autism, our society can often categorize people and label them when we see something different.  What we don’t always understand is that people who we label with autism are really teachers in disguise.  

The fourth subject is Mike Hanes of San Diego, CA, an innovative and futuristic man who journeyed seven months on the Appalachian Trail solo after the death of his only sibling, his brother Matt. It is in nature that Hanes finds healing from his past, PTSD, and solutions to life’s most basic and complex problems that align with his quest to create a sustainable future.